How to Become a WordPress Developer: Step-by-Step Instructions for Developer WordPress

One of the nicest features of WordPress is how nicely it scales with your abilities. Without any technological experience, you may pick up the platform and develop a great site. However, as you gain experience, you might begin to question how to become a WordPress developer.

You don't have to leap into the deep end straight away, thankfully. There are several methods to ease your way into WordPress programming and begin polishing the abilities you'll need. Your prior expertise will influence how steep of a learning curve you face, but this is a field that almost anybody may enter.

To get you started, we'll go through how to become a WordPress developer, concentrating on what you'll need to know and pointing you in the right direction.

The growth of WordPress opens a lot of opportunities.

Make WordPress is an excellent resource for learning about all of the different ways you may become involved with WordPress development.

Let's clear things up before we get started. We're not only talking about learning how to become a full-time WordPress developer when we say "learn how to become a WordPress developer." Of course, you are free to do so. There are, however, several reasons to dabble with WordPress development, even on a part-time basis.

The following are some of the most popular reasons for learning how to become a WordPress developer:

• You want to personalize your site even more than the basic choices allow.

• Existing plugins and themes don't meet your needs, therefore you'd want to make your own.

• You want to generate money with WordPress development by selling plugins, themes, or websites, for example.

• You wish to contribute to WordPress's core platform by developing for it.

Whatever your motivations are or how big your ambitions are, you'll want to start with the fundamentals. Let's have a look at what it takes to learn how to code for WordPress.

What does it take to become a WordPress developer? (3 steps to get started)

There are several paths to development WordPress, and none of them are appropriate for everyone. However, there are a few things that every novice should undertake. We'll walk you through the stages below to help you get ready to dive into the world of development WordPress.

Step 1: Learn the fundamental languages.

Knowledge is power, and nowhere is this more true than in the field of development. The most crucial need for learning how to become a WordPress developer is a working knowledge of the languages on which the platform is built.

While there are many languages that might be beneficial, the following four are the most important:

1. PHP: This programming language is the foundation of WordPress and is necessary for a lot of back-end operations.

2. HTML: HTML is the markup language that defines how a website's web pages appear in a browser.

3. CSS: This language provides style to the content of a website, such as colors and fonts.

4. JavaScript: This dynamic programming language is used to make interactive web components. Because the new Gutenberg Editor is developed using React, it's also destined to become a greater component of WordPress.

Of course, these are just the fundamentals; each of these languages is utilized in a number of ways. If this list appears to be overwhelming, you should start with HTML and CSS. These languages are more beginner-friendly and simple, yet they can still achieve a lot.

W3Schools offers several extremely simple CSS and HTML5 tutorials for people beginning from scratch (the latest version). Furthermore, we suggest experimenting with these languages to make modifications to your existing WordPress website (s). Practice is the most effective approach to improve technical abilities. Just make sure you utilize a staging site first, or at the very least, generate a backup of your live site.

Step 2: Make a list of all the materials you'll need.

The widespread use of WordPress has a number of advantages. There are several tools available to help you learn how to become a WordPress developer, for example.

While this is by no means a comprehensive list, here are a few good places to start:

• The WordPress Codex is a collection of resources for WordPress users. This is a site you should become quite familiar with if you haven't already. Check out the list of developer-focused documentation in particular.

• WordPress-specific courses. Having an expert guide you through the fundamentals is sometimes the best way to learn. You may discover free and paid WordPress courses on a variety of topics, including basic concepts, development details, and everything in between.

• WordPress.org's developer portal. You'll find tutorials on how to create themes and plugins, as well as more complex subjects like the REST API, here.

• Make WordPress is a website where you can learn how to use WordPress. This is a central location for all WordPress contributors, including developers, designers, translators, and testers.

We also compiled our own comprehensive set of 120+ WordPress developer cheat sheets.

Step 3: Decide where you want to become engaged (and then get started!)

WordPress development, as we've already mentioned, is a rather vast area. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to getting started, so go where you feel most at ease.

Let's look at some of the most frequent ways to get started with WordPress development and how to get started with each.

A WordPress theme or plugin can be forked or adopted.

If you're not quite ready to start from scratch, modifying an existing theme or plugin is a good approach to start learning the ropes. This allows you to experiment with modifications and test the effects without having to create something entirely new.

There are two basic methods for accomplishing this. You may make a 'fork' of a theme or plugin, which is your own private version that you can modify with to your heart's content. If a plugin or theme is free, you may find its code under the Development tab of the WordPress directory:

However, ‘adopting' a plugin or theme that has been abandoned by its developer is frequently a preferable alternative. This also allows you to experiment with existing code and, if desired, resubmit your modifications. A more detailed tutorial on repurposing existing plugins may be found here (much of the same information also applies to themes).

Tech work: Make your own plugin or theme

If you're feeling very daring, you may try your hand at creating a new plugin or theme. It's typically preferable to start with a plugin since you can choose one specific feature you'd like to add to WordPress and figure out how to make it happen. You may even submit your plugin to the directory if it comes out good.

