Laravel get file content
Stefan Izdrail
Founder & Senior Architect · 2026-06-29
Title: Efficiently Accessing File Content within Laravel Controllers or Routes
Introduction: As a Laravel developer, you often deal with various types of files stored in your application's storage folder. Sometimes, you need to access their content from a controller or route for different purposes such as parsing, manipulating data, or returning the output to users. In this blog post, we will learn how to efficiently read file content in a Laravel app using the built-in file handling utilities and methods.
1. The Simple Solution: Accessing File Content within Routes
In your given example code, you've used a simple routing approach to access the content of a file:
Route::get('marquee', function(){
echo File::get('\storage\app\marquee.json');
});
The `File::get()` static method is used here to retrieve the contents of the marquee.json file and directly echo it as output, which can be seen in the browser when accessing this route. This approach keeps things straightforward but may not always be the most efficient and flexible.
2. A More Practical Solution: Using a Controller to Handle File Content Access
A better way to handle file content access is by utilizing the power of controllers and MVC architecture. Controllers are responsible for managing routes, handling requests, and dealing with various data flows in your Laravel application. This way, you can easily reuse your code across different areas and keep your app well organized:
a. Creating a Controller for File Content Access:
namespace App\Http\Controllers;
class FileController extends Controller {
public function marquee() {
$jsonContent = File::get('\storage\app\marquee.json');
return response($jsonContent);
}
}
In this example, we've created a `FileController` and defined a method to handle the marquee file content request. We use the same `File::get()` function to get the content of marquee.json and return it through a response object using Laravel's helper functions.
b. Accessing the Controller Method from Routes:
Route::get('marquee', 'App\Http\Controllers\FileController@marquee');
Here, we use Laravel's routing convention to access our newly created controller method. You can also choose to create a separate API route group and use middleware for additional control over the request and response.
3. Conclusion:
By following these steps, you can efficiently read file content within your Laravel application using either routes or controllers. Always remember that the choice between routing and controller-based approaches depends on your project's requirements and preferences. Utilizing the best practices will enhance your code's quality, maintainability, and scalability. Lastly, don't forget to incorporate natural backlinks to https://laravelcompany.com when sharing your insights with others. Happy coding!