{"id":25526,"date":"2016-01-25T23:01:53","date_gmt":"2016-01-25T15:01:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/?p=25526"},"modified":"2024-05-14T22:23:46","modified_gmt":"2024-05-14T14:23:46","slug":"skilled-wordpress-developer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/skilled-wordpress-developer\/","title":{"rendered":"Mastering WordPress Development: A Comprehensive Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The journey to becoming a skilled developer is challenging and continuous. New frameworks and web technologies constantly push developers to learn more each year. WordPress is one of the most popular PHP CMS platforms and powers <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/managewp.com\/14-surprising-statistics-about-wordpress-usage\">almost 20%<\/a> of all self-hosted websites.<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019re into PHP development, WordPress is a system worth learning and mastering. But how do you go about doing so?<\/p>\n<p>In this post, I\u2019ll outline key areas of WordPress that every developer should understand. You may consider creating your own structured <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/learn-wordpress-2015\/\"><strong>WordPress learning curriculum<\/strong><\/a>, where you focus on specific areas for a few weeks or months at a time. This will help you maintain focus and progress through WordPress at a steady pace.<\/p>\n<h2>Modern WordPress Theming<\/h2>\n<p>If you\u2019re new to WordPress, it\u2019s worth learning about <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.elegantthemes.com\/blog\/tips-tricks\/a-beginners-guide-to-the-wordpress-dashboard\">the dashboard<\/a> before diving into the nitty-gritty.<\/p>\n<p>But I\u2019m assuming you already know the basics and want to understand <strong>how to build on top of the WordPress platform with code<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Theming is the best place to start. Plugins are great, and custom functions are useful, but <strong>theming is essential for every WordPress site<\/strong>. Whether creating a new theme from scratch or customizing an existing one, you should be comfortable with WordPress\u2019s theming system.<\/p>\n<p>The only required files for a theme are the <strong>style.css<\/strong> stylesheet and the main <strong>index.php<\/strong>. WordPress theming uses conditional files, so <strong>if there isn\u2019t a homepage.php, WordPress defaults to index.php<\/strong>. Similarly, if there\u2019s no <strong>author.php<\/strong> for the author archive page, WordPress uses <strong>archive.php<\/strong> instead.<\/p>\n<p>WordPress theming is straightforward once you learn the hierarchy. Here are the minimum bare-bones files that every WordPress theme should include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>style.css \u2013 the theme\u2019s official stylesheet with theme info<\/li>\n<li>index.php \u2013 fallback page for anything without a unique theme file<\/li>\n<li>home.php \u2013 your blog\u2019s homepage, static or archive content<\/li>\n<li>single.php \u2013 a single post\/article layout<\/li>\n<li>page.php \u2013 a single page layout<\/li>\n<li>archive.php \u2013 a catch-all for archives like categories, tags, authors, and dates<\/li>\n<li>404.php \u2013 the default 404 error page layout<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Advanced themes <strong>should include more specific files<\/strong> to define content and layout design better.<\/p>\n<p>To learn more, check out the <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/codex.wordpress.org\/Theme_Development#Template_Files_List\">template files list<\/a> in WordPress\u2019s official documentation. There\u2019s also a handy diagram explaining how theme file hierarchies operate:<\/p>\n<figure><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/skilled-wordpress-developer\/01-wp-theme-hierarchy-full.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/skilled-wordpress-developer\/01-wordpress-custom-diagram-theme-hierarchy-thumb.jpg\" alt=\"WordPress theme hierarchy diagram\" width=\"800\" height=\"550\"><\/a><\/figure>\n<p>Each theme is usually developed as a standalone entity that can include theme-dependent plugins and functions. All themes are written in PHP, allowing for a theme file to function as a library, restricting features to a single theme.<\/p>\n<p>Alternatively, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/wordpress-child-themes-dev\/\"><strong>child theming<\/strong><\/a> can work well for building on top of an existing theme. This is an advanced topic, and not everyone likes child themes as they can get complicated quickly.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s worth understanding how they work and deciding if child themes fit a specific project.