Ian Stewart will lead customer experience at WordPress.com, utilizing his 14 years of experience on the WordPress.com team and a passion for themes.
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14 Best Email Management Software (Expert Pick for 2024)
While growing our online businesses, we have used a number of email management software options, such as Drip for our email newsletters and Groove for customer support. Along the way, we’ve experimented with different platforms for creating drip campaigns, building email lists, sending automated emails, and more.
However, after a lot of trial and error, we realized that not every email management software is built the same. Each has its own pros and cons, whether you are looking for a solution for customer support, email marketing, sales, or simply managing personal emails.
In this article, we will explain everything we have learned from testing the best email management software options on the market and help you choose the right one for your needs.
If you are in a hurry, then you can take a quick look at our top picks to make a decision.
Rank | Software | Best For | Pricing |
---|---|---|---|
🥇 | Groove | Customer support email management | $16/month per user |
🥈 | Constant Contact | Email marketing | $12/month + Free trial |
🥉 | Omnisend | Using email campaigns to boost sales | $16/month + Free |
4 | Gmail | Bloggers and individuals | Free |
How We Test And Review Email Management Software
Email management tools can help you organize, prioritize, and manage communication across your websites and online projects. This software can automate email tasks and be a great way to save time and increase productivity.
There are many different email management software for all kinds of WordPress sites, making it difficult to choose the right one. That is why we tested the most popular tools and paid special attention to the following criteria:
- Ease of Use: We have included email marketing tools that are beginner-friendly and come with extensive documentation to help you understand the product’s full potential.
- Different Use Cases: Each email software is built differently. That is why we have tried to include tools for different kinds of users, such as individuals, marketers, online store owners, and more.
- Email Support: We have recommended tools for sending and receiving customer emails to debug errors or troubleshoot problems.
- Email Marketing: We have prioritized tools for building email lists and sending engaging emails to bring back traffic.
- Email Management: You will find tools to manage emails sent by customers right in your dashboard. You can easily assign their queries to different support staff as well.
- Email Sales: Our list features software with a visual builder for creating abandoned cart emails, discount offer emails, and other conversion-boosting emails.
- Reliability: We have only included the email management software that we have tested ourselves on real websites.
Why Trust WPBeginner?
WPBeginner is a team of experts with 16+ years of experience in WordPress, email marketing, SEO, and more.
We extensively review and thoroughly test each tool in the list to give the best recommendations.
To learn more, see our editorial process.
Having said that, let’s take a look at our list of the best email management software.
Best Email Management Software for Customer Support
Customer support heavily relies on email communication to manage support tickets, contact users, and provide a consistent experience.
Here is a list of some best email management software for customer support.
1. Groove
Groove is the best email management software for customer support. It is super beginner-friendly and comes with features to provide amazing customer service to your users.
The software has a shared inbox for individuals, ensuring that customer emails are visible to the entire team. You can also manage your live chat and social conversations in the same inbox.
Other than that, Groove allows you to create a knowledge base for your customers. It also has 50+ automation templates to create request processes like auto-replies, conversation routing, conversation classification, and SLA management.
We were particularly impressed by the tool’s in-depth reports, which show key metrics like total resolutions, average resolution time, happiness rate, and more.
All of this combine to make Groove the best customer support service on the market. We actually use the tool across some of our own brands and have had a great experience with it.
Pros
- The Groove inbox can easily integrate with your Gmail account so you can easily check all your emails directly from the Groove dashboard.
- The tool allows you to assign conversations with customers to different team members in the inbox and has a private notes feature. It also has collision detection, which prevents task duplication and accidental edits on conversations between support members.
- We loved the software’s AI feature that turns specific customer responses into reusable instant replies in 1-click and generates summaries of lengthy conversations for easy reference.
- Groove can integrate with tools like Slack, HubSpot, Salesforce, GitHub, and more.
Cons
- Groove does not come with a free plan.
- It can only be integrated with WordPress using code.
Why we recommend Groove: We recommend Groove because it is the best help desk software that lets you manage all your emails directly from its dashboard, create a knowledge base, and assign conversations to different team members.
For details, see our Groove review.
2. Heroic Inbox
Heroic Inbox is an excellent help desk plugin that allows you to manage all your customer support processes right from the WordPress dashboard.
It lets you send pre-written responses when a new email comes in and manage all the emails on your admin dashboard without integrating with a third-party tool.
