Become A WordPress Developer | Description

How to Become a WordPress Developer in 2023

WordPress is the most popular content management system. So, there will always be users looking for developers to help enhance their websites. By becoming a WordPress developer, you can monetize your work or share them for free.

Either way, it’s essential to understand the fundamental aspects of the job first. So, this tutorial will explain what you need to learn to become a WordPress developer.

Conclusion

Let’s recap everything you need to know to be a WordPress developer.

First, what can you create as a WordPress developer? While it can virtually be anything related to the platform, basically, there are five main creations — themes, plugins, widgets, a whole WordPress site, and web applications.

Second, from a technical standpoint, you need to learn HTML5, CSS3, PHP, MySQL, JavaScript, jQuery, and Ajax. Each of them is equally important since creating a plugin/theme/app requires you to combine two or more of these elements. Check our guide on learning to code if you wish to learn.

Finally, you need to know how to share and monetize your work. Since finding clients with higher-paying rates often requires a bright portfolio, you should start by sharing your work for free via the WordPress repository. Alternatively, you can also look for a freelance job via freelancing platforms like Upwork and PeoplePerHour.

Besides, you also need to take care of the non-technical aspects, such as creating invoices and professional contracts. Fortunately, tools like Entire Contract Generator and Cashboard can help you on your way to becoming a WordPress developer by creating digital invoices and contracts.

Hopefully, this tutorial is helpful. Kindly share your thoughts and opinions about the topic through the comment section below!

Explore the role, salary, and responsibilities of a WordPress developer with the following article.

WordPress is an open-source content management system (CMS) used to build websites. A 2022 study by W3 Techs indicates that 43 percent of all websites on the internet use WordPress [1]. Although the software is free, many people hire professional WordPress developers for high-quality website design and development. The following article explores the role of a WordPress developer and how you can become one in just three steps.

A WordPress developer is a type of web developer. They specialize in building websites with WordPress. They are also full-stack developers, meaning they can develop the front-end and back-end of a website. A WordPress developer may be hired to enhance the WordPress software or build a custom website for a client.

Read more: What Does a Web Developer Do (and How Do I Become One)?

A WordPress developer can be employed by a company or choose to be a freelance developer. For those seeking freelance opportunities, several job-seeking platforms exist to connect WordPress developers and potential clients—for example, WordPress Jobs (the official WordPress jobs listing platform) and Codeable.io. You also have options if you are an aspiring WordPress developer who is not interested in freelancing. Examples of organizations that employ WordPress developers include software development companies, digital marketing agencies, and software as a service (SaaS) management businesses.

As the fastest-growing CMS for 12 years, WordPress has secured its place in the market [1]. The job market WordPress developers belong to is also experiencing rapid growth. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the employment of web developers and digital designers is expected to grow 13 percent from 2020 to 2030. That statistic represents an average of 17,900 job openings yearly [2].

Did you know? All WordPress developers are web developers and designers. The skills you gain in becoming a WordPress developer can also help you succeed in other web development roles.

Typical responsibilities of a WordPress developer include:

Designing and developing new features and functions

Translating client requirements into technical specifications

Implementing and maintaining the architecture of a website

Writing, testing, and debugging code

As of June 2022, Glassdoor reports the average WordPress developer salary to be $64,245 per year. Additional pay such as commissions and profit sharing is estimated to be $23,504 per year. Combining the median salary with the average additional pay brings the estimated total wage for WordPress developers to $87,749 per year [3].

WordPress developers are web developers who specialize in WordPress infrastructure and tools. Many roles exist that are similar to WordPress developers. A few examples of related roles include:

Software developers. Like web developers, software developers are programmers. Instead of (or in addition to) web development, they create computer software and applications.

User experience (UX) designers. UX design refers to the process of curating the interaction between users and websites or other software products. UX designers are software developers that focus on the UX of a website or application.

Full-stack developers. Any programmer, regardless of specialization, is considered a full-stack developer if they can create a minimum viable product on their own. Full-stack developers can identify errors between the front and back end and resolve them using both disciplines.

User interface (UI) developers. UI developers combine creative design and technical skills to craft the visual elements of a website or application.

Read more: 5 Entry-Level Programming Jobs + How to Get One

You can start using WordPress before you’ve mastered front-end and back-end development. WordPress is accessible for beginners, making it a popular choice for those who want to make a website themselves but don’t have any coding experience. It’s similar to how an aspiring photographer is likely to purchase a camera before graduating from a photography class. You can learn about the basics and build a foundational knowledge of the software while learning how to manage more advanced development.

WordPress is popular, in part, because it requires users minimal technical proficiency. In contrast, professional WordPress developers must possess both web development and web design skills. The list below outlines a few of the most important disciplines for a WordPress developer to master.

Programming languages. As a WordPress developer, there are four primary languages you will need to learn.

First, hypertext markup language (HTML) will enable you to structure a website by organizing content like headers, footers, and sidebars.