You should start with the WordPress Codex page on developing plugins, as well as the Plugin Handbook, if you're new to development WordPress. There are resources for creating themes that are comparable. You could also want to look into the WordPress forums, where you might be able to locate a team with whom you can cooperate rather than trying to build a new plugin on your own.

Participate in the core of developer WordPress.

Finally, some people interested in learning how to become a WordPress developer choose to contribute to the platform. If this describes you, you should take a slightly different strategy.

The most effective approach to get started is to read the Core Contributor Handbook. This document contains a wealth of useful information on working with WordPress as a developer. After that, you may get your feet wet by assisting with the testing of bugs, starting with those that have been designated for new contributors.

You may work on the platform while learning the ropes by fixing issues. It will also put you in touch with more experienced developers who can assist you. You'll be able to work your way up and contribute to any projects you're interested in as time goes on.

Conclusion

If you're new to the profession, learning how to become a WordPress developer may seem out of reach. However, because of its accessible style and large, helpful community, WordPress is one of the greatest locations to learn development.

While there is no one-size-fits-all approach to learning WordPress programming, the following three stages will get you started:

Web developer Coding Guide

1. Learn (or brush up on) the fundamentals of web programming.

2. Conduct extensive study and consider enrolling in a few specialized courses.

3. Pick a way to become engaged and get started.

Do you have any other questions about becoming a WordPress developer? Please post your questions in the comments area below!

Here's a day in the life of a WordPress developer.

After a 23-year career as a communications and information officer in the United States Air Force, Stacy Clements decided to take on the task of creating a website. This led to a career as a freelance WordPress developer and, eventually, the ownership of her own web development and digital maintenance company. Scott Morris was the one who heard her story.

Before becoming a full-time freelance web developer, I spent 23 years in the Air Force as a communications and information officer. I was able to progressively build up the tech abilities I required to make this step thanks to hard effort and good time management skills. I started performing freelance web programming as a side business around 16 years into my Air Force career, and like many other freelancers who find their way into IT, my profession grew organically as I spent time gathering the skills and expertise I required.

One day, I was talking with a store manager about hiring someone to construct a website, and he asked if I'd be interested in learning how to do it. And just like that, a freelancer was born! In the early 2000s, I began by taking on my first project and then assisting others who wanted their own websites. I used to build webpages primarily with HTML and CSS, but in 2010 I switched to WordPress(opens in a new tab). My customer base was expanding, and I needed a means to allow them to make changes to the sites I'd created. WordPress filled the bill well, and it also made it easier for me to create those sites in the first place.

What's the deal with WordPress?

WordPress (particularly, the self-hosted version available from WordPress.org(opens in a new tab)) is highly versatile and simple to use. While WordPress started out as a blogging tool, the WordPress ecosystem has grown to the point where you can accomplish almost anything with a WordPress site. WordPress can handle it all, whether you're creating an information site, landing pages, or an e-commerce platform.

WordPress is a Material Management System (CMS), which is a type of software that allows you to create and publish digital content online. One of the biggest advantages of utilizing a CMS like WordPress instead of HTML and CSS is that you don't have to manually edit and reupload each page of your website every time you want to add content. Instead, utilize the WordPress user interface to manage your site's pages, then hit "Publish" to save your changes. Of course, more sophisticated and specialized jobs need a higher degree of coding experience, but the ability to make simple adjustments without coding allows clients to make basic site modifications once their site has been established.

What is the Role of a Developer WordPress?

I've progressed from a freelancer to a small company owner (opens in a new tab). I usually work on projects for other small business owners who have progressed beyond the DIY website stage and require a professionally built WordPress site that is integrated with other services such as email marketing systems, appointment scheduling systems, and e-commerce shipping and accounting platforms.

Every day, I check my help desk ticketing system to see if there are any “emergency issues” that need to be addressed—broken sites, hacked sites, white screens of death, and so on. If there are, I will make their concerns my first priority. Aside from any emergencies, I'll check my email (which I aim to check just three times a day because it can get distracting and develop into an all-day time drain), take care of any little housekeeping duties, and then get back to my primary work.

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I'll verify backups for all the WordPress sites I administer at least once a week (but often more depending on the current security environment), and make sure the software those sites use is up to date. I also do weekly security checks and performance monitoring on the sites. It's then on to the development side of my job when I finish that type of maintenance, or on days when it's not required. Depending on how many site tasks I have going, I'll work on them for several hours. This covers things like site design, custom theme development, plugin installation and modification, page creation, and content filling.

I set aside an hour or two each day for professional growth in addition to site maintenance, administration, and construction. It's easy to get caught up in the urgency of the tasks you're working on, but staying current with both the technology you're using and the broader ins and outs of freelancing or operating your own business is important. I keep up to date by using a few services that offer training on WordPress-specific subjects (opens in a new tab), coding in general (opens in a new tab), and business management (opens in a new tab) (opens in a new tab).