Title: switch_to_blog Published: April 25, 2014 Last modified: February 24, 2026 --- # switch_to_blog( int $new_blog_id, bool $deprecated = null ): true ## In this article * [Description](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#description) - [See also](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#see-also) * [Parameters](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#parameters) * [Return](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#return) * [Source](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#source) * [Hooks](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#hooks) * [Related](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#related) * [Changelog](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#changelog) * [User Contributed Notes](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#user-contributed-notes) [ Back to top](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#wp--skip-link--target) Switches the current blog. ## 󠀁[Description](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#description)󠁿 This function is useful if you need to pull posts, or other information, from other blogs. You can switch back afterwards using [restore_current_blog()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/restore_current_blog/). PHP code loaded with the originally requested site, such as code from a plugin or theme, does not switch. See #14941. ### 󠀁[See also](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#see-also)󠁿 * [restore_current_blog()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/restore_current_blog/) ## 󠀁[Parameters](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#parameters)󠁿 `$new_blog_id`intrequired The ID of the blog to switch to. Default: current blog. `$deprecated`booloptional Not used. Default:`null` ## 󠀁[Return](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#return)󠁿 true Always returns true. ## 󠀁[Source](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#source)󠁿 ```php function switch_to_blog( $new_blog_id, $deprecated = null ) { global $wpdb; $prev_blog_id = get_current_blog_id(); if ( empty( $new_blog_id ) ) { $new_blog_id = $prev_blog_id; } $GLOBALS['_wp_switched_stack'][] = $prev_blog_id; /* * If we're switching to the same blog id that we're on, * set the right vars, do the associated actions, but skip * the extra unnecessary work */ if ( $new_blog_id === $prev_blog_id ) { /** * Fires when the blog is switched. * * @since MU (3.0.0) * @since 5.4.0 The `$context` parameter was added. * * @param int $new_blog_id New blog ID. * @param int $prev_blog_id Previous blog ID. * @param string $context Additional context. Accepts 'switch' when called from switch_to_blog() * or 'restore' when called from restore_current_blog(). */ do_action( 'switch_blog', $new_blog_id, $prev_blog_id, 'switch' ); $GLOBALS['switched'] = true; return true; } $wpdb->set_blog_id( $new_blog_id ); $GLOBALS['table_prefix'] = $wpdb->get_blog_prefix(); $GLOBALS['blog_id'] = $new_blog_id; if ( function_exists( 'wp_cache_switch_to_blog' ) ) { wp_cache_switch_to_blog( $new_blog_id ); } else { global $wp_object_cache; if ( is_object( $wp_object_cache ) && isset( $wp_object_cache->global_groups ) ) { $global_groups = $wp_object_cache->global_groups; } else { $global_groups = false; } wp_cache_init(); if ( function_exists( 'wp_cache_add_global_groups' ) ) { if ( is_array( $global_groups ) ) { wp_cache_add_global_groups( $global_groups ); } else { wp_cache_add_global_groups( array( 'blog-details', 'blog-id-cache', 'blog-lookup', 'blog_meta', 'global-posts', 'image_editor', 'networks', 'network-queries', 'sites', 'site-details', 'site-options', 'site-queries', 'site-transient', 'theme_files', 'rss', 'users', 'user-queries', 'user_meta', 'useremail', 'userlogins', 'userslugs', ) ); } wp_cache_add_non_persistent_groups( array( 'counts', 'plugins', 'theme_json' ) ); } } /** This filter is documented in wp-includes/ms-blogs.php */ do_action( 'switch_blog', $new_blog_id, $prev_blog_id, 'switch' ); $GLOBALS['switched'] = true; return true; } ``` [View all references](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/files/wp-includes/ms-blogs.php/) [View on Trac](https://core.trac.wordpress.org/browser/tags/6.9.4/src/wp-includes/ms-blogs.php#L500) [View on GitHub](https://github.com/WordPress/wordpress-develop/blob/6.9.4/src/wp-includes/ms-blogs.php#L500-L592) ## 󠀁[Hooks](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#hooks)󠁿 [do_action( ‘switch_blog’, int $new_blog_id, int $prev_blog_id, string $context )](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/hooks/switch_blog/) Fires when the blog is switched. ## 󠀁[Related](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#related)󠁿 | Uses | Description | | [wp_cache_switch_to_blog()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/wp_cache_switch_to_blog/)`wp-includes/cache.php` | Switches the internal blog ID. | | [wp_cache_init()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/wp_cache_init/)`wp-includes/cache.php` | Sets up Object Cache Global and assigns it. | | [wp_cache_add_global_groups()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/wp_cache_add_global_groups/)`wp-includes/cache.php` | Adds a group or set of groups to the list of global groups. | | [wp_cache_add_non_persistent_groups()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/wp_cache_add_non_persistent_groups/)`wp-includes/cache.php` | Adds a group or set of groups to the list of non-persistent groups. | | [wpdb::set_blog_id()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wpdb/set_blog_id/)`wp-includes/class-wpdb.php` | Sets blog ID. | | [wpdb::get_blog_prefix()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wpdb/get_blog_prefix/)`wp-includes/class-wpdb.php` | Gets blog prefix. | | [get_current_blog_id()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/get_current_blog_id/)`wp-includes/load.php` | Retrieves the current site ID. | | [do_action()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/do_action/)`wp-includes/plugin.php` | Calls the callback functions that have been added to an action hook. | [Show 3 more](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#) [Show less](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#) | Used by | Description | | [WP_User_Query::get_cache_last_changed()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wp_user_query/get_cache_last_changed/)`wp-includes/class-wp-user-query.php` | Retrieves the last changed cache timestamp for users and optionally posts. | | [user_can_for_site()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/user_can_for_site/)`wp-includes/capabilities.php` | Returns whether a particular user has the specified capability for a given site. | | [current_user_can_for_site()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/current_user_can_for_site/)`wp-includes/capabilities.php` | Returns whether the current user has the specified capability for a given site. | | [wp_initialize_site()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/wp_initialize_site/)`wp-includes/ms-site.php` | Runs the initialization routine for a given site. | | [wp_uninitialize_site()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/wp_uninitialize_site/)`wp-includes/ms-site.php` | Runs the uninitialization routine for a given site. | | [wp_is_site_initialized()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/wp_is_site_initialized/)`wp-includes/ms-site.php` | Checks whether a site is initialized. | | [get_oembed_response_data_for_url()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/get_oembed_response_data_for_url/)`wp-includes/embed.php` | Retrieves the oEmbed response data for a given URL. | | [WP_Site::get_details()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wp_site/get_details/)`wp-includes/class-wp-site.php` | Retrieves the details for this site. | | [has_custom_logo()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/has_custom_logo/)`wp-includes/general-template.php` | Determines whether the site has a custom logo. | | [get_custom_logo()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/get_custom_logo/)`wp-includes/general-template.php` | Returns a custom logo, linked to home unless the theme supports removing the link on the home page. | | [wp_get_users_with_no_role()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/wp_get_users_with_no_role/)`wp-includes/user.php` | Gets the user IDs of all users with no role on this site. | | [get_site_icon_url()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/get_site_icon_url/)`wp-includes/general-template.php` | Returns the Site Icon URL. | | [WP_MS_Sites_List_Table::column_blogname()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wp_ms_sites_list_table/column_blogname/)`wp-admin/includes/class-wp-ms-sites-list-table.php` | Handles the site name column output. | | [confirm_another_blog_signup()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/confirm_another_blog_signup/)`wp-signup.php` | Shows a message confirming that the new site has been created. | | [wpmu_delete_user()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/wpmu_delete_user/)`wp-admin/includes/ms.php` | Deletes a user and all of their posts from the network. | | [upload_space_setting()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/upload_space_setting/)`wp-admin/includes/ms.php` | Displays the site upload space quota setting form on the