Heroic Inbox also comes with premade templates for frequently used responses that can boost email communication with customers.
Plus, it lets you compose emails and save them as drafts. This way, the team manager can review the email before sending it to the user.
Pros
- The plugin lets you categorize different conversations using email tags.
- Upon testing, we discovered that the plugin tells you when a customer opens up your email. It also has collision detection, autoresponders, and a ticket history feature.
- Heroic Inbox can integrate with Heroic KB to build documentation for your business.
- It offers a WooCommerce integration that lets users view their purchase history in your store.
Cons
- When reviewing the plugin, we didn’t like its integration process with Gmail because it’s not that beginner-friendly, and you must download a Google Workspace app for it.
- It has no free plan.
Why we recommend Heroic Inbox: This plugin is ideal for small to medium businesses who want to manage all their customer support emails right from the WordPress dashboard.
3. FreshDesk
FreshDesk is another customer service solution that lets you automatically convert incoming emails into support tickets.
It sets up rules to assign emails to specific agents or teams based on criteria like urgency, topic, or customer type. The tool also has a shared inbox where team members can collaborate on customer emails.
Additionally, FreshDesk has internal notes, canned responses, SLA management, and a collision detection feature to improve communication.
Pros
- We liked that FreshDesk keeps all email communication within a single thread. This provides a chronological history of the conversation for both agents and customers.
- The software has amazing features like creating a self-service portal through forum support, FAQs, a help widget, and AI automated voice responses.
- It provides in-depth analytics and reporting.
- FreshDesk also has live chat support and chatbots.
Cons
- If you have a small business, then using this tool can be overwhelming because it has a lot of features.
Why we recommend FreshDesk: FreshDesk is an affordable option for email management. It is ideal for businesses that are rapidly scaling and need to provide efficient support.
4. HelpScout
HelpScout is an all-in-one help desk software that manages all your chat and email support requests in a central place. It has a collaborative inbox to ensure that customer emails are visible to the entire team and makes it easy to create canned responses.
The tool can create automated workflows to set up autoresponders for initial replies, send saved responses for common questions, and trigger custom notifications based on email content.
It also has collision detection, internal notes, and a single email thread feature that takes customer communication via email to a new level.
Pros
- Upon review, we discovered that HelpScout lets you embed surveys directly within emails to gather customer feedback.
- The software comes with email routing, where you can set up rules to assign emails to specific agents based on different factors.
- We liked its AI Assist feature that provides suggestions to improve email drafts, including grammar fixes, conciseness adjustments, or tone modifications.
- It offers conversation ratings and analytics.
Cons
- Using HelpScout can become difficult as you scale up. This is because the tool is built for small to medium-sized businesses.
- It can be a bit expensive if you are on a shoestring budget.
Why we recommend HelpScout: If you have a small business site, then HelpSout is a great choice. It lets you manage emails in one place, uses AI to create better email responses, and can assign tickets based on different criteria.
Best Email Management Software for Marketing
If you are a marketer, then the following list of email management software will better suit your needs.
5. Constant Contact
Constant Contact is the best email management software for marketers because it has a user-friendly builder for creating attractive emails.
It lets you create drip campaigns and build automated workflows. For instance, you can send custom welcome emails, birthday messages, or abandoned cart emails.
The tool also lets you build and segment your contacts, making it a great choice to grow your email list.
Pros
- Constant Contact is the best email marketing service that lets you access unlimited emails, a free image library, and built-in social media sharing tools.
- We loved the customer support quality offered by the tool, including live chat, phone calls, email, community support, and a vast knowledge base.
- It has A/B testing to test different versions of your email subject lines, calls to action, or content.
- The tool has a great reporting feature that shows open rates, click-through rates, and other engagement metrics.
Cons
- Constant Contact allows you to build basic landing pages, but the customization options are limited.
- Some users have run into difficulties when canceling their Constant Contact accounts.
Why we recommend Constant Contact: If you are a marketer who wants to generate leads and bring more traffic to your website using emails, then Constant Contact is the best choice.
For details, see our Constant Contact review.
6. Brevo
Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) is a great CRM, automation, email, and SMS marketing software. It allows you to create abandoned cart emails, welcome messages, sales notifications, and more.
The tool also allows you to segment your email list, build automated email sequences, and test different versions of the emails to optimize their performance.
