Fix PHP MySQL Slow Queries
Find and Optimize Problem Queries Fast
APRIL 11, 2025 • WRITTEN BY ROMAN AGABEKOV
If you’re a PHP developer working with MySQL, especially on WordPress, Drupal, Laravel, Joomla, Symfony or custom CMS projects, you’ve probably hit this wall:
The site is slow. The client is unhappy. You suspect the database… but where do you even start?
Tracking down performance issues in MySQL usually looks like this:
The Usual Workflow
- Enable the MySQL slow query log (if it’s not already)
- Grep through logs to find something suspicious or use an APM tool like New Relic.
- Run EXPLAIN manually to analyze query plans
- Try indexing or rewriting queries
- Repeat when the site slows down again
It’s tedious, reactive, and doesn’t scale well when you’re juggling multiple projects or environments.
Releem Changes That
At Releem, we built a tool that simplifies this process by automating the detection and analysis of problematic queries. But we didn’t stop there.
Most tools only flag slow queries. Releem also catches frequent queries that might be fast but hit the database hundreds or thousands of times a minute.
With Releem, you can:
Most tools only flag slow queries. Releem also catches frequent queries that might be fast but hit the database hundreds or thousands of times a minute.
With Releem, you can:
- Automatically collect slow and frequent queries
- See how they impact performance over time
- Get clear, context-aware recommendations
- Avoid manual log parsing and EXPLAIN hunting
All without needing to SSH into the server or touch slow query logs directly.
Why It Matters for PHP Developers
- You spend less time debugging and more time building features
- You can spot performance regressions early - before users notice
- It works across staging, production, or client environments
- It keeps MySQL tuned as the app evolves
Whether you’re working on WordPress, Laravel, Symfony, or something custom - if MySQL is underperforming, the whole app feels slow. Releem helps you fix that at the root.
Check out this short video to see how easy we’ve made it to spot and solve real MySQL issues.
WRITTEN BY ROMAN AGABEKOV