Edit Site Settings screen. | | [wpmu_delete_blog()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/wpmu_delete_blog/)`wp-admin/includes/ms.php` | Deletes a site. | | [WP_Users_List_Table::get_views()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wp_users_list_table/get_views/)`wp-admin/includes/class-wp-users-list-table.php` | Returns an associative array listing all the views that can be used with this table. | | [WP_Importer::set_blog()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wp_importer/set_blog/)`wp-admin/includes/class-wp-importer.php` | | | [WP_User::get_role_caps()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wp_user/get_role_caps/)`wp-includes/class-wp-user.php` | Retrieves all of the capabilities of the user’s roles, and merges them with individual user capabilities. | | [WP_Theme::get_allowed_on_site()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wp_theme/get_allowed_on_site/)`wp-includes/class-wp-theme.php` | Returns array of stylesheet names of themes allowed on the site. | | [get_home_url()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/get_home_url/)`wp-includes/link-template.php` | Retrieves the URL for a given site where the front end is accessible. | | [get_site_url()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/get_site_url/)`wp-includes/link-template.php` | Retrieves the URL for a given site where WordPress application files (e.g. wp-blog-header.php or the wp-admin/ folder) are accessible. | | [wp_admin_bar_my_sites_menu()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/wp_admin_bar_my_sites_menu/)`wp-includes/admin-bar.php` | Adds the “My Sites/[Site Name]” menu and all submenus. | | [count_users()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/count_users/)`wp-includes/user.php` | Counts number of users who have each of the user roles. | | [newblog_notify_siteadmin()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/newblog_notify_siteadmin/)`wp-includes/ms-functions.php` | Notifies the network admin that a new site has been activated. | | [get_blog_post()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/get_blog_post/)`wp-includes/ms-functions.php` | Gets a blog post from any site on the network. | | [add_user_to_blog()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/add_user_to_blog/)`wp-includes/ms-functions.php` | Adds a user to a blog, along with specifying the user’s role. | | [remove_user_from_blog()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/remove_user_from_blog/)`wp-includes/ms-functions.php` | Removes a user from a blog. | | [get_blog_permalink()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/get_blog_permalink/)`wp-includes/ms-functions.php` | Gets the permalink for a post on another blog. | | [create_empty_blog()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/create_empty_blog/)`wp-includes/ms-deprecated.php` | Create an empty blog. | | [get_blog_option()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/get_blog_option/)`wp-includes/ms-blogs.php` | Retrieves option value for a given blog id based on name of option. | | [add_blog_option()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/add_blog_option/)`wp-includes/ms-blogs.php` | Adds a new option for a given blog ID. | | [delete_blog_option()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/delete_blog_option/)`wp-includes/ms-blogs.php` | Removes an option by name for a given blog ID. Prevents removal of protected WordPress options. | | [update_blog_option()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/update_blog_option/)`wp-includes/ms-blogs.php` | Updates an option for a particular blog. | | [get_blog_details()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/get_blog_details/)`wp-includes/ms-blogs.php` | Retrieves the details for a blog from the blogs table and blog options. | | [wp_xmlrpc_server::wp_getUsersBlogs()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/classes/wp_xmlrpc_server/wp_getusersblogs/)`wp-includes/class-wp-xmlrpc-server.php` | Retrieves the blogs of the user. | [Show 32 more](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#) [Show less](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#) ## 󠀁[Changelog](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#changelog)󠁿 | Version | Description | | [MU (3.0.0)](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/since/mu.3.0.0/) | Introduced. | ## 󠀁[User Contributed Notes](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#user-contributed-notes)󠁿 1. [Skip to note 7 content](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#comment-content-1035) 2. [Codex](https://profiles.wordpress.org/codex/) [ 10 years ago ](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/#comment-1035) 3. [You must log in to vote on the helpfulness of this note](https://login.wordpress.org?