Difference between php inside html and vice versa

Question

I was always curious, is there any significant advantage or disadvantage of writing php inside html or vice versa

example:

echo '<ul>'
foreach ($items as $item)
{
    echo "<li>$item</li>";
}
echo '</ul>

As opposed to:

<ul>
<? foreach($items as $item): ?>
    <li>$item</li>
<? endforeach; ?>
</ul>

Since these essentially generate the same thing, when would you actually use one over the other?

Answer 1

Functionally they are the exact same and won't have an appreciable affect on performance, if any. It comes down to personal preference and readability - if one is clearer than the other and will be easier for others (or the future you) to understand, go with that one.