Minimum Grid Path Sum in PHP

Algorithms: Dynamic Programming November 15, 2026 PHP

A minimum path through a cost grid combines optimal results from above and left when movement is restricted to right or down..

php
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<?php
declare(strict_types=1);
// Minimum Grid Path Sum in PHP
//
// PURPOSE
// A minimum path through a cost grid combines optimal results from above and left when
// movement is restricted to right or down.
//
// METHOD
// Use one row of cumulative costs. Initialize the first row and column, then add each cell
// cost to the cheaper predecessor.
//
// COMPLEXITY
// O(rows * cols) time, O(cols) auxiliary space.
//
// CONTRACT
// rows,cols>=1. grid is a flattened matrix of nonnegative costs. All sums must fit signed
// 32-bit.
// Public APIs infer array lengths except in C, which accepts pointer/length pairs. Vertex
// counts and matrix dimensions remain explicit. Arrays must contain signed 32-bit integers.
// Sorted order, correct tree topology, and caller-owned data-structure invariants are
// preconditions; checking them on every query would change query complexity.
// Scalar and shape checks are included. Value-range checks are included where needed to
// prevent invalid indexing or nontermination. Allocation sizes are capped at 4,000,000
// workspace entries. Arithmetic outside Python raises an error on 32-bit overflow; Python
// uses arbitrary precision. Native allocation failures propagate. In-place outputs may be
// partly updated after arithmetic failure. These are single-threaded, in-memory
// implementations.
//
// LANGUAGE DETAILS
// PHP 8.1+ on a 64-bit runtime: packed arrays, strict scalar types, read-only inputs by
// value using copy-on-write, references only for outputs, and checked 32-bit arithmetic.
// Invalid input and overflow throw exceptions. PHP arrays have higher overhead than native
// packed buffers in C/Java.
//
// EXAMPLE
// Expected return: 7.
// Run: php example.php
// Tests for this exact source artifact run before publication. The accompanying source
// archive includes unit cases, runtime results, and source hashes.

function alg_require(bool $valid): void { if (!$valid) throw new InvalidArgumentException("invalid algorithm input"); }
function alg_checked(int|float $v): int { if ($v < -2147483648 || $v > 2147483647 || floor($v) != $v) throw new OverflowException("32-bit result overflow"); return (int)$v; }
function alg_add(int $a,int $b): int { return alg_checked($a+$b); }
function alg_sub(int $a,int $b): int { return alg_checked($a-$b); }
function alg_mul(int $a,int $b): int { return alg_checked($a*$b); }
function alg_size(int $n): int { alg_require($n>=0 && $n<=4000000); return $n; }

function minimum_path_sum(array $grid, int $rows, int $cols): int {
    alg_require(array_is_list($grid));
    alg_require((count($grid) == alg_mul($rows, $cols)));
    alg_require((($rows >= 1) && ($cols >= 1) && ($rows <= 1000000) && ($cols <= 1000000)));
    $dp = array_fill(0, alg_size($cols), 0);
    $r = 0;
    $c = 0;
    while (($r < $rows)) {
        $c = 0;
        while (($c < $cols)) {
            if ((($r == 0) && ($c == 0))) {
                $dp[$c] = $grid[0];
            } else {
                if (($r == 0)) {
                    $dp[$c] = alg_add($dp[alg_sub($c, 1)], $grid[$c]);
                } else {
                    if (($c == 0)) {
                        $dp[$c] = alg_add($dp[$c], $grid[alg_mul($r, $cols)]);
                    } else {
                        $dp[$c] = alg_add(min($dp[$c], $dp[alg_sub($c, 1)]), $grid[alg_add(alg_mul($r, $cols), $c)]);
                    }
                }
            }
            $c = alg_add($c, 1);
        }
        $r = alg_add($r, 1);
    }
    return $dp[alg_sub($cols, 1)];
}

$grid = [1, 3, 1, 1, 5, 1, 4, 2, 1];
$rows = 3;
$cols = 3;
$result = minimum_path_sum($grid, $rows, $cols);
echo $result, PHP_EOL;