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fdeveloper.wordpress.org%2Freference%2Ffunctions%2Fswitch_to_blog%2F%23comment-1035) Vote results for this note: 3[You must log in to vote on the helpfulness of this note](https://login.wordpress.org?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fdeveloper.wordpress.org%2Freference%2Ffunctions%2Fswitch_to_blog%2F%23comment-1035) 4. **Multiple switches** 5. ```php foreach( $blog_ids as $blog_id ){ switch_to_blog( $blog_id ); //Do stuff restore_current_blog(); } ``` 6. If you do not call [restore_current_blog()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/restore_current_blog/) after every [switch_to_blog()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/), WordPress can get into a state that can potentially build the wrong urls for the site. See [restore_current_blog()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/restore_current_blog/) vs [switch_to_blog()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/). 7. [Log in to add feedback](https://login.wordpress.org/?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fdeveloper.wordpress.org%2Freference%2Ffunctions%2Fswitch_to_blog%2F%3Freplytocom%3D1035%23feedback-editor-1035) 8. [Skip to note 8 content](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#comment-content-2972) 9. [Brent Leavitt](https://profiles.wordpress.org/brentleavitt/) [ 7 years ago ](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/#comment-2972) 10. [You must log in to vote on the helpfulness of this note](https://login.wordpress.org?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fdeveloper.wordpress.org%2Freference%2Ffunctions%2Fswitch_to_blog%2F%23comment-2972) Vote results for this note: 2[You must log in to vote on the helpfulness of this note](https://login.wordpress.org?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fdeveloper.wordpress.org%2Freference%2Ffunctions%2Fswitch_to_blog%2F%23comment-2972) 11. I was a little confused with the `switch_to_blog()` functionality when I first started using it. This function only affects the database which is being accessed on the network. I cannot access blocks of code, classes, functions, or variables that exist within a specific blog on the network. By extension, this also means that I cannot access themes or plugins that only exist on one site on the network. I was hoping for a little more power with this function before I realized that this was limited to site data being stored in the database. 12. The following example does not work: 13. `Site 1 --> Site1_only_plugin --> Site1_only_plugin_function()` 14. That is, Site 1 has a unique plugin that has a bit of functionality that I want to access on Site 2 (or anywhere else on the network) without loading the full plugin to Site 2. I might be tempted to do something like this from Site 2: 15. ```php switch_to_blog( $site1 ); $var = site1_only_plugin_function(); restore_current_blog(); ``` 16. This does not work. I can only use the `switch_to_blog()` functionality to access database values from other sites on the network. Here’s an example that does work: 17. `Site 1 --> Site1_only_plugin --> Site1_only_plugin_function()--> add_option( ' Site1_only_plugin_option', $var )` 18. The plugin on Site 1 has first set a value in the Site 1 database. I can then access that value in the options table from anywhere on the network as follows: 19. ```php switch_to_blog( $site1 ); $var = get_option( 'Site1_only_plugin_option' ); restore_current_blog(); ``` 20. [Log in to add feedback](https://login.wordpress.org/?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fdeveloper.wordpress.org%2Freference%2Ffunctions%2Fswitch_to_blog%2F%3Freplytocom%3D2972%23feedback-editor-2972) 21. [Skip to note 9 content](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#comment-content-1034) 22. [Codex](https://profiles.wordpress.org/codex/) [ 10 years ago ](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/#comment-1034) 23. [You must log in to vote on the helpfulness of this note](https://login.wordpress.org?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fdeveloper.wordpress.org%2Freference%2Ffunctions%2Fswitch_to_blog%2F%23comment-1034) Vote results for this note: 1[You must log in to vote on the helpfulness of this note](https://login.wordpress.org?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fdeveloper.wordpress.org%2Freference%2Ffunctions%2Fswitch_to_blog%2F%23comment-1034) 24. **One switch** 25. ```php switch_to_blog( $blog_id ); // Do something restore_current_blog(); ``` 26. [Log in to add feedback](https://login.wordpress.org/?