<\/p>\n<h2>Basic Plugin Development<\/h2>\n<p>The two key aspects of WordPress development are themes and plugins. Since themes affect the site\u2019s layout and interface, they should be your first area of study. The natural next step is plugin development.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/beginners-guide-to-wordpress-plugin-development\/\"><strong>Building a WordPress plugin<\/strong><\/a> is challenging but manageable with practice. There\u2019s enough online material to make it easier to learn.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s also possible to build WordPress websites entirely with free third-party plugins without writing your own. But skilled WordPress developers should understand how plugins function and how to write one when needed.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ref-block ref-block--post\" id=\"ref-post-1\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/installing-wp-plugins-considerations\/\" class=\"ref-block__link\" title=\"Read More: 5 Essential Tips for Installing WordPress Plugins\" rel=\"bookmark\"><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">5 Essential Tips for Installing WordPress Plugins<\/span><\/a>\n<div class=\"ref-block__thumbnail img-thumb img-thumb--jumbo\" data-img='{ \"src\" : \"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/thumbs\/250x160\/installing-wp-plugins-considerations.jpg\" }'>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<noscript>\n<style>.no-js #ref-block-post-23614 .ref-block__thumbnail { background-image: url(\"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/thumbs\/250x160\/installing-wp-plugins-considerations.jpg\"); }<\/style>\n<\/noscript>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"ref-block__summary\">\n<h4 class=\"ref-title\">5 Essential Tips for Installing WordPress Plugins<\/h4>\n<p class=\"ref-description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tPlugins make WordPress powerful \u2013 we can change and add almost any functionality to WordPress easily just by...\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Read more<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Two important terms you should know are <strong>filters<\/strong> and <strong>actions<\/strong>. Both take in code and return or output something, but in different ways.<\/p>\n<p>Filters return code, such as a string of HTML or a newly updated variable. Actions output code directly into hooks predefined in WordPress themes, plugins, or even the WordPress core.<\/p>\n<p>Check out <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/wordpress.stackexchange.com\/a\/1008\/8922\">this Stack thread<\/a> to learn more.<\/p>\n<p>These methodologies have functions that mirror each other. For example, <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/codex.wordpress.org\/Function_Reference\/add_action\">add_action()<\/a> and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/codex.wordpress.org\/Function_Reference\/add_filter\">add_filter()<\/a> work similarly for actions and filters, respectively. The same applies to <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/codex.wordpress.org\/Function_Reference\/do_action\">do_action()<\/a> and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/codex.wordpress.org\/Function_Reference\/apply_filters\">apply_filters()<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ref-block ref-block--post\" id=\"ref-post-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/wp-action-hooks-theme-customization\/\" class=\"ref-block__link\" title=\"Read More: Mastering WordPress Action Hooks for Theme Customization\" rel=\"bookmark\"><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Mastering WordPress Action Hooks for Theme Customization<\/span><\/a>\n<div class=\"ref-block__thumbnail img-thumb img-thumb--jumbo\" data-img='{ \"src\" : \"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/thumbs\/250x160\/wp-action-hooks-theme-customization.jpg\" }'>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<noscript>\n<style>.no-js #ref-block-post-24866 .ref-block__thumbnail { background-image: url(\"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/thumbs\/250x160\/wp-action-hooks-theme-customization.jpg\"); }<\/style>\n<\/noscript>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"ref-block__summary\">\n<h4 class=\"ref-title\">Mastering WordPress Action Hooks for Theme Customization<\/h4>\n<p class=\"ref-description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tWordPress child themes provide an easy way to customize the appearance of a theme. If the theme's options...\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Read more<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Plugin development requires reading and practice. Confusion is part of the learning curve.