Next, cascading style sheets (CSS) allow you to apply stylistic elements like text color, border thickness, and image alignment to your HTML structure.

PHP: hypertext preprocessor (PHP) is the next language you should learn if you want to become a WordPress developer. It is the back-end scripting language for WordPress and 77.9 percent of all websites (where the language is known) [4].

JavaScript is not only a crucial skill for WordPress developers but also the most popular programming language used by developers worldwide [5]. It is used extensively in WordPress development to create dynamic functionalities.

You can learn HTML, CSS, and JavaScript all at once by earning a certificate from John Hopkins University:

Plugin development. Plugins are packaged extensions of code that enhance the features and functionality of WordPress. WordPress developers create custom plugins based on client requirements.

Database management. Database management enables users to store, maintain, and control access to pertinent data. WordPress uses a database management system called MySQL.

Digital marketing. WordPress developers often utilize search engine optimization (SEO) and other digital marketing techniques to increase site traffic and quality.

Web design and development. Since WordPress developers work extensively on UX and UI, they need excellent web design and development skills. A WordPress developer’s responsibility is to ensure the website they build is functional, responsive, aesthetically pleasing, and accessible to all users.

Familiarity with popular development tools. Familiarizing yourself with popular development tools is helpful regardless of the type of developer you want to become. A few of the tools most commonly used by developers worldwide are Git, Bitbucket, and Jira [6].

It’s necessary to establish your competitiveness as a job candidate regardless of the demand for your desired occupation. Educational backgrounds for those working in WordPress development roles range from a high school diploma to a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science. Higher education is a great way to gain the skills to excel in an entry-level role. However, it isn’t the only way to build expertise and showcase your abilities to employers.

Another way to demonstrate professional experience to employers is with relevant certifications. If you’re unsure where to begin, try browsing job listings to discover in-demand qualifications. For example, a WordPress developer who wants to enhance their UX skills may pursue a Professional Certificate from an industry expert like Google:

A portfolio is a collection of your best work. If you have experience with WordPress or web development, consider compiling the projects that best communicate your technical ability. You can then send your portfolio along with your resume to prospective employers. It’s okay if you have yet to create anything for your professional portfolio. You can get started with an online course like Introduction to Accessible Web Development, a Guided Project that navigates you through the process of creating an accessible custom component with ARIA.

Take your first step toward becoming a WordPress developer and earn a web development and design certificate from the University of Michigan or Meta:

1. W3 Techs Web Technology Surveys. “Usage statistics and market share of WordPress, https://w3techs.com/technologies/details/cm-wordpress.” Accessed June 28, 2022.

2. Bureau of Labor Statistics. “Occupational Outlook Handbook: Web Developers and Digital Designers, https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/web-developers.htm#:~:text=in%20May%202020.-,Job%20Outlook,on%20average%2C%20over%20the%20decade.” Accessed June 3, 2022.

3. Glassdoor. “How much does a WordPress developer make? https://www.glassdoor.com/Salaries/wordpress-developer-salary-SRCH_KO0,19.htm#:~:text=The%20estimated%20total%20pay%20for,salaries%20collected%20from%20our%20users.” Accessed June 3, 2022.

4. W3 Techs Web Technology Surveys. “Usage statistics of PHP for websites, https://w3techs.com/technologies/details/pl-php.” Accessed June 3, 2022.

5. Statista. “Programming languages used by software developers worldwide as of 2021, https://www.statista.com/statistics/869092/worldwide-software-developer-survey-languages-used/#:~:text=The%20most%20popular%20programming%20language,of%20the%20software%20developers%20surveyed.” Accessed June 3, 2022.

6. Statista. “Programming/development tools used by software developers worldwide 2018 to 2021, https://www.statista.com/statistics/869106/worldwide-software-developer-survey-tools-in-use/#:~:text=According%20to%2085%20percent%20of,software%20developers%20as%20of%202021.” Accessed June 3, 2021.

Editorial Team

Coursera’s editorial team is comprised of highly experienced professional editors, writers, and fact…

This content has been made available for informational purposes only. Learners are advised to conduct additional research to ensure that courses and other credentials pursued meet their personal, professional, and financial goals.

According to BuiltWith, over 60 million websites on the internet use WordPress.

Because of the large share WordPress has in the CMS market and because of the user base it attracts, WordPress development is a lucrative field that attracts companies as well as independent freelancers. According to a study by Delicious Brains, the majority of WordPress developers make between $45,000 and $150,000 per year from their development work.

To help you gain a foothold in this market, we’re going to provide all the information you need to become a WordPress developer, including insights from Paul Bearne’s session ”Finding your WordPress lifestyle – insider insights from a veteran coder” at WordCamp Europe 2022. We’ll cover:

• what this role is;
• what responsibilities it entails;
• how to become a WordPress developer;
• different WordPress developer lifestyles;
• what WordPress theme development is; and
• what WordPress plugin development is.