Additionally, you can use Brevo to manage email marketing right from your WordPress dashboard using the Newsletter, SMTP, Email marketing and Subscribe forms plugin.
Pros
- You can integrate it with landing page builder and eCommerce platforms.
- Brevo is an amazing SMS marketing software that lets you create automated SMS messages.
- We were impressed by its AI algorithms that select the best time to send bulk emails for the best email deliverability.
- You can also use this tool for CRM, live chat, and Facebook Ads.
Cons
- When researching the tool, we found that some users experience inconsistencies with email deliverability using Brevo.
- It only offers basic functions in the free plan.
Why we recommend Brevo: If you have a small business and are looking to launch email and SMS marketing campaigns, then Brevo is the best choice.
For more details, see our Brevo review.
7. HubSpot
HubSpot is another CRM, email, and SMS marketing platform that can help you grow your contact list. It has customizable features to build an email list with your branding and uses AI to create subject lines and optimize your email copy.
It allows you to personalize email content based on criteria like recipient names, demographics, interests, or website behavior. The tool also lets you create automated workflows that can be triggered by form submissions, website visits, or abandoned carts.
HubSpot also has a comprehensive analytics feature that lets you know important information like conversion rates and unsubscribes.
Pros
- We loved HubSpot’s CRM (Customer Relationship Management) feature. It lets you organize and manage customer data for targeted email marketing campaigns.
- It has a high email deliverability rate and comes with A/B testing.
- You can create chatbots, WordPress forms, and landing pages.
- HubSpot has a free plugin that makes it easy to integrate the service with WordPress.
Cons
- The software has a free plan with limited features. However, its paid plan can get expensive.
- HubSpot has a lot of features, which can be overwhelming if you don’t plan on using some of the other features offered by the tool.
Why we recommend HubSpot: If you have a rapidly scaling business and want a tool to act as a CRM, email, and SMS marketing platform, form builder, and website builder, then HubSpot is the all-in-one solution for you.
8. AWeber
AWeber is one of the oldest email marketing software options around. It lets you build visually appealing email campaigns using dynamic elements that can adjust based on subscriber information.
The tool also offers features like list management, autoresponders, A/B testing, and email tracking with detailed insights, making it a great choice.
Plus, AWeber can seamlessly integrate with WordPress, allowing you to manage emails right from the dashboard. For details, see our tutorial on how to connect AWeber to WordPress.
Pros
- AWeber offers email marketing features such as AMP emails, automatic RSS-to-email for bloggers, and tag-based subscriber segmentation.
- It can integrate with popular WordPress membership plugins like MemberPress.
- The tool allows you to create customizable sign-up forms to embed on your website and grow your email list.
- When reviewing, we liked the tools’ powerful automated email sequence feature.
Cons
- The landing page builder in AWeber’s paid plans offers basic functionalities.
- Some of the premade templates have outdated designs.
Why we recommend AWeber: If you are just starting with email marketing, then AWeber is a good choice because it is super beginner-friendly and doesn’t offer an overwhelming range of features.
Best Email Management Software for Sales
If you have an online store and want to use emails to boost sales, then the following list of email management tools could be a good choice.
9. Omnisend
Omnisend is a well-known email marketing and automation platform for eCommerce websites. Its ‘Product Picker’ feature lets you create attractive emails with product recommendations.
Additionally, you can use the pre-built eCommerce workflows to set up email sequences for abandoning carts, promoting sale offers, and more.
Omnisend can also act as an SMS marketing tool, allowing you to send personalized messages to users with their names, locations, and other information.
Pros
- The software offers eCommerce-related features like customer lifecycle data, on-site behavior, message engagement, and more.
- When researching, we discovered that you can also send push notifications with Omnisend.
- It shows detailed analytics and reports on your marketing performance.
- You can also launch Facebook and WhatsApp message campaigns.
Cons
- Omnisend can be expensive if you have just started your online store.
- It can be a bit difficult to integrate it with other tools.
Why we recommend Omnisend: If you are looking for software that lets you send customized emails and use premade automated email sequences to recover abandoned carts, then Omnisend is the best solution for you.
10. Drip
Drip is another great platform for boosting sales by launching email marketing campaigns. It is also a powerful automation tool for creating workflows that are sent to users upon specific actions.
It is best known for creating drip campaigns, which involve sending a series of automated emails to customers at predetermined intervals.
Other than that, the software offers revenue tracking, A/B testing, and contact list segmentation, making it a great choice.