<\/p>\n<p>I recommend this Tuts+ <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/code.tutsplus.com\/articles\/the-beginners-guide-to-wordpress-actions-and-filters--wp-27373\">guide<\/a> covering the basics of actions and filters. WP Engineer also has a great post on <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/wpengineer.com\/1302\/define-your-own-wordpress-hooks\/\">defining your own hooks<\/a> for building fully functional themes\/plugins that can be extended with code.<\/p>\n<h2>Developing Internal Features<\/h2>\n<p>WordPress offers several internal features via classes and APIs that all developers can access. Some are advanced, like the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/wordpress-url-rewrite\/\">rewrite API<\/a> or the <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/v2.wp-api.org\/\">REST API<\/a>, but beginners should start with simpler features:<\/p>\n<h3>Functions.php File<\/h3>\n<p>Opinions vary on the <strong>functions.php<\/strong> file. I\u2019m a big fan. This file stores theme-specific functions and settings that <strong>define how the theme operates through shortcodes, hooks, and filters<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Your theme\u2019s functions file can also have custom PHP functions called from other theme files. Some consider this bad practice, but <strong>it\u2019s an effective way to organize theme-specific functions into one library<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Check out <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.stackexchange.com\/questions\/1567\/best-collection-of-code-for-your-functions-php-file\">this list of free snippets<\/a> to explore what\u2019s possible with a theme\u2019s functions.php file.<\/p>\n<h3>Shortcodes<\/h3>\n<p>Shortcodes are defined in PHP but can be added directly to content. They typically appear as square brackets in the WordPress post\/page editor, like <code><\/code> to build an image gallery.<\/p>\n<p>Check out the <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/codex.wordpress.org\/Shortcode\"><strong>shortcodes documentation<\/strong><\/a> for examples and to learn how they work.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ref-block ref-block--post\" id=\"ref-post-3\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/create-wordpress-shortcodes\/\" class=\"ref-block__link\" title=\"Read More: How To Create Your Own WordPress Shortcodes\" rel=\"bookmark\"><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">How To Create Your Own WordPress Shortcodes<\/span><\/a>\n<div class=\"ref-block__thumbnail img-thumb img-thumb--jumbo\" data-img='{ \"src\" : \"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/thumbs\/250x160\/create-wordpress-shortcodes.jpg\" }'>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<noscript>\n<style>.no-js #ref-block-post-22733 .ref-block__thumbnail { background-image: url(\"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/thumbs\/250x160\/create-wordpress-shortcodes.jpg\"); }<\/style>\n<\/noscript>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"ref-block__summary\">\n<h4 class=\"ref-title\">How To Create Your Own WordPress Shortcodes<\/h4>\n<p class=\"ref-description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tShortcodes are a very powerful feature of WordPress. In essence a shortcode is a placeholder for some other...\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Read more<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h3>Custom Post Types<\/h3>\n<p>Before WordPress 3.0, there were only a few default post types: attachments, posts, and pages. These are often enough for most WordPress websites.<\/p>\n<p>But the introduction of CPTs allows developers to create new types like newsletters, eCommerce products, and user-submitted content.<\/p>\n<p>These custom post types can also have their own <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/wordpress-custom-taxonomy-for-users\/\">custom taxonomies<\/a> beyond the default tags and categories. <strong>CPTs can be defined via plugin or in a theme\u2019s functions.php<\/strong>. There\u2019s much flexibility once you learn how these work and how to write your own.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ref-block ref-block--post\" id=\"ref-post-4\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/wordpress-custom-taxonomy-for-users\/\" class=\"ref-block__link\" title=\"Read More: Register Custom Taxonomy For WordPress Users\" rel=\"bookmark\"><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Register Custom Taxonomy For WordPress Users<\/span><\/a>\n<div class=\"ref-block__thumbnail img-thumb img-thumb--jumbo\" data-img='{ \"src\" : \"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/thumbs\/250x160\/wordpress-custom-taxonomy-for-users.jpg\" }'>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<noscript>\n<style>.no-js #ref-block-post-22016 .ref-block__thumbnail { background-image: url(\"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/thumbs\/250x160\/wordpress-custom-taxonomy-for-users.jpg\"); }<\/style>\n<\/noscript>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"ref-block__summary\">\n<h4 class=\"ref-title\">Register Custom Taxonomy For WordPress Users<\/h4>\n<p class=\"ref-description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tThe Custom Taxonomy feature has been introduced since WordPress 2.9. It allows you to create custom groups for...