The WordPress coreCoreCore is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress. development team builds WordPress! Follow this site for general updates, status reports, and the occasional code debate. There’s lots of ways to contribute:
Found a bugbugA bug is an error or unexpected result. Performance improvements, code optimization, and are considered enhancements, not defects. After feature freeze, only bugs are dealt with, with regressions (adverse changes from the previous version) being the highest priority.?Create a ticket in the bug tracker.
The live meeting will focus on the discussion for upcoming releases, and have an open floor section.
The various curated agenda sections below refer to additional items. If you have ticketticketCreated for both bug reports and feature development on the bug tracker. requests for help, please continue to post details in the comments section at the end of this agenda or bring them up during the dev chat.
Announcements 📢
WordPress 7.0 Call for Volunteers
If you are interested in volunteering for WordPress 7.0, please comment here by January 16.
Nominations for CoreCoreCore is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress. Team Reps 2026
The nomination process for Core Team Representatives for 2026 is now open. Please submit your nomination here.
Dropping support for PHPPHPThe web scripting language in which WordPress is primarily architected. WordPress requires PHP 7.4 or higher 7.2 and 7.3
Support for PHP 7.2 and 7.3 will be dropped in WordPress 7.0. Here you can find more information.
6.9 Release Retrospective
The 6.9 release retrospective is open to all contributors, not only release squad members. Broader feedback helps improve future release processes. The form and comments will be open until January 15.
Discussions 💬
The discussion section of the agenda is for discussing important topics affecting the upcoming release or larger initiatives that impact the Core Team. To nominate a topic for discussion, please leave a comment on this agenda with a summary of the topic, any relevant links that will help people get context for the discussion, and what kind of feedback you are looking for from others participating in the discussion.
Any topic can be raised for discussion in the comments, as well as requests for assistance on tickets. Tickets in the milestone for the next major or maintenance release will be prioritized.
Please include details of tickets / PRs and the links in the comments, and indicate whether you intend to be available during the meeting for discussion or will be async.
Support for PHPPHPThe web scripting language in which WordPress is primarily architected. WordPress requires PHP 7.4 or higher 7.2 and 7.3 will be dropped in WordPress 7.0, currently scheduled for release in April 2026. The minimum recommended version of PHP will remain at 8.3, but the new minimum supported version of PHP will be 7.4.0.
Historically, the project has used 5% as the baseline usage percentage that a PHP version must fall below before it can be considered for a well-earned retirement. Now that usage of PHP 7.2 and 7.3 combined has fallen well below that, the process to increase the minimum supported PHP version can proceed.
The goal of increasing the minimum supported version of PHP is to ensure the long-term maintainability of WordPress. The benefits to increasing the minimum supported PHP version manifest over time across multiple areas, including the pluginPluginA plugin is a piece of software containing a group of functions that can be added to a WordPress website. They can extend functionality or add new features to your WordPress websites. WordPress plugins are written in the PHP programming language and integrate seamlessly with WordPress. These can be free in the WordPress.org Plugin Directory https://wordpress.org/plugins/ or can be cost-based plugin from a third-party. and theme ecosystem, tooling and libraries for AI, the long-term perception of the WordPress project, developer relations, and eventually within the WordPress codebase itself, including its developer tooling and automated testing infrastructure.
WordPress coreCoreCore is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress. is fully compatible with PHP 8.0 to 8.3 and is beta compatible with PHP 8.4 and 8.5.
Sites that are running PHP 7.2 or 7.3 will remain on the 6.9 branchbranchA directory in Subversion. WordPress uses branches to store the latest development code for each major release (3.9, 4.0, etc.). Branches are then updated with code for any minor releases of that branch. Sometimes, a major version of WordPress and its minor versions are collectively referred to as a "branch", such as "the 4.0 branch". of WordPress once 7.0 is released. While only one branch officially receives security updates, fixes are backported down to WordPress 4.7 as a courtesy when possible.
What about the GutenbergGutenbergThe Gutenberg project is the new Editor Interface for WordPress. The editor improves the process and experience of creating new content, making writing rich content much simpler. It uses ‘blocks’ to add richness rather than shortcodes, custom HTML etc.
https://wordpress.org/gutenberg/ plugin?
There are no plans to bump the minimum supported PHP version on a set schedule. The Core team will continue to monitor PHP version usage and work with the Hosting team to encourage users and hosting companies to upgrade their versions of PHP as swiftly as possible. The 5% usage threshold will continue to be used as the standard for the foreseeable future.
Props to all those that have contributed to this discussion recently. Thanks to @desrosj, @westonruter, and @jorbin for feedback and proof-reading this post.
Planning is underway for WordPress 7.0! This post outlines the proposed schedule along with a call for volunteers to support the release process.
Following the typical cadence and accounting for holidays later in the year, the proposed final release date for 7.0 is Thursday, April 9, 2026. This proposed timeline remains flexible for the resulting Release Squad and adjustments can be made if necessary as they determine what timeline works best for their schedule.
Proposed Schedule
Milestone
Date
Alpha Begins
Immediately (7.0-alpha began in trunk on November 12th with [61222])
BetaBetaA pre-release of software that is given out to a large group of users to trial under real conditions. Beta versions have gone through alpha testing in-house and are generally fairly close in look, feel and function to the final product; however, design changes often occur as part of the process. 1
Thursday, February 19
Beta 2
Thursday, February 26
Beta 3
Thursday, March 5
Beta 4
Thursday, March 12
Release Candidaterelease candidateOne of the final stages in the version release cycle, this version signals the potential to be a final release to the public. Also see alpha (beta). 1
Thursday, March 19
Release Candidate 2
Thursday, March 26
Release Candidate 3
Thursday, April 2
Dry Run
Wednesday, April 8
Final Release
Thursday, April 9
As always, all dates are subject to change based on development progress.
