Level Up

A collection of resources for WordPress Developers, written and curated by experts

Why You Should Use the WordPress HTTP Functions to Make API Requests

Sometimes your WordPress site needs to talk to other services around the web. This almost exclusively happens using the HTTP protocol. A common example is when your WordPress installation contacts… Read more

Erik

Oct 27, 2023

Handling AJAX Requests in WordPress: WP REST API vs admin-ajax.php vs Must-Use Plugin

The WordPress REST API was merged into WordPress core in version 4.7. Before that, developers relied on the default AJAX implementation, otherwise known as admin-ajax after the /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php file that… Read more

Matt Shaw

Oct 17, 2023

Is HTTP/3 the Future of the Web?

The web as we know it wouldn’t exist without our old friend Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP). The latest iteration, HTTP/3, promises to revolutionize the way we interact with the web.… Read more

Mike Davey

Oct 13, 2023

Should You Use Bun for Your Projects?

Bun is an all-in-one JavaScript runtime and toolkit created with the explicit goals of serving as a drop-in replacement for Node.js, eliminating separate layers of tooling, and speeding up the… Read more

Mike Davey

Sep 21, 2023

Examples of Refactoring PHP Code for Better Readability

Refactoring code is when you restructure existing code without changing its external behavior. Basically your aim is to make “bad” code better without changing the underlying functionality, and one of… Read more

Gilbert Pellegrom

Sep 15, 2023

Delicious Brain Bytes: Measuring Developer Productivity, New Releases, ACF Survey Results, and the State of WordPress Dev Tools

In this issue of Delicious Brain Bytes, we look into contentious methods for measuring productivity in software development, new releases from ACF, WP Migrate, WP Offload SES, and WP Offload… Read more

Mike Davey

Sep 7, 2023

Catching Up on CSS Features

There’s a pretty good chance that CSS is one of the most consistently used tools in your kit. It’s highly familiar and often used, so much so that it’s easy… Read more

Mike Davey

Aug 18, 2023

What MySQL 5.7 EOL Means for WordPress Developers

After eight years of general availability, no one can say MySQL 5.7 didn’t have a good run. MySQL 5.7 officially reaches its End of Life (EOL) in October 2023. The… Read more

Mike Davey

Aug 17, 2023

Strategies for Handling Large WordPress Media Libraries in Dev and Staging Environments

Offloading your media files is a well-known tactic for speeding up your WordPress sites, but WP Offload Media can also greatly reduce the time it takes to replicate a new… Read more

Ian

Aug 11, 2023

Getting the Best Results From WordPress Code Reviews

Code review is an integral part of the development cycle, with a direct impact on quality. Whether you’re focused on web, plugin, or theme development, thorough code review can help… Read more

Mike Davey

Jul 21, 2023

How To Set Up Amazon SES for WordPress Emails

Running a site that sends a lot of emails, like an ecommerce or membership site, needs a reliable service to keep up with that volume. Using an existing email provider… Read more

Matt Shaw

Jul 20, 2023

JavaScript in the Shallow End: Browser-Based React Native With Expo Snack

“Learn JavaScript. Deeply,” is good advice, but jumping right into the deep end when you’re first learning to swim may not be the smartest move. In this article, we’re going… Read more

Mike Davey

Jun 8, 2023

WordPress Security Fundamentals: How to Not Get Hacked

WordPress has come a long way towards its stated goal of democratizing publishing, powering roughly 43% of the websites on the web. However, that status makes it a prime target… Read more

Mike Davey

Apr 20, 2023

Why Developers Should Use SVG Files

SVG images have advantages that should make them an essential part of any developer’s toolkit. While they share a few similarities with JPG, PNG, and WebP image types, SVGs have… Read more

Mike Davey

Apr 6, 2023

WP Offload Media 3.2 Released: New Status Indicators and Peace of Mind

WP Offload Media 3.2 raises the bar for monitoring and managing offloaded media from within WP Admin. Whether you’re trying to pinpoint exactly which media items still need to be… Read more

Kevin Hoffman

Mar 16, 2023

Mastering Migrations: Faster, Easier, and Safer Ways to Move Your WordPress Sites

Every WordPress developer knows the feeling of despair when a migration fails, balanced by the immense feelings of relief when one succeeds. It’s a frustrating process for many devs, with… Read more

Kevin Hoffman

Mar 9, 2023

DE{CODE} 2023: Developer Focused WordPress Education

You know code…but do you know DE{CODE}? Hosted by WP Engine, this 100% virtual event is dedicated to helping WordPress developers build smarter, maximize conversions, and modernize the user experience.… Read more

Mike Davey

Mar 3, 2023

WP Offload SES 1.6 Released: 40 MB Attachments Enabled

WP Offload SES 1.6 uses the latest Amazon SES API v2 in order to increase the maximum size limit of messages from 10 MB to 40 MB. 📩 Larger Attachments… Read more

Ian

Feb 15, 2023

Head-to-Head: WordPress Export/Import vs. WP Migrate

The internal import and export tools in WordPress work pretty well…if the site you’re migrating is relatively small, doesn’t use a custom theme, and wasn’t built with any tricky coding.… Read more

Mike Davey

Feb 10, 2023

Level Up

SQL Query Optimization for Faster WordPress Sites

A fast site means happier users, improved ranking from Google, and increased conversions. Maybe you even think your WordPress sites are as fast as they can be – you’ve looked… Read more

Iain Poulson

Jan 23, 2023

WP Migrate + Local

WP Migrate 2.6 Released: Full-Site Exports and Import to Local

Today we’re pleased to announce the release of WP Migrate 2.6, which introduces full-site exports and a new integration for seamlessly importing to Local. Together, WP Migrate and Local are… Read more

Kevin Hoffman

Jan 19, 2023

Delicious Brains 2022 Year in Review: High-Speed Towards the Future

It’s been an exciting year for the teams behind the Delicious Brains plugins. Major new releases have brought some long-awaited features to our users, and we have exciting plans for… Read more

Kevin Hoffman

Jan 6, 2023

WordPress Plugin Development Best Practices: Template Files

When we talk about templates in WordPress we are normally referring to page template files in the theme. However, there are plugins that use template files to display content, and… Read more

Iain Poulson

Dec 15, 2022

WP Offload Media 3.1 Released: Efficient Offloading and Performance Gains

WP Offload Media 3.1 improves performance for large sites and multisites while also setting the stage for new ways to monitor and manage offloaded media in the upcoming release of… Read more

Kevin Hoffman

Dec 7, 2022