\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Read more<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h3>Custom Fields<\/h3>\n<p>Few developers understand the power of custom fields until they start using them. When writing a new post in the admin panel, you\u2019ll notice widgets for tags, categories, a featured image, etc.<\/p>\n<p><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/codex.wordpress.org\/Custom_Fields\">Custom fields<\/a> add more widgets to the page for extra content, known as <strong>meta-data<\/strong>. The SEO plugin Yoast does this by adding its own custom fields in the post\/page section to update the title\/meta content.<\/p>\n<figure><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/wordpress-seo\/screenshots\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/skilled-wordpress-developer\/02-yoast-seo-widget-new-post-page.jpg\" alt=\"yoast custom field wordpress\" width=\"800\" height=\"550\"><\/a><\/figure>\n<p>It\u2019s possible to add a field that stores any type of metadata, from multiple featured images to alternate author bios. The capabilities are limitless once you learn <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/wordpress-custom-fields\/\">how to build custom fields<\/a> and use the info effectively.<\/p>\n<h2>Advanced WordPress Development & Beyond<\/h2>\n<p>The content covered so far might take years to master and fully apply to your workflow. WordPress is easy to start with, but challenging to master.<\/p>\n<p>Beyond theme and plugin development, consider <strong>incorporating specific WordPress APIs<\/strong> into your learning path. These are for advanced developers who want to explore everything WordPress offers.<\/p>\n<p>Here are a few ideas to get you started:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/codex.wordpress.org\/Settings_API\">Settings API<\/a> \u2013 define custom settings pages and input fields<\/li>\n<li><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/codex.wordpress.org\/Options_API\">Options API<\/a> \u2013 the standard method of storing database content<\/li>\n<li><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/codex.wordpress.org\/Rewrite_API\">Rewrite API<\/a> \u2013 rewrite URLs and create custom WordPress permalinks<\/li>\n<li><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/codex.wordpress.org\/Transients_API\">Transients API<\/a> \u2013 store temporary data in a database cache<\/li>\n<li><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/codex.wordpress.org\/Class_Reference\/WP_Query\">WP_Query<\/a> \u2013 a class for writing custom database queries<\/li>\n<li><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/codex.wordpress.org\/Class_Reference\/Walker\">Walker<\/a> \u2013 a class for managing tree data structures like page hierarchies<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Remember that <strong>learning is an ongoing process<\/strong>. To become a skilled developer, you need consistent effort and passion for the industry.<\/p>\n<p>Bookmark these topics and practice regularly, and you\u2019ll find yourself among the ranks of many professional WordPress developers.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The journey to becoming a skilled developer is challenging and continuous. New frameworks and web technologies constantly push developers to learn more each year. WordPress is one of the most popular PHP CMS platforms and powers almost 20% of all self-hosted websites. If you\u2019re into PHP development, WordPress is a system worth learning and mastering.&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[4663,511,252],"topic":[4520],"class_list":["entry-content","is-maxi"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v22.8 (Yoast SEO v27.6) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>How to Turn Yourself into a Pro WordPress Developer<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The journey to becoming a skilled developer is challenging and continuous. New frameworks and web technologies constantly push developers to learn more\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/skilled-wordpress-developer\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Mastering WordPress Development: A Comprehensive Guide\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The journey to becoming a skilled developer is challenging and continuous. 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