How to Upload and Store Files on AWS S3 in Laravel

Uploading files to AWS S3 is a common requirement in modern Laravel applications. Amazon S3 provides scalable, secure, and cost-effective cloud storage for files such as images, documents, and media assets.

Prerequisites

• A Laravel application
• An AWS account
• An S3 bucket created in AWS

Step 1: Install AWS S3 Driver

Install the Flysystem AWS S3 package using Composer:

composer require league/flysystem-aws-s3-v3 "^3.0"

Step 2: Configure AWS Credentials

Add the following configuration values to your .env file:

AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=your_access_key
AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=your_secret_key
AWS_DEFAULT_REGION=us-east-1
AWS_BUCKET=your_bucket_name
AWS_USE_PATH_STYLE_ENDPOINT=false

Tip: Always keep your AWS credentials private and never commit them to GitHub.

Step 3: Configure the S3 Filesystem Disk

Open the config/filesystems.php file and make sure the S3 disk is configured correctly:

's3' => [
    'driver' => 's3',
    'key' => env('AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID'),
    'secret' => env('AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY'),
    'region' => env('AWS_DEFAULT_REGION'),
    'bucket' => env('AWS_BUCKET'),
    'url' => env('AWS_URL'),
],

Step 4: Create a File Upload Form

Create a simple Blade form for uploading files:

<form action="{{ route('upload') }}" method="POST" enctype="multipart/form-data">
    @csrf
    <input type="file" name="file" required>
    <button type="submit">Upload</button>
</form>

Step 5: Handle File Upload in Controller

Create a controller method to store the uploaded file in your S3 bucket:

use Illuminate\Http\Request;
use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Storage;

public function upload(Request $request)
{
    $request->validate([
        'file' => 'required|file|max:2048'
    ]);

    $path = $request->file('file')->store('uploads', 's3');

    return response()->json([
        'message' => 'File uploaded successfully',
        'path' => $path,
        'url' => Storage::disk('s3')->url($path)
    ]);
}

Step 6: Define the Route

Add the upload route in routes/web.php:

use App\Http\Controllers\FileController;

Route::post('/upload', [FileController::class, 'upload'])->name('upload');

Step 7: Make Files Public (Optional)

If you want uploaded files to be publicly accessible, set their visibility:

Storage::disk('s3')->setVisibility($path, 'public');

Common Issues

• Incorrect AWS credentials
• S3 bucket permission issues
• Incorrect AWS region

Pro Tip: Use IAM roles and restrictive policies to improve security when working with S3.

Conclusion

Uploading and storing files on AWS S3 in Laravel is simple using Laravel’s filesystem abstraction. With the correct configuration and security practices, S3 becomes a powerful storage solution for scalable applications.