Let’s get started.

Guide For Beginners: How To Become A WordPress Developer?

Time to hop on WordPress developer roadmap. The roadmap has been designed in a way that everyone, from beginners to experts, can follow along and learn to become a successful WordPress developer. Start to follow step 1.

Step 1: Pick Your Target Wisely & Plan According To It

Before starting to execute any task, it is important to research, set strategies, and create action plans. The same thing is applicable if you want to be a WordPress developer. You have to find out the sector or scope where you want to shine and then start planning.

For example, if you want to be a frontend WordPress developer, then find out which type of companies or organizations needed them, what are their responsibilities, what skill sets are needed, etc. also, you can create a checklist and keep track of your goal setting.

Step 2: Learn All About Coding & WordPress Framework

The next and most important step to follow is to start learning coding and the WordPress framework. Basically, WordPress is one of the popular PHP frameworks. Though some places, you will find that coding is not required to be a WordPress developer. But that’s not exactly the case everywhere. You have to learn basic coding to be a WordPress developer.

→ What To Learn As A WordPress Developer?

Let’s check out first what things you have to learn. You need to gather basic knowledge of coding, which can be started with the C language or any primary programming language. To be a front-end WordPress developer, you have to learn HTML, CSS, etc. As the WordPress platform is developed in PHP, so you need to learn the basics of this language also. Moreover, you will need Advanced PHP knowledge to be a backend developer.

By introducing Gutenberg block editor, javascript language also started widely practiced. You can also learn JavaScript language for dynamic WordPress development to become the next desired developer.

List of best resources for learning the above languages:

• For HTML, CSS go to W3Schools Online Web Tutorials
• For PHP go to Learn PHP – Free Interactive PHP Tutorial
• For JavaScript go to Learn JavaScript

Apart from these resources, you can also check Codecademy, HackerRank, freeCodeCamp, GeeksforGeeks, Codementor, HackerEarth, etc.

→ How Much Time Does It Take To Learn WordPress?

Now another important concern, how much time should you invest in learning the above WordPress coding languages? The answer is straightforward.

With every resource listed above, you get a precise idea of how much time is required for each task, you will get the exact idea of how much time will need to finish them.

If you are determined, then 3 to 6 months is enough to get the overall idea of coding.

Step 3: Decide Which Area You Want To Focus On

While you are choosing the coding language to be an expert on, you can also decide the area where you want to focus at the same time.

For example, front-end developers should start with HTML, CSS, JavaScript, etc. Furthermore, you need to remember that a WordPress developer will have to be familiar with all sectors as he or she has to collaborate with other members of the team.

Moreover, when you are preparing yourself as a WordPress UI engineer, it’s not that you only have to know about the best design principles, you need to have an idea about codes and the final outcome of it. Unless the designs won’t be realistic and also hard to implement.

Step 4: Enroll Yourself In WordPress Online Tutorials

There is no end to learning, and as a WordPress developer, you should therefore have the drive, enthusiasm, and initiative to test your limits and learn new things.

You can find tons of great resources online for learning WordPress development, but perhaps the most obvious and helpful place to start would be Learn WordPress. You can search for any kind of learning resource and will find valuable tutorials to help you hone your skills.

You can choose between Workshops, Lesson Plans, and Courses; workshops are best for a hands-on experience, while lesson plans and courses are designed to help you gain more knowledge on any specific topic.

Moreover, you can also filter these courses and tutorials by topic, experience level, and more. Whatever your skill level might be, there are helpful resources for every WordPress developer at Learn WordPress.

Step 5: Select A WordPress Project For Practicing

In order to make the most out of your lessons and training, you should definitely practice and test your WordPress development skills. The easiest way to do this is by creating a local website or staging website. There are tons of available solutions to help you easily set up a staging site, such as Local by Flywheel, XAMPP, etc.

Besides this, you can also come up with several WordPress projects on your own to practice your skills. For example, you could challenge yourself by creating an eCommerce website, online portfolio, child themes, etc, depending on which area you want to focus on.

Step 6: Get Involved In The WordPress Community

The WordPress open source project is a very inclusive and welcoming community where you will be able to learn new things and interact with talented people from all over the world. So if you really want to become a WordPress developer, make sure to dedicate some time to getting to know the community.

The best way to do this is by getting involved with the WordPress project. You can contribute to the WordPress open source community as a plugin developer, theme developer, tester, translator, and much more. Just click on the Get Involved tab and visit the Make WordPress page to learn how you can get involved with the WordPress community.

Step 7: Build An Attractive Developer Portfolio

The more projects you get involved with, the more courses you complete, and the easier it will be for you to build an attractive WordPress developer portfolio. If you are a freelancer or if you want to work for an agency, then creating a stellar technical resume is also a good idea.

To do this, you must add your key skills, experience, and a list of the projects you have worked on. As a beginner, you may find it difficult to find new things to add to your resume, and that’s okay. The end goal is to highlight your strengths in the best possible way in your portfolio or resume.

