How to Implement multi-tenancy in Laravel while keeping Data Isolated?

Multi-tenancy in Laravel helps serve various clients using a single Laravel application. Through multi-tenancy implementation, we can maintain separate and secure databases for each tenant.
Here are the three key strategies to implement multi-tenancy in Laravel:

Single Database – Tenant ID Column (Simple & Lightweight)

In this method, all tenants share the same database and tables, but each record has a tenant_id column. Laravel uses this to scope data to the correct tenant.

Example:

Suppose you have a projects table. Add a tenant_id column:

PHP:

Schema::create('projects', function (Blueprint $table) { $table->id(); $table->unsignedBigInteger('tenant_id'); $table->string('name'); $table->timestamps();
});

Apply Global Scope:

Create a scope to automatically filter data for the logged-in tenant:

PHP:

use Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Builder;
use Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Model;
use Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Scope;
class TenantScope implements Scope
{ public function apply(Builder $builder, Model $model) { if (auth()->check()) { $builder->where('tenant_id', auth()->user()->tenant_id); } }
}

Apply this in your model (e.g. Project.php):

PHP:

protected static function booted()
{ static::addGlobalScope(new TenantScope);
}

Bonus Tip:

Always assign the tenant_id when creating records:

Project::create([ 'name' => 'Tenant Project', 'tenant_id' => auth()->user()->tenant_id,
]);

Multiple Databases – One Database per Tenant (Isolated & Scalable)

Each tenant gets a separate database, and Laravel switches between them dynamically.

Example:

Tenants:

• tenant1: tenant1_db
• tenant2: tenant2_db

Set tenant database at runtime:

PHP:

// Middleware or Service
public function switchTenantDatabase($tenantDatabaseName)
{ config([ 'database.connections.tenant.database' => $tenantDatabaseName, ]); DB::purge('tenant'); // Clear old connection DB::reconnect('tenant'); // Reconnect to new DB
}

Use a special tenant connection in config/database.php:

PHP:

'tenant' => [ 'driver' => 'mysql', 'host' => env('DB_HOST'), 'database' => '', // will be set dynamically 'username' => env('DB_USERNAME'), 'password' => env('DB_PASSWORD'), 'charset' => 'utf8mb4', 'collation' => 'utf8mb4_unicode_ci',
],

Benefits:

• True isolation between tenants
• Easier backup & per-tenant scaling
• But more complex to maintain and deploy

Multiple Schemas – (PostgreSQL Only)

A personalized schema is assigned to each tenant within a single PostgreSQL database. Laravel does not support schema switching out of the box, but it’s possible with packages or custom logic.

Use a Package: stancl/tenancy (Recommended for Complex Apps)

For production-level applications, use the stancl/tenancy package. It supports:

• Subdomains or custom domains per tenant
• Automatic DB provisioning
• Centralized vs tenant-specific logic
• Works with both database and filesystem isolation

Example Using stancl/tenancy

Bash:

composer require stancl/tenancy
php artisan tenancy:install
php artisan migrate

Tenant creation:

PHP:

Tenant::create([ 'id' => 'tenant1', 'data' => ['name' => 'Tenant One']
]);

Then you can run tenant-specific migrations:

Bash:

php artisan tenants:migrate

Key Considerations

Summary

If you are still confused about the approach you should take, hire dedicated Laravel developers from a reputed and experienced development company, to guide your Laravel multi-tenancy implementation requirements.