How to Publish Your Plugin on WordPress.org

Introduction

Releasing your plugin on WordPress.org opens your work to millions of users, granting visibility, community feedback, and seamless updates. This guide walks you step-by-step through planning, preparing, and publishing your plugin according to the official WordPress Plugin Handbook guidelines.

1. Prerequisites

• WordPress.org account: Register at wordpress.org.
• SVN client: Install a Subversion client such as TortoiseSVN (Windows) or command-line SVN (Apache Subversion).
• Plugin code: Fully tested on a development WordPress install.
• Readme.txt: Prepared according to readme.txt standards.

2. Planning Your Plugin

A strong foundation ensures maintainability and compliance:

1. Unique slug: Confirm the plugin slug (directory name) is unused via the plugin directory search.
2. Namespace/Prefixes: Avoid conflicts by prefixing functions, classes, and constants (e.g., myplugin_).
3. Internationalization (i18n): Wrap strings in __() or _e() and load a .pot file.
4. Security practices: Sanitize (sanitize_text_field()), validate, and escape (esc_html()) all input/output.

3. Directory Structure File Requirements

At minimum, your plugin folder should contain:

File/Folder	Description
myplugin.php	Main plugin file with header metadata.
readme.txt	Plugin description for WordPress.org.
/assets/	Optional: banners, icons following assets guidelines.

4. Crafting Your readme.txt

The readme.txt file powers your plugin page, support tab, and FAQ. Required sections:

• === Plugin Name === (followed by a one-line description)
• == Description == Detailed overview and features.
• == Installation == Step-by-step instructions.
• == Frequently Asked Questions == Use == and = headings.
• == Changelog == Document releases.
• == Upgrade Notice == (optional) Changes between versions.

Validate with the official readme validator.

5. Licensing

WordPress plugins must be GPL-compatible. Include a license header in every PHP file:

/
Plugin Name: My Plugin
...
License: GPLv2 or later
License URI: https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-2.0.html
/

6. Submitting to the Repository

Follow these steps to upload your plugin:

1. Log in to wordpress.org and go to Plugins gt Add New Plugin. Enter your plugin slug and description.
2. Agree to the guidelines and click Submit. You will receive an approval email within 1–2 business days.
   Note: Do not make changes until you receive SVN access.
3. After approval, youll get a link to your SVN repository: https://plugins.svn.wordpress.org/your-plugin-slug/.

7. Working with SVN

SVN organizes your plugin in three directories:

Directory	Purpose
trunk	Development version—contains latest code.
tags	Tagged releases (e.g., /tags/1.0.0/).
branches	Optional experimental branches.

Basic SVN workflow:

svn checkout https://plugins.svn.wordpress.org/your-plugin-slug
 # Copy your files into trunk/
svn add trunk/
svn commit -m Initial commit of My Plugin v1.0.0
 # Create a tag
svn copy trunk tags/1.0.0 -m Tagging version 1.0.0

8. Managing Assets

Place banners and icons inside the /assets/ directory in SVN root (not in trunk):

• banner-1544×500.png: Plugin banner.
• icon-256×256.png: Admin icon.
• Refer to official asset sizes.

9. Post-Launch Checklist

• Verify plugin page: Check description, screenshots, FAQ, and assets.
• Support tab: Enable and monitor user support on WordPress.org.
• Continuous updates: Tag each release and commit changelogs.
• Security reviews: Respond promptly to vulnerability reports.

10. Best Practices Resources

Maintain quality and compliance by consulting:

• Plugin Developer FAQ
• Securing Your Plugin
• WordPress Core Handbook

Conclusion

Publishing your plugin to WordPress.org is a rewarding process that expands your reach and helps the community. By following these guidelines—proper planning, adhering to coding standards, crafting a solid readme.txt, and mastering SVN—you’ll ensure a smooth launch and ongoing success. Happy coding!