We even use it on WPBeginner for email marketing. For details, see our guide on why WPBeginner switched from MailChimp to Drip.
Pros
- Drip has a custom form builder and a landing page builder.
- It provides detailed reports on your campaign performance.
- The software can integrate with any eCommerce platform like Shopify or WooCommerce.
- We particularly liked the online courses and detailed documentation offered by Drip to better understand the product.
Cons
- The software can be super expensive and a bit complicated to use for small businesses.
- It doesn’t have a free plan.
Why we recommend Drip: If your WooCommerce store is rapidly growing, then Drip is a great solution for creating automated email sequences.
11. Streak
Streak is a software that is used to convert your Gmail inbox into a powerful CRM (Customer Relationship Management) tool. It can track all outgoing emails and see when recipients open them and click on links.
Other than that, it can personalize bulk emails with user data, schedule emails to be sent later, break down complex email threads, and allow email sharing with team members.
The tool can also generate reusable email templates for frequently used content snippets, saving you time and ensuring effective communication.
Pros
- Other than managing your emails, Streak can be used as a CRM. It can organize your leads, deals, and projects using customizable pipelines.
- We liked that the software allows you to track progress for each project using a Kanban-board-style interface.
- It allows you to store and manage all your contact information in Gmail.
- You can assign tasks to yourself or team members, set deadlines, and track progress within email threads.
Cons
- Streak only offers basic email tracking features.
- It does not allow you to create automated workflows or drip campaigns.
- Streak’s Kanban-style interface can become cluttered and difficult to manage with a large number of team members.
Why we recommend Streak: If you have a small online store and previously used Gmail to manage your emails, Streak is a good choice. It will work as a CRM and an email management tool, keeping everything in a central place.
Best Email Management Software for Individuals
If you have a WordPress blog that you manage by yourself, then you might be more interested in the following email management tools.
12. Gmail
Gmail is a free service developed by Google and is the most popular email management tool in the world. It allows you to send and receive emails easily and organize them in folders using labels.
You can also mark important emails with stars or use the built-in priority inbox to highlight critical messages that require immediate attention.
Plus, you can delete and archive multiple emails, undo sends, create pre-written templates, and access everything from your mobile.
For details, see our tutorial on how to set up a shared Gmail inbox for your WordPress site.
Pros
- Gmail has powerful search functionality, allowing users to find specific emails by sender, recipient, keywords, or other criteria.
- It can temporarily remove emails from your inbox and reschedule them to reappear at a designated time.
- The tool can seamlessly integrate with Google Docs, Google Calendar, and Google Tasks.
- The software offers a generous amount of storage space for your emails.
Cons
- Gmail is not as customizable as other dedicated email management platforms.
- It offers limited collaboration features.
- Managing a large team’s emails within a single Gmail environment can become overwhelming.
Why we recommend Gmail: If you have a simple WordPress blog and are not planning to send as many emails to users, then Gmail is a great choice.
13. Outlook
Outlook (formerly known as Hotmail) is another email management tool that is part of the Microsoft 365 suite.
It organizes all your email in a central inbox using categories, folders, and filters. Plus, it allows you to track whether recipients open your emails and see if they’ve clicked on links.
You can also create reusable templates with Outlook and schedule emails to be sent at a later date.
Pros
- It lets you create, manage, and share calendars with colleagues. You can schedule appointments, set reminders, and track deadlines.
- Outlook can also be used to schedule meetings with internal and external attendees.
- The tool lets you create contact lists and groups to send segmented emails.
- You can also create to-do lists with Outlook.
Cons
- It does not have any email marketing features.
- A free Outlook account only comes with basic customer support.
Why we recommend Outlook: Overall, Outlook provides a comprehensive suite of features for managing your emails, calendar, contacts, tasks, and more. It can be a great choice for personal and professional use.
14. ConvertKit
ConvertKit allows you to build engaging emails and complex automated workflows in just a few minutes. It has a beginner-friendly builder and reusable content blocks for efficient email creation.
The tool can be used to create landing pages and sign-up forms. You can also organize your subscribers with detailed tags and segment your audience for targeted email campaigns.
ConvertKit has an A/B testing feature to optimize your campaign performance.
Pros
- We liked that the tool lets you import existing contacts from other platforms and export your subscriber list for further analysis.
- You can use the software to sell digital products and offer paid newsletter subscriptions.