💡 Not sure what the difference is between a CV and a resume? Check out this guide here to learn more.

💡 Want to prepare for job interviews? Then you should review these 50+ popular interview questions as part of your preparation.

Recommended: Complete Guide To Starting A WordPress Agency?

How to Become a WordPress Developer

1. Learn what you can create and develop in WordPress2. Learn a programming language3. Share your work on WordPress repositories4. Monetize your work by finding clients

Learn What You Can Create and Develop in WordPress

Modifying WordPress involves writing a standalone code that interfaces with the WordPress core code. If you make any mistakes, the core code is untouched, so you can experiment as much as you want without having to reinstall the WordPress software.

A developer can change the look and feel of the site, modify the core behavior, tweak the admin panels, or create a whole new user profile page. In other words, what you can do is only limited by your knowledge and willingness to learn.

Here are the five main creations of a WordPress developer:

Themes

In a nutshell, themes define the layout and styling of a WordPress website. It’s responsible for the overall look and “feel” of the site. A WordPress theme is a combination of multiple elements, including HTML, CSS, PHP, JavaScript, and JQuery.

With more than 31,000 available options, there’s still room to display your creation as it’s high in demand. Besides, creating a free theme for the WordPress repository can be a great way to elevate your name as a developer.

Currently, creating a responsive WordPress theme is the trend among developers. With the fluid workflows of grid systems, image use, and CSS media queries, WordPress sites with responsive themes will look good on any device, including mobile phones, tablets, monitors, or large screens.

You can create themes from scratch or use starter themes such as OceanWP, Divi, and Astra. They are basically “blank canvases” or themes with minimal layouts and basic elements that you can improvise and develop.

Plugins

Right now, there are more than 54,000 plugins on the WordPress directory. It’s the most sought-after and used WordPress feature.

Plugins enable you to modify the behavior of WordPress without touching the core code. Users can also add tons of extra functions to their website with little to no knowledge of programming.

PHP hooks are used heavily when creating a plugin. It’s the technique that allows an application to run a function or class automatically. There are two types of hooks — action and filter. You’ll need to master both of them to create a working plugin.

While a lot of popular plugins, such as WooCommerce, Yoast SEO, or Google Analytics Dashboard, are made with complicated programming and hooks, there are tons of simple WordPress plugins that are very useful, like Search & Filter.

Widgets

Widgets are web components that are usually added to websites to give extra content and functions. They can be used to access certain pages or parts of a website and provide a quick gateway for a particular feature.

WordPress comes with default widgets that can be arranged via the dashboard by clicking appearance → widgets. You can also get third-party widgets by installing plugins, such as Ninja Forms.

Just like creating a plugin, making WordPress widgets also requires sufficient knowledge of PHP. You can start by accessing the functions.php file on your current theme, then construct the widget using the combinations of functions provided on the WP Widget class.

A custom widget is often the solution to create the desired function you can’t find anywhere. This is especially true if you aim to create your own WordPress theme or plugin.

Entire WordPress Websites

Designing and developing a whole WordPress site means that you will combine themes, plugins, widgets, and custom codes (SASS, CSS, JavaScript, and PHP) to create a unique website based on a client’s (or personal) needs.

While there are various website builders, such as Hostinger, Wix, and Squarespace, the market’s demand for creating a personalized website by hiring a WordPress developer is still high.

However, building an entire website requires more than just technical skills like writing lines of code — you need to be creative, know the basic principle of UI/UX design, and use reliable resources, such as fast and secure WordPress managed hosting.

Web Applications via Rest API

A web application is functional, dynamic softwarethat operates through a web server and can be accessed via a web browser. It works great with any operating system or device, as long as the browser is compatible.

Unlike a website, web application has a more practical function. While sites are mostly static, web application works interactively. Some of the most popular web applications are Gmail, Google Docs, and Facebook.

Since 2015, WordPress has integrated its core files with an independent REST API. This communication architecture works as a “bridge” that connects the WordPress core with any working application on a web server.

By mastering the key concepts of the REST API, you would be able to create a working web application using WordPress.

Learn a Programming Language

The WordPress core is built using the standard web coding languages — PHP and MYSQL. The front-end presentation is a combination of HTML and CSS, JavaScript, jQuery, and AJAX.

Let’s take a closer look at the programming languages you need to know as a WordPress developer:

HTML (preferably HTML5)

The implementation of valid Hyper-Text Markup Language (HTML) is required for the sake of a smooth user experience. It ensures that your pages will fit in any web browser. If your code is not valid, browsers will misinterpret your code and display parts of your page poorly.

HTML5 is currently the latest version of this markup language. It has several significant advantages over its predecessor (HTML4), such as video and audio support, JavaScript compatibility, and tons of new elements, like footer, header, track, summary, etc.

Valid HTML is written using the correct syntax, the formula that refers to the overall document structure, the order of HTML elements, nesting elements, and formatting attributes.

