Title: Plugin Handbook
Author: Scott Reilly
Published: July 30, 2014
Last modified: December 14, 2023

---

# Plugin Handbook

[ Back to top](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugins/?output_format=md&src=bl-po#wp--skip-link--target)

_Welcome to the WordPress Plugin Developer Handbook; are you ready to jump right
in to the world of WordPress plugins?_

The Plugin Developer Handbook is a resource for all things WordPress plugins. Whether
you’re new to WordPress plugin development, or you’re an experienced plugin developer,
you should be able to find the answer to many of your plugin-related questions right
here.

 * If you’re new to plugin development, start by reading the [introduction](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugin/intro/)
   and then move on to [the basics](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugins/plugin-basics/).
 * The info in [plugin security](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugin/security/)
   will introduce best practices for security related stuff.
 * [Hooks](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugin/hooks/) are what make your plugin
   interact with WordPress, and how you can let other developers interact with your
   plugin.
 * [Privacy](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugins/privacy/) will help you understand
   about handling sensitive data.
 * To find out more about WordPress’ built-in functionality that you can use in 
   your plugin, check out [Administration Menus](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugin/administration-menus/),
   [Shortcodes](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugin/shortcodes/), [Settings](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugin/settings/),
   [Metadata](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugin/metadata/), [Custom Post Types](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugins/post-types/),
   [Taxonomies](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugins/taxonomies/), and [Users](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugin/users/).
 * Learn about getting data using the [HTTP API](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugin/http-api/).
 * If you’re using [JavaScript, jQuery or Ajax](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugin/javascript/)
   in your plugin, you’ll find the information you need in that section.
 * To learn about time-based WordPress tasks, check out the [Cron](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugin/cron/)
   chapter.
 * [Internationalization](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugin/internationalization/)
   is how you get your plugin ready for use in locales other than your own.
 * When all that is done, you can prepare your plugin for inclusion in the [Plugin Directory](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugin/wordpress-org/)
 * Finally: some [developer tools](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugin/developer-tools/)
   you might find useful.

The WordPress Plugin Developer Handbook is created by the WordPress community, for
the WordPress community. We are always looking for more contributors; if you’re 
interested, stop by the [docs team blog](https://make.wordpress.org/docs) to find
out more about getting involved.

First published

July 30, 2014

Last updated

December 14, 2023

[  Next: Introduction to Plugin Development](https://developer.wordpress.org/plugins/intro/)