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fdeveloper.wordpress.org%2Freference%2Ffunctions%2Fswitch_to_blog%2F%3Freplytocom%3D1034%23feedback-editor-1034) 27. [Skip to note 10 content](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#comment-content-1597) 28. [Lance Cleveland](https://profiles.wordpress.org/charlestonsw/) [ 10 years ago ](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/#comment-1597) 29. [You must log in to vote on the helpfulness of this note](https://login.wordpress.org?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fdeveloper.wordpress.org%2Freference%2Ffunctions%2Fswitch_to_blog%2F%23comment-1597) Vote results for this note: 1[You must log in to vote on the helpfulness of this note](https://login.wordpress.org?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fdeveloper.wordpress.org%2Freference%2Ffunctions%2Fswitch_to_blog%2F%23comment-1597) 30. **Description** 31. Restores previous blog after a switch_to_blog call. 32. Contrary to the function’s name, this does NOT restore the original blog but the previous blog. Calling `[switch_to_blog()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/)` twice in a row and then calling this function will result in being on the blog set by the first `[switch_to_blog()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/)` call. 33. * Looks like this comment was meant for the `[restore_current_blog()](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/restore_current_blog/)` function, not on this page. * [jakeparis](https://profiles.wordpress.org/jakeparis/) [4 years ago](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/#comment-5935) 34. [Log in to add feedback](https://login.wordpress.org/?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fdeveloper.wordpress.org%2Freference%2Ffunctions%2Fswitch_to_blog%2F%3Freplytocom%3D1597%23feedback-editor-1597) 35. [Skip to note 11 content](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#comment-content-5079) 36. [dekket](https://profiles.wordpress.org/dekket/) [ 5 years ago ](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/#comment-5079) 37. [You must log in to vote on the helpfulness of this note](https://login.wordpress.org?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fdeveloper.wordpress.org%2Freference%2Ffunctions%2Fswitch_to_blog%2F%23comment-5079) Vote results for this note: 0[You must log in to vote on the helpfulness of this note](https://login.wordpress.org?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fdeveloper.wordpress.org%2Freference%2Ffunctions%2Fswitch_to_blog%2F%23comment-5079) 38. When using `switch_to_blog()` outside of WordPress, you need to have the global` $switched` defined. The variable for defining which blog ID to target, may also not be `$blog_id`, because it is used by WP Core. 39. The below example will **not** create a post within the correct blog_id, unless` $switched` is defined. 40. ```php 1, 'post_status' => 'publish', 'post_type' => 'custom_post_type', 'post_content' => 'Post body here', 'post_title' => 'Post title here' ) ); ?> ``` 41. [Log in to add feedback](https://login.wordpress.org/?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fdeveloper.wordpress.org%2Freference%2Ffunctions%2Fswitch_to_blog%2F%3Freplytocom%3D5079%23feedback-editor-5079) 42. [Skip to note 12 content](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/?output_format=md#comment-content-5936) 43. [jakeparis](https://profiles.wordpress.org/jakeparis/) [ 4 years ago ](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/switch_to_blog/#comment-5936) 44. [You must log in to vote on the helpfulness of this note](https://login.wordpress.org?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fdeveloper.wordpress.org%2Freference%2Ffunctions%2Fswitch_to_blog%2F%23comment-5936) Vote results for this note: 0[You must log in to vote on the helpfulness of this note](https://login.wordpress.org?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fdeveloper.wordpress.org%2Freference%2Ffunctions%2Fswitch_to_blog%2F%23comment-5936) 45. It’s important to note that `switch_to_blog()` does _not_ check whether a blog actually exists for the supplied ID. You could potentially switch to a non-existant blog and run queries against non-existant tables. 46. [Log in to add feedback](https://login.wordpress.org/?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fdeveloper.wordpress.org%2Freference%2Ffunctions%2Fswitch_to_blog%2F%3Freplytocom%3D5936%23feedback-editor-5936) You must [log in](https://login.wordpress.org/?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fdeveloper.wordpress.org%2Freference%2Ffunctions%2Fswitch_to_blog%2F) before being able to contribute a note or feedback.