The structure should always start with a DOCTYPE declaration, opening

tags, then a head section with document metadata, such as the title of each page or a body section, and finally a closing

tag.

In general, HTML is split into three elements — flow, metadata, and phrasing. Each of them has different application model rules for what is allowed inside of it.

For instance, paragraph tags can have phrasing content (inline) inside them, such as

(bold),

(italics),

(links) etc. However, it’s not allowed to contain flow elements (blocks) such as

Learning to use the right HTML tags, structures, and format can be intimidating at first. Luckily, you can download an HTML cheat sheet to help you create a perfectly working line of codes, then run it through W3C HTML Validator to see the result.

CSS (Preferably CSS3)

Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) are used to style your page and its content. It determines how the HTML elements are shown on a screen. This stylesheet language enables you to make significant style changes to your entire site quickly.

CSS has a feature called Media Queries, which allows you to define how each part of a page behaves on the specific screen size. This feature is one of the most important parts of creating a responsive website — a website adapts based on the visitor’s device.

Just like other languages, CSS also has its own syntax. The syntax only consists of two elements: selector and declaration block. Selector block is used to select the part of HTML you wish to style, while the declaration block defines the style you use for each selected part.

Currently, CSS3 is the most renewed Cascading Style Sheet available. As the successor of CSS2.1, CSS3 comes with a lot of new perks, including new layouts, flexible grid, more text effects, and multiple-column layout.

Creating custom CSS for the first time can be nerve-wracking. Luckily, we have a CSS Cheat Sheet you can use as a reference.

Moreover, to get a better understanding of this language, you can learn about CSS fundamentals on BitDegree.

PHP

PHP (Hypertext Preprocessor) is a powerful scripting language for web development. It works by performing tasks in the server, then send back requests in the form of HTML. In other words, PHP takes care of the back-end, and HTML is used to present the result of the script after the tasks are completed.

The WordPress core is built on PHP along with MySQL. PHP is very flexible to use since it’s compatible with most servers and runs on almost all operating systems.

It has tons of features. The most common ones you will use are:

• Variables — store information such as strings of text or numbers.
• Arrays — collect the information that is assigned to a variable.
• Functions — complete tasks and give results which can be used later. The result can be assigned to a variable.
• Conditionals — define that if 1 == 1 is true, the runtime will do an action, and if 1 == 1 is false, it will run a different response.
• Comparison operators — compare values with one another. There is a difference between =, ==, and ===. They affect the result of conditional statements.

If you plan to use PHP to build Object-Oriented Programming (OOP), the knowledge of PHP classes is required. The classes allow you to neatly group variables and functions that are related to each other in one place.

The information of PHP classes can be accessed through the WordPress codex page about Class Reference/WP Object Cache.

MySQL

MySQL is a database used to store all the information about a WordPress site. The information inside the database is retrieved dynamically using PHP. The actual content of every page and post on a WordPress website is stored here.

WordPress provides a set of PHP functions to safely interact with the WordPress database and run it through the appropriate function. Some functions use standard SQL statements, while others use arrays of information.

The SQL functions are explained on the WordPress Developer Codex page – Talking to the Database: The wpdb Class.

JavaScript

JavaScript is a web scripting language for website development. It allows you to change and manipulate the behavior of the content on a page. For example, when you want to show a running text only after a user presses a button, you can use JavaScript to accomplish that.

This language can turn the static HTML into an interactive web page. You can embed the script into a page’s HTML file, and it’ll work automatically when the page is accessed. Also, it has full integration with CSS files.

JavaScript relies on the web browser to perform the functions. It can’t run outside the browser environment unless you use Node.js, a program explicitly designed to bring the language into broader use, such as database management, mobile application, and robotics programming.

Learning JavaScript is a must for any WordPress developer. For more information, check the Using Javascript WordPress codex page.

Moreover, an aspiring developer must understand how to add JavaScript to WordPress since using the wrong method may cause code conflict that harms the website’s functionality.

jQuery

jQuery is a popular library for JavaScript. This program simplifies the way you use JavaScript for manipulating or changing a web page by allowing you to chain multiple functions at once. The code will be “cleaner” and easier to read.

Learning about jQuery will save you a lot of time when you need to create a massive JavaScript coding. The library provides various features to ease the process, such as hiding a specific part of HTML elements, creating animation, manipulating CSS, and creating a sliding effect on HTML.

Fortunately, jQuery has an official learning center for developers. This platform allows you to learn how to use jQuery core functions as well as its practical use, like helping you designing UI/UX or creating mobile applications.

AJAX

AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML) is a technique that allows you to send or receive data without fully reloading a page. This means you change the content of the page without reloading it.

For example, if you want to create a live search where the result appears below the search box, you can use AJAX to send the search data to the search script, return the result, and display it without refreshing the entire page.