Call for Volunteers
Each WordPress release depends on contributors from across the project coming together to make it a success.
As with the 6.7, 6.8, and 6.9 release cycles, WordPress 7.0 will continue the approach of forming a smaller, focused Release Squad with making based on feedback received. This streamlined structure places more emphasis on collaboration with the various Make Team Reps, who are encouraged to help coordinate efforts from within their respective teams. The goals are to reduce the overhead on the Release Squad while still ensuring each team’s contributions and priorities are represented throughout the cycle, and to reduce overlap between a Make Team RepTeam RepA Team Rep is a person who represents the Make WordPress team to the rest of the project, make sure issues are raised and addressed as needed, and coordinates cross-team efforts. and that team’s Release Squad Leads. Noteworthy Contributors will be captured from Team Reps towards the end of the release cycle.
While the end goal is to publish the final release of WordPress 7.0 during Contributor DayContributor DayContributor Days are standalone days, frequently held before or after WordCamps but they can also happen at any time. They are events where people get together to work on various areas of https://make.wordpress.org/ There are many teams that people can participate in, each with a different focus. https://2017.us.wordcamp.org/contributor-day/https://make.wordpress.org/support/handbook/getting-started/getting-started-at-a-contributor-day/ at WordCampWordCampWordCamps are casual, locally-organized conferences covering everything related to WordPress. They're one of the places where the WordPress community comes together to teach one another what they’ve learned throughout the year and share the joy. Learn more. Asia (which follows India Standard Time), traveling to or attending WordCamp Asia is not a requirement to serve on the release squad. All communication related to the release process will continue to take place in the #coreSlackSlackSlack is a Collaborative Group Chat Platform https://slack.com/. The WordPress community has its own Slack Channel at https://make.wordpress.org/chat/ channel.
If you are interested in helping lead WordPress 7.0 in one of the following roles, please comment below or reach out in the #7-0-release-leads Slack channel:
Release LeadRelease LeadThe community member ultimately responsible for the Release. – Matt Mullenweg (@matt)
Release Coordination – helps manage timelines, cross-team collaboration, and status updates
Tech Leads – oversees coreCoreCore is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress. development (including GutenbergGutenbergThe Gutenberg project is the new Editor Interface for WordPress. The editor improves the process and experience of creating new content, making writing rich content much simpler. It uses ‘blocks’ to add richness rather than shortcodes, custom HTML etc.
https://wordpress.org/gutenberg/), triagetriageThe act of evaluating and sorting bug reports, in order to decide priority, severity, and other factors., and critical issues
Triage Lead – help monitor issues, shepherd patches, and guide contributors
Test Lead – coordinates testing efforts across the community and test reports
Whether you have led a release before or are looking to get involved for the first time, there are many ways to contribute. Volunteers of all backgrounds and experience levels are welcome!
If you are interested in volunteering, please leave a comment below noting your preferred area(s) by Friday, January 16th.@4thhubbard (or a designee), will review the nominations shortly after to confirm and announce the release squad as soon as possible.
Together we can make WordPress 7.0 the best one yet!
The 6.9 release retrospective is open to all contributors, not only release squad members. Broader feedback helps improve future release processes.
Discussions 💬
PHPPHPThe web scripting language in which WordPress is primarily architected. WordPress requires PHP 7.4 or higher Extensions List – filter
The discussion covered whether the PHP filter extension is set as default. See the Hosting Team Handbook. @dmsnell asked about the impact on CoreCoreCore is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress., how similar changes were handled before, and mentioned concerns about using functions like FILTER_VALIDATE_EMAIL. @realloc noted that Core uses filter only in a few places, mainly in PHPMailer, and suggested removing those usages instead of requiring the extension. The topic will be discussed again next week.
The live meeting will focus on the discussion for upcoming releases, and have an open floor section.
The various curated agenda sections below refer to additional items. If you have ticketticketCreated for both bug reports and feature development on the bug tracker. requests for help, please continue to post details in the comments section at the end of this agenda or bring them up during the dev chat.
Announcements 📢
Happy New Year!
The first Dev Chat meeting of the year will take place on January 7 at the usual time.
6.9 Release Retrospective
The 6.9 release retrospective is open to all contributors, not only release squad members. Broader feedback helps improve future release processes.
Discussions 💬
The discussion section of the agenda is for discussing important topics affecting the upcoming release or larger initiatives that impact the CoreCoreCore is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress. Team. To nominate a topic for discussion, please leave a comment on this agenda with a summary of the topic, any relevant links that will help people get context for the discussion, and what kind of feedback you are looking for from others participating in the discussion.
PHPPHPThe web scripting language in which WordPress is primarily architected. WordPress requires PHP 7.4 or higher Extensions List – filter
Any topic can be raised for discussion in the comments, as well as requests for assistance on tickets. Tickets in the milestone for the next major or maintenance release will be prioritized.
Please include details of tickets / PRs and the links in the comments, and indicate whether you intend to be available during the meeting for discussion or will be async.