- The software allows you to set up automated email sequences for abandoned carts, welcome messages, onboarding processes, and more.
Cons
- You will need the premium plan to unlock ConvertKit’s automation features.
- The email templates have limited design flexibility.
Why we recommend ConvertKit: If you have a small business or blog but want to scale rapidly, then ConvertKit can be a good choice.
What Is the Best Email Management Software?
In our expert opinion, Groove is the best email management software for customer support because it is beginner-friendly. Plus, it offers features like shared inbox, auto-replies, conversation routing, and more.
You can also create a knowledge base and live chat widget with the tool.
On the other hand, if you want to use email to generate leads and bring back traffic, then Constant Contact is the best email marketing software.
It has beautiful email templates and a visual builder, lets you create drip campaigns, and offers a free image library.
However, if you have an online store, then we recommend Omnisend. It is a powerful automation and email marketing tool that is built with eCommerce stores in mind.
Similarly, if you just have a simple WordPress site, then you can use Gmail or ConvertKit.
Frequently Asked Questions About Managing Emails
Here is a list of some questions that are frequently asked by our readers.
1. How do I manage thousands of emails?
As your website grows, you will get more emails from customers every day reporting bugs or asking about your products. This can get very difficult to manage.
That is why we recommend using email management software. These tools offer various features to organize, prioritize, automate, and track your emails. They can also improve your overall email workflow and productivity.
2. What features should I consider when choosing email management software?
When choosing an email management software for your website, you should consider the following features:
- Ease of Use: You should opt for beginner-friendly tools that offer extensive documentation.
- Organization: The tool must offer basic organization features like labels, folders, filters, and search functionality.
- Automation capabilities: It should be able to create drip campaigns and have features like autoresponders, email sequences, and scheduling.
- Collaboration tools: The software must allow collaboration with other team members using shared inboxes, task management, and commenting.
- Integrations: It should have compatibility with other tools you use (e.g., CRM, project management).
3. How can I grow my email list?
There are many ways to grow your email list. For instance, you can add a contact form to your website, where users must add their email addresses to submit any queries about your products.
Or you can encourage users to sign up for your newsletter for a discount, use an exit intent popup, offer content upgrades, run giveaways, and more.
For more tips, see our tested and easy ways to grow your email list.
Related Guides for Email Management
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What is PHP? A Thorough Explanation for Absolute Beginners – WordPress.com News
If you find yourself diving deeper into the topic of WordPress, content management systems, and websites, a term you will quickly stumble upon is “PHP.” You will likely hear how crucial PHP is for the Internet and that it is what’s powering WordPress websites.
However, what exactly is PHP, and why is it so important?
The short answer is that it’s a general-purpose, server-side scripting language. That said, unless you are already knowledgeable in programming and web development, that probably doesn’t make things much clearer.
In order to help you better understand this topic, we’ll cover PHP in detail below. You’ll learn what PHP is, why it matters, and how it relates to WordPress and pretty much everything you do online. We promise you’ll be surprised to hear how much you likely rely on PHP every day.
- What is PHP? History, features, and benefits
- How PHP works: Creating dynamic web content
- PHP and WordPress: The CMS’ heart and soul
- PHP in everyday life: You rely on it more often than you think
- What is PHP? It is the web’s backbone
What is PHP? History, features, and benefits
The original developer of PHP was a Danish-Canadian programmer named Rasmus Lerdorf. He first created the language in the mid 1990s to build tools for his own website; that’s why PHP originally stood for “Personal Home Page.” Today, it stands for the recursive acronym “Hypertext Preprocessor” and development and support has been taken over by the PHP Group.
PHP features
PHP has some notable features, many of which are applicable to the way WordPress works:
Open Source: The first thing that is important to note is that, like WordPress, PHP is open source. That means it does not belong to any one business entity. It also means that it’s free to download and use for any purpose.
Also like WordPress, PHP is maintained by a number of volunteers around the world. The next major release, 8.4, will be available November 21, 2024.
Finally, both WordPress and PHP are community-funded––while WordPress has the WordPress Foundation, The PHP Foundation’s mission is to “ensure the long-term prosperity of the PHP language.” Automattic is a proud Platinum Sponsor of The PHP Foundation.
Server Side: PHP is a server-side language, which means it executes on the server and not in the user’s browser.