WordPress makes use of AJAX in the admin control panel. For example, when users write posts, the WordPress system uses AJAX to auto-save drafts without you noticing. That way, the risk of data loss during the writing process can be significantly cut.

A developer can use either JavaScript or jQuery to run AJAX. But, it’s recommended to use jQuery since it’s more simple and straightforward.

Utilizing Ajax is beneficial to make a webpage more interactive and responsive. To learn more about this technique, you may want to look at the WordPress codex entry on AJAX.

Share Your Work For Free on WordPress Repositories

You can share your theme or plugin through WordPress repositories. Note that your work must be released under a GPL (General Public Licence) compatible license, which grants users certain rights of your work when downloading and using them.

Right now, WordPress recommends developers to use the GNU General Public License version 3 or later. All files in your work must conform to this license, including any third-party libraries you use. You must also have the right to distribute any third-party libraries if included.

Generally, GNU ensures you retain appropriate copyrights to the original work. It allows users to modify your work and redistribute it in whole or in part. They must keep the original copyright notices intact and pass along a copy of the license you chose.

Users must make it clear that no warranty is provided with the software. If the user modifies then distributes the software, it must be clear that they have made changes and are not spreading the original work.

For a full list of rules regarding the WordPress.org repositories, visit the developer’s handbook page.

Monetize Your Work by Finding Clients

WordPress is a top-rated web platform. A lot of individuals and small business owners are looking for developers that can build custom websites with specific functionality.

That being said, nothing sells you more than practical experience. The stronger your portfolio, the more likely you are to find work. Luckily, as a new developer, there are lots of web developer portfolios you can use as a reference.

You should also have a good understanding of what expectations your future clients may have, as well as what skill set you should develop to be a successful professional. Therefore, it would be a good idea to see what kind of WordPress developers people are searching for.

One of the best ways to find work is to look for freelance requests. You can use various freelance platforms, such as Upwork, Freelancer.com, and PeoplePerHour.com.

In addition, try signing up for work at a WordPress development agency.

Dealing With Contracts and Invoices

Creating a written contract with a client is a must. The agreement must clearly state the pay rate and the extent of the work.

It should also indicate whether you are charging a flat fee or an hourly rate, and an agreed deadline or time frame.

Currently, there are plenty of online services to generate professional digital contracts, like Freelancers Union and Do Contract.

When a project is complete, you should send the client an invoice that lists your work, the date it was delivered, the final price, etc. You can create one using invoice generators, such as Cashboard, Zoho, and Invoices.

Counting Taxes and Income

The rules regarding freelance work taxes and income differ for each country. Nevertheless, it’s crucial to understand your tax obligation.

In the UK, for example, if your income from self-employment is more than $2782 per year, you must pay taxes on it. While if your income is as high as $94,592 per year, you must also pay VAT. Failing to know the law can lead to a lot of legal problems.

Time To Flourish Your Career As WordPress Developer

Being a WordPress developer can be extremely prosperous, as well as a fun career choice. Even if it requires a significant amount of time and resources for education and experimentation, WordPress development can provide the income and flexibility you’re looking for.

Here’s the end of the guideline. If you enjoyed this post, then share your thoughts with us in the comments below or join our Facebook community. Also, subscribe to our blog to stay up-to-date with the latest blogs, tutorials, guidelines, insights, etc.

Want to forge a career as a WordPress developer. This is the blog for you.

WordPress is the most popular free and open-source content management system online. There are millions of webpages which primarily use WordPress as a blogging platform, although WordPress also includes web content like forums, media galleries, mailing lists, online and e-commerce centric stores and much more.

One of the most unique things about WordPress is that because it’s an open source content management system, so people with basic internet skills can easily create and build websites. WordPress allows them to configure a WordPress site, upload a theme and add some plugins for their own website.

February 2024 Offer – For a Limited Time Only:

Get WordPress 99+ Plugins Mega Bundle for 15% off! Don’t miss out!

Since WordPress is such a massive content management system, there are tons of people who are using it every day. WordPress is an incredibly user-friendly system, although customizations require software development and computer programming skills. This is where WordPress developers come into the picture.

Basic Responsibilities Of A WordPress Developer

In order to become a proficient WordPress developer, you must know what your basic responsibilities would be. This will help you understand which particular skills you need to hone, and also understand what others may expect from you if you are thinking of applying to a WordPress agency. Let’s go over some of the most basic job responsibilities of a WordPress developer.

It’s important to note that we’re only covering a broad overview of the job responsibilities of a WordPress developer; ultimately, your actual responsibilities will depend on the nature of the project you are involved with, your level of expertise and other determining factors.

Responsible For Back-End Or Front-End Development

As a WordPress developer, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that you might be asked to do back-end development, front-end development, or perhaps both. Often, this might even require you to create custom themes or plugins, or develop other resources.

Maintain, Migrate Or Redesign Existing WordPress Websites

Besides building sitemaps or wireframes for new WordPress websites, you may also be asked to focus on support or website maintenance as a WordPress developer. You may even be asked to migrate existing WordPress websites or redesign them for better performance.

