What is Factory Pattern?

The Factory pattern encapsulates object creation logic, allowing code to work with abstractions rather than concrete implementations. A Simple Factory uses a method to decide which class to instantiate. A Factory Method lets subclasses decide which class to create. An Abstract Factory creates families of related objects. Benefits include decoupling object creation from usage, easier testing (factories can return mocks), and simplified object construction when creation involves complex setup. In PHP, factories are commonly used in frameworks for creating database connections, logger instances, and service objects based on configuration.