Fix "SQLSTATE[HY000] [1049] Unknown database" in Laravel

• Fixing SQLSTATE[HY000] [1049] Unknown Database in Laravel — Deep Dive
• Why Laravel Might Throw This Error
• Step-by-Step Laravel‑centric Fixes
• How to Solve

Fixing SQLSTATE[HY000] [1049] Unknown Database in Laravel — Deep Dive

When working with Laravel, one error you might see is: SQLSTATE[HY000] [1049] Unknown database 'mydatabase'

This indicates that the database Laravel is configured to use can’t be found by MySQL/MariaDB. Below is a more robust guide, combining community wisdom, common pitfalls, and specific Laravel‑centric fixes.

Why Laravel Might Throw This Error

Here are recurring causes in Laravel setups:

• Default database leftover in config Laravel’s config/database.php often sets defaults like:

  'database' => env('DB_DATABASE', 'laravel'),
  'username' => env('DB_USERNAME', 'laravel'),

  If your .env isn’t loaded or config is cached, Laravel may fall back to laravel and attempt to connect to it.

• Cached or stale configuration Changing .env isn’t enough if the config is cached. You must clear Laravel’s config cache:

  php artisan cache:clear
  php artisan config:cache

  Doing this forces Laravel to re‑read .env and refresh its internal settings.

• Wrong .env settings / port mismatch If your MySQL server is running on a nonstandard port (e.g. 3308 instead of 3306), Laravel’s DB_PORT must match. Also, double-check for typos, stray spaces, or line breaks in the .env file.

• Database not created or dropped If the configured database doesn’t exist on the server, Laravel will not be able to connect. Creating the database usually resolves the issue.

Step-by-Step Laravel‑centric Fixes

Here’s a checklist you can follow to resolve this reliably:

How to Solve

1. Correct .env

   DB_CONNECTION=mysql
   DB_HOST=127.0.0.1
   DB_PORT=3306        # or whatever your MySQL uses
   DB_DATABASE=my_app_db
   DB_USERNAME=my_user
   DB_PASSWORD=secret

2. Ensure the database exists

   CREATE DATABASE my_app_db;

3. Flush privileges if needed

   GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON my_app_db.* TO 'my_user'@'localhost';
   FLUSH PRIVILEGES;

4. Clear Laravel cache and reload config

   php artisan cache:clear
   php artisan config:cache

5. Restart or reload your server / environment If using php artisan serve or Docker, stop and start it again.

6. Check for config overrides Search for duplicate .env files or environment‐specific config paths that might override your intended settings.

7. Run migrations

   php artisan migrate

If after doing all these steps, you still see the error, double-check for stray spaces or hidden characters in your .env keys.