Build Sitemaps Or Wireframe WordPress Websites

In addition to the above, you may also be required to create sitemaps for WordPress websites or create wireframes for a new website.

Research, Design & Develop New Features Or Products

Coming up with ideas for new features, functionalities, or products, and then designing and developing them is also one of the many responsibilities of a WordPress developer. As such you should also focus on your research skills and creative problem-solving abilities. Being innovative and having the ability to bring your ideas into real solutions are talents that every WordPress developer should possess.

How Do I Become a WordPress Developer?

So you want to be a WordPress developer. Where do you start? WordPress occupies nearly eighty million websites and that number is growing all the time .Also, website owners are always looking for WordPress developers to customize their webpages.

There are six simple steps to becoming a WordPress developer. It all starts with learning the fundamentals of WordPress and applying these skills. Also, choosing a developer specialty to focus on, understand you will run into problems, and join a WordPress community.

1) Understand the Required Skills

You need to master the fundamentals of WordPress, and then your potential on the content management platform will be unlimited. WordPress developers can accomplish this by learning HTML, CSS, PHP, MYSQL and more. Knowing at least one of these languages will be very beneficial.

2) Learn Everything You Can About WordPress

There are nearly an endless amount of WordPress courses you can take online, which include things like how to upload and customize plugins and themes, as well as the different types of plugins and how all the parts of a WordPress website work together.

3) Choose the Development Area You Want to Focus On

There are different types of WordPress developers, so it’s important to pick the one you want to focus on and become a specialist in that. People tend to want the best, and if you are the best at building plugins or themes, then you will always have work to do.

WordPress is a versatile platform, which requires lots of technical knowledge. The key to success is to become a specialist in one part of WordPress, instead of being okay at all of the parts of WordPress. WordPress developers work hard and have lots of challenges to overcome, so picking one area and conquering it will lead to WordPress success.

4) Prepare For Challenges

Working with software is always tricky. You will run into problems that will cause issues with the display and functionality of webpages. This can lead to website downtime, bugs in the code and even major system crashes. There are skills to learn to try to prevent bugs or more easily resolve issues, but security issues are also a concern.

Security and having webpages hacked or information compromised is a major part of owning a website in the digital age. There are measures you can take to prevent this and make your website as safe as possible. Also, backing up all your data is important, so you don’t lose hours and hours of work.

5) Create A Plugin Development Environment

Practice by doing. Once you’ve learned plugin or theme development, you should use that you’ve learned by testing and troubleshooting to find the most success. Working on live websites can have bad results, so it’s best to test in a more controlled environment to avoid creating new problems.

When you want to get some experience developing on a live site, do expect to pay for web-hosting. It’s not too expensive and there are many hosting reviews and advisor sites where you can grab customer approved, discounted hosting for $5-$8 per month.

6) Connect With A WordPress Community

Making connections with other WordPress users is super important to success. WordPress has millions of websites, so millions of people are behind those websites. A community of WordPress users can provide development and support on projects, as well as create a forum for WordPress trends and networking opportunities.

These skills and steps of things to learn for WordPress are essential for becoming a WordPress developer. There is also no definitive time limit of when someone becomes a WordPress developer. It is always a learning experience.

Once you have gained experience with WordPress development, You would also need to get a live site and pay for wordpress hosting

What Is A WordPress Developer?

WordPress developers actually know programming languages and can work with HTML, CSS, JavaScript, SQL, GIT, etc. WordPress developers can create custom plugins and modules for WordPress. Being a WordPress developer requires a deep understanding of the WordPress core, good PHP skills, and vast knowledge of WordPress products to make sure plugins and themes work together cohesively.

What you’ll learn

• Why code is the key to building whatever you can imagine with WordPress
• The ability to write PHP to manipulate the data of a WordPress site
• The ability to write JavaScript to add on-the-fly interactivity to a WordPress site
• How to code your own new custom block types for the “Gutenberg” Block Editor
• The skills, knowledge and vocabulary to work professionally as a WordPress developer

WordPress Theme Development

WordPress themes are not part of the WordPress core. In fact, they are collections of template files that modify the way a site is displayed without modifying the core WordPress software.

This is ideal because when a new version of the WordPress software is released and the site is updated, the appearance of the site won’t be affected drastically. If the presentation styles and template files were not separated from the core files in this way, every time you updated the core software, all your customization work would be lost.

Because they allow users to completely customize their site without touching a single line of code, WordPress themes are incredibly popular. Some are free, while others are premium and range from $60 to $200.

Theme developers can either create a custom theme for themselves, individual clients, or the public. If the latter, developers may either submit it to the WordPress directory for free or sell the theme on a marketplace like Theme Forest.