For example, PHP’s most frequent application is for creating HTML documents for websites. Even though there are PHP files on the server, the browser does not receive the PHP code; instead, it receives the finished HTML documents for display. This is different from client-side languages like JavaScript where the processing happens directly in the user’s browser after downloading the JavaScript files.
To make things clearer, server-side languages are a bit like going to a restaurant. You send an order to the kitchen, they prepare the meal, and it arrives at your table ready to eat. Client-side languages, on the other hand, are like meal-delivery services. While they provide you with all the necessary ingredients, you still have to put them together in your own kitchen.
General Purpose: PHP is also a general-purpose programming language. You can use it for command-line scripting, creating desktop applications, and more. However, its primary application is in web development.
Ubiquitous: According to W3Techs, the language is present on 75.7% of all websites. That includes some famous ones, as you will see below.
In addition, it forms the backbone of many content management systems like Drupal, Joomla!, and—the most popular of them all—WordPress.
PHP is one of the biggest open source success stories, as much of the modern Internet depends on it to work.
Benefits of PHP
You might be asking yourself why the usage of PHP is so widespread. There are many good reasons for that, but here are just a few:
- Beginner-Friendly: PHP is relatively easy for beginners to learn due to its intuitive syntax. There are also plenty of tools and frameworks available to make coding easier.
- Wide Community: The language has a vast and active community of developers worldwide. This means there are loads of online resources, forums, and other places where users can seek help and find ready-made solutions to common problems.
- Cross-Platform Compatibility: PHP is compatible with popular operating systems, including Windows, MacOS, Linux, and Unix. It also works on various web servers such as Apache, NGINX, and Microsoft IIS.
- Database Connectivity: In addition, it works with a number of different database formats, such as MySQL, MongoDB, PostgreSQL, SQLite, Oracle, and more. PHP can execute SQL queries, retrieve, update and delete data, and handle database connections and transactions.
- Cost-Effective: As we have already learned, the programming language is free to use, distribute, and modify. That eliminates the need for expensive licensing fees and reduces development costs, making it an economical choice for web development projects.
- Scalability: PHP is capable of handling high traffic loads and can easily scale. You can use it together with caching techniques and other optimization strategies to enhance performance. Plus, it’s generally faster than some other programming languages, such as Python.
How PHP works: Creating dynamic web content
One of the main reasons why PHP is so popular for web development is that it seamlessly integrates with various technologies and services commonly used in this area. Examples include HTTP, POP3, IMAP, and more.
One of its main advantages is that it is highly compatible with HTML, the main language used to create and display websites. In fact, it’s possible to use PHP code in HTML files and vice versa.
Above you can see how both languages appear in the same file. The PHP markup is delineated by opening and closing brackets ( and
?>
) so that the server knows where it ends and begins. However, the PHP code itself is inside an HTML element. The
_e
function is a WordPress function used for localization, which allows for easy translations across the WordPress software.
The main benefit of this is that using PHP allows web developers to display dynamic content in otherwise static web pages. For example, PHP is able to pull content directly from databases, making it great for templating. You can create a fixed layout for all web pages but then display different content depending on the page a user is on.
This is vastly different from pure HTML, where the content needs to be hard-coded in the page file in order for the browser to show it. PHP, on the other hand, can add it on the fly as needed. That’s one of the main benefits of this programming language—the ability to dynamically combine and display content from different sources and of different kinds according to what the user requests.
PHP and WordPress: The CMS’ heart and soul
As a WordPress user, PHP is especially important. The programming language forms the basis of much of what WordPress can do. It’s what allows you to create, edit, and delete pages, posts, media, and other content. That’s why you see that a lot of files that end in .php
when you look in the directory of any WordPress installation.
It’s also why, when installing WordPress on a server, the system requirements insist that PHP be present. In recent years JavaScript has been playing a bigger and bigger role in the WordPress ecosystem, mainly because of the adoption of the Gutenberg editor. That said, PHP is still the main workhorse in the background.
Powering themes and plugins
What are some of WordPress’ main tasks powered by PHP? Before the advent of block themes, WordPress themes were all written mostly in PHP, especially page template files. In fact, if you look at the template hierarchy, you can see that WordPress has PHP files for pretty much all pages and theme components.
Why? So we have the ability to create a single layout for one type of content and then dynamically display what’s saved in the database for a particular piece of content.
That way, if you have 300 pages of the same kind on your site, you don’t need a file for each as you would on a pure HTML website. Instead, you just need one single page template file; PHP can then populate each individual page with its specific content.
