What are the potential pitfalls of using regex to extract URLs in PHP, particularly for beginners?

Using regex to extract URLs in PHP can be challenging for beginners because regex patterns can be complex and difficult to understand. Beginners may struggle to create an accurate regex pattern that captures all valid URL formats, leading to incorrect or incomplete matches. Additionally, regex is not always the most efficient or reliable method for parsing URLs, especially when dealing with complex URL structures. To address this issue, beginners can consider using built-in PHP functions like `filter_var()` with the `FILTER_VALIDATE_URL` filter to validate URLs. This approach is simpler and more reliable than using regex, especially for beginners who may not be familiar with regex syntax.

$url = "https://www.example.com";

if (filter_var($url, FILTER_VALIDATE_URL)) {
    echo "Valid URL: $url";
} else {
    echo "Invalid URL";
}