Theme developers not only have different production goals, they also have different means to accomplishing those goals. Some developers will simply pick an existing theme, install it, and customize it with the built-in settings and features for their clients’ or own personal sites. Others will start with a theme like Underscores and completely customize it with code so that it looks and does exactly what the client or they want. And others will start from scratch.

No matter why you choose to build your own theme, theme development is an opportunity to develop and flex your HTML, CSS, and JavaScript skills.

Conclusion

While WordPress is a very user-friendly content management system, WordPress developers are essential to WordPress success. At some time, you will add a plugin to your WordPress website, which was created by a plugin developer. You will add a theme to your WordPress website which was created by a theme developer.

Becoming a WordPress developer requires software development and computer programming skills, and learning programming languages is an acquired skill that people can learn. Some people get college degrees in computer science to become a developer and some people learn all their skills from the Internet.

There are many paths to becoming a WordPress developer, and depending on the type of developer you want to become, there are different types of skills to learn.

How to Become a WordPress Developer?

Wondering how to embark on a journey, towards becoming a WordPress developer? In today’s tech world, these developers hold significance in shaping and optimizing websites. If you have a passion for coding, creativity, and customer service then a career as a WordPress developer might be the fit for you. This article aims to delve into the world of WordPress developers by exploring their roles, responsibilities, steps involved in becoming one, and some practical tips to thrive in this ever-evolving field.

What is a WordPress Developer?

WordPress Developers are professionals who deal with the more intricate aspects of managing or building websites using the WordPress platform. Unlike a user, they possess expertise in coding that allows them to manipulate and enhance the underlying infrastructure of these websites. With their knowledge of programming languages and familiarity, with WordPress products, these developers are well-equipped to handle complex challenges that come their way. There are three main types of WordPress developers, each specializing in distinct areas:

• Core Developer: Manages the WordPress core, reviewing and optimizing code that impacts the entire platform.

• Plugin Developer: Creates custom plugins that enhance the functionality of WordPress websites.

• Theme Developer: Designs custom themes to give websites a specific look and feel in line with clients’ brand image.

Roles and Responsibilities of WordPress Developers

WordPress developers are tasked with a range of responsibilities, depending on their employers, client needs, and the type of websites they manage. Some of their key duties include:

• Creating custom plugins, themes, or modules.

• Building sitemaps or wireframes for websites.

• Transforming a website into a WordPress site.

• Redesigning websites to optimize performance and SEO rankings.

• Reviewing or debugging WordPress codebase for performance optimization.

• Conducting both front-end and back-end development.

• Managing multiple projects concurrently.

• Communicating with clients and potential clients.

• Performing support and maintenance tasks like backups and security scans.

How to Become a WordPress Developer?

Starting a career as a WordPress developer involves several key steps. Here’s a roadmap to guide you:

Learn at Least One Programming Language: While WordPress itself is user-friendly for non-coders, developers need to grasp at least one programming language to tackle advanced tasks. Start with languages like CSS and HTML, and gradually progress to more complex ones such as PHP and JavaScript.

Familiarize Yourself with WordPress: Immerse yourself in WordPress by taking online courses, exploring the WordPress Codex, and delving into developer resources. Creating your own WordPress website provides hands-on experience, allowing you to experiment with coding and understand the platform’s intricacies.

Choose Your Focus Area: WordPress developers often specialize in areas like core development, theme development, plugin development, or API development. Identify your focus area and hone your skills through practical projects and by participating in the WordPress community.

Become a Member of the WordPress Community: Joining the global WordPress community offers invaluable support, networking opportunities, and insights into industry best practices. Engage with fellow developers through social media groups, online forums, and live conferences to stay updated on the latest developments.

Build a Portfolio and Create a Resume: Showcase your skills by building a portfolio that highlights your best work. Your resume should reflect your technical expertise, education, and relevant projects. Crafting a professional online presence, including a personal website, can further enhance your visibility.

Market Your Services: Once you’ve gained sufficient experience and prepared your portfolio, explore opportunities through freelancing, social media, and job search sites. Consider attending community hiring events to connect with potential employers.

Unlocking Success with a College Certificate in WordPress Development

While it’s important to learn and gain experience, obtaining a college certificate in WordPress development or a related field can greatly enhance a candidate’s career opportunities. These certificates demonstrate your dedication and offer a learning path that goes beyond just validating your skills. They provide an understanding of web development principles, coding languages, and best practices in the industry. This equips them with the knowledge and confidence needed to excel in the changing world of WordPress development. By earning a college certificate candidates not only gain an advantage but also position themselves as well-rounded professionals ready to tackle the complexities of this evolving field.

Conclusion

Starting a career as a WordPress developer offers a blend of creativity, technical prowess, and continuous learning. As you navigate this dynamic field, consider the benefits of obtaining a college certification in web development or a related discipline. Certification not only validates your skills but also provides a structured learning path, equipping you with the knowledge and confidence to thrive in the ever-evolving world of WordPress development. To know more, connect with us at [email protected] or visit us at www.multihexa.ca. Happy coding!