PHP also makes it easy to compartmentalize different parts of your theme. For example, it’s very common to not have the markup for a footer in each file. Instead you can create a separate footer.php
file and call it into your templates where needed. That way, if you want to modify the footer layout, you only have to make changes in a singular place—the footer.php
file.
The same is true for plugins, aka collections of PHP files that contain the necessary markup for adding extra functionality to your WordPress site. When you activate a plugin, it gets added to the rest of your website code and can provide the functionality you are looking for.
Without PHP, there would be no WordPress
All of the above is only made possible by the flexibility that PHP offers. Besides the benefits we have discussed before, this is the main reason why WordPress relies on PHP to the extent that it does; PHP offers a ton of flexible functionality specifically for web development. PHP’s capabilities in content management, working with databases, and its modularity all make it a perfect candidate for powering the most popular website builder there is.
This also means that if you know PHP, it opens up a lot more possibilities to modify your WordPress website. You can write custom plugins, make changes to (non-block) themes and page templates, introduce functionality to functions.php, and so much more. So, if you want to improve your WordPress skill set, learning PHP is not a bad place to start.
PHP in everyday life: You rely on it more often than you think
Besides WordPress, you might actually be unaware how much of your general everyday online interactions are enabled by PHP. There are a number of very well-known websites that use PHP to run and many common processes that the programming language performs online:
- Facebook: The largest social network in existence was initially built using PHP. While they have moved away from the programming language over time, it still plays a significant role in their infrastructure.
- Wikipedia: The world’s biggest online encyclopedia also relies heavily on PHP for its back end operations, content management, and user interactions.
- Tumblr: This microblogging and social networking platform employs PHP to power its vast network of user-generated content and social interactions. We’re actually in the process of migrating Tumblr’s backend to run on WordPress; if you’re interested in being a part of this exciting project, leave your information here.
- Slack: This widely-used team collaboration and communication platform utilizes PHP for its back-end operations, real-time messaging, and API integrations.
And this is just the tip of the iceberg. There are countless other examples of well-known web staples that exist in part because of PHP.
Other abilities of PHP
Up until this point, we’ve mostly talked about PHP in the context of creating and outputting HTML markup; however, the programming language is involved in a lot more that you probably take advantage of on a daily basis:
- Form Processing: PHP can process and validate data submitted by users via forms. It’s also capable of performing actions such as storing data in a database, sending email notifications, or generating dynamic responses based on user input. Plus, it comes with encryption to keep the submitted data safe.
- User Authentication: It can also handle user authentication by verifying login credentials. PHP allows you to implement user registration and login/logout functionality, and it can control access to different areas of your website or application. For example: user roles.
- Session Management: PHP can also manage user sessions, store session data, and track user activity. Among other things, this allows you to save user preferences. PHP can also set cookies and receive cookie data.
- File Manipulation: The programming language provides a wide range of functions for file manipulation, such as reading and writing files, uploading files from forms, creating directories, and modifying file permissions. This comes in handy for managing files on the server through other applications (like WordPress).
- Email Handling: PHP comes with functions to send emails from a server. This allows you to build features like contact forms, email notifications, and automated email responses.
- Third-Party Communication: With PHP you can interact with external APIs and web services. It makes it possible to integrate with other applications, retrieve data from remote servers, and perform actions like posting to social media platforms.
What is PHP? It is the web’s backbone
If you’re an everyday WordPress user or non-developer, you probably don’t spend a lot of time thinking about how much of your online experience is possible thanks to the humble PHP. However, the more you dive into this topic, the more you’ll realize how much you rely on it.
Who knew an open source solution was at the heart of what makes the World Wide Web tick? From the largest content management system in the world to well-known web entities, so much of what we take for granted exists because of it.
There are good reasons why it’s so widespread; from its powerful capabilities over its wide support system to ongoing development and support, there is a lot that speaks for PHP as the go-to solution for web projects.
Since it’s also beginner friendly, learning some PHP skills is definitely a good place to start if you want to dive deeper into the technical aspects of WordPress and web development.
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WORDPRESS
Ian Stewart to Lead WordPress.com – WordPress.com News
We are pleased to announce that Ian Stewart (blog, LinkedIn, GitHub, X) has been chosen to lead end-to-end customer experience for WordPress.com as its Artistic Director and product lead.
In a nod to LVMH’s organizational structure, Ian will lead in the style of a maison head, ensuring that every part of WordPress.com remains the best managed WordPress experience available. He has been a part of the WordPress.com team for over 14 years, and we’re excited to see what changes he will implement on WordPress.com in this new role.
“I got involved with WordPress after growing tired of using Blogger for my personal blog,” Ian says. “This quickly led to the demise of my regular blogging habits as I spent most of my time messing around with my theme…My fooling around with WordPress themes quickly became a delightful obsession as I tried to publicly figure out what I thought about them.”
We’re grateful for your obsession with WordPress, Ian, and we certainly know the feeling.
Please join us in welcoming Ian in his new role.
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Automattic sends WP Engine its own cease-and-desist over WordPress trademark infringement
The brouhaha in the WordPress community looks likely to escalate into a legal battle around trademarks.
Just a day after WordPress hosting service WP Engine sent a cease-and-desist notice to Automattic asking its CEO to stop publicly trashing WP Engine, now Automattic has sent its own cease-and-desist letter to WP Engine, saying the latter has infringed several trademarks like WordPress and WooCommerce.
This comes after Matt Mullenweg, the CEO of Automattic and co-creator of WordPress, last week criticized WP Engine for profiteering off the open source WordPress project, calling it a “cancer to WordPress,” and accused the company of contributing very little to the community.
In its letter dated Monday, Automattic alleged that WP Engine has built a business of over $400 million in revenue based on unauthorized use of its WordPress trademark, which Automattic claims it has the exclusive commercial rights for from the WordPress Foundation. Automattic also said WP Engine has misled consumers into believing that there is a direct affiliation between the two companies.
“Your unauthorized use of our Client’s trademarks infringes on their rights and dilutes their famous and well-known marks. Negative reviews and comments regarding WP Engine and its offerings are imputed to our Client, thereby tarnishing our Client’s brands, harming their reputation, and damaging the goodwill our Client has established in its marks,” the letter read.
“Your unauthorized use of our Client’s intellectual property has enabled WP Engine to compete with our Client unfairly, and has led to unjust enrichment and undue profits,” it added.
Automattic is also demanding compensation for the profits made by WP Engine by using its trademarks and said that if WP Engine doesn’t amicably resolve the matter, the company has the right to file a civil injunction case.
For context, here’s a good summary of the WordPress community by my colleague Paul Sawers:
WordPress powers more than 40% of the web, and while any individual or company is free to take the open source project and run a website themselves, a number of businesses have sprung up to sell hosting services and technical expertise off the back of it. These include Automattic, which Mullenweg set up in 2005 to monetize the project he’d created two years earlier; and WP Engine, a managed WordPress hosting provider that has raised nearly $300 million in funding over its 14-year history, the bulk of which came via a $250 million investment from private equity firm Silver Lake in 2018.
In the cease-and-desist letter WP Engine sent to Automattic on Monday, the company defended its right to use the “WordPress” trademark under fair use laws. The company added that Automattic has “a profound misunderstanding of both trademark law and WordPress Foundation’s trademark policy.”
It also said Mullenweg demanded WP Engine pay Automattic “a significant percentage of its gross revenues — tens of millions of dollars in fact — on an ongoing basis” for a license to use trademarks like “WordPress.”
“When his outrageous financial demands were not met, Mr. Mullenweg carried out his threats by making repeated false claims disparaging WP Engine to its employees, its customers, and the world,” WP Engine’s letter said.
Notably, Automattic’s letter doesn’t mention Mullenweg’s remarks about WP Engine.
In the last week, Mullenweg has accused WP Engine of not contributing enough to the community and offering “a cheap knock-off” version of WordPress. WP Engine pushed back against this characterization and called out Mullenweg for launching a smear campaign against the company, saying it has already affected some of its business.
This might be the start of a long legal tussle between the two entities. A lot of folks also pointed out that this battle might be harmful for providers offering specialized WordPress hosting.
Earlier today, WordPress Foundation changed its Trademark Policy page, and it now calls out WP Engine, alleging the hosting service has confused users.
“The abbreviation ‘WP’ is not covered by the WordPress trademarks, but please don’t use it in a way that confuses people. For example, many people think WP Engine is “WordPress Engine” and officially associated with WordPress, which it’s not. They have never once even donated to the WordPress Foundation, despite making billions of revenue on top of WordPress,” the updated page reads.
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