38 WordPress Tutorials for Hacking Custom Functionality

The WordPress core has been updated frequently by a team of well-educated developers. This has lead to many advances so even theme designers can greatly enhance the user interface. When searching in Google you can find a lot of tutorials related to WordPress, bbPress, and BuddyPress customization.

In this post I’ve organized 38 niche-specific tutorials that are worth your attention. Some are much more complicated while others merely introduce concepts like Post Statuses or Custom Post Types. For anyone curious to understand WordPress at a deeper level, these tutorials are perfect for getting started.

Custom Settings Pages for WordPress Themes

wordpress themes code a settings page gui

Custom Post Status in WordPress

register post status tutorial wordpress

Creating A Custom Post Type In WordPress

how to create wordpress cpt tutorial

How to Use WordPress Post Formats

how to use wordpress custom post formats tutorial

Custom Theme Headers and Backgrounds

howto tutorial custom wp theme backgrounds headers

A/B Split Testing in WordPress using Google Analytics

ab split testing wordpress google analytics

Build a jQuery Tabber Widget

simple wordpress tabbed jquery widget

Building a Customized WP Widget

custom wordpress widget from scratch

Allow Users to Submit Posts

wordpress allow users to submit content tutorial

Manage and Track File Downloads

tracking file downloads using wordpress

Create a Custom Archives Page in WordPress

custom wordpress archives page tutorial

Facebook Like Box in WordPress

facebook like box in wordpress

Zebra Striping BuddyPress Activity Stream

how to tutorial buddypress zebra stripe code activities

Custom Front Page for BuddyPress Groups

tutorial custom homepage buddypress groups

Create a Homepage With Multiple Queries

custom homepage wp queries tutorial

Post Status Transitions for WordPress

development tutorial howto custom post status transitions

Write a “Most Popular by Views” Plugin

wordpress plugin tutorial most popular post by views

Using Google Fonts in the Post Editor

wordpress custom google fonts post ide editor

Plugin Templating within WordPress

tutorials creative coding wordpress custom templating

Shortcode for Responsive Video

shortcode video display responsive wordpress

Redirect Users to Custom Pages by Role

wordpress user roles redirect to pages

Enhanced Search Form With typeahead.js

auto suggest keywords wordpress search form

Custom bbPress Forums List Widget

tutorial howto custom wordpress bbpress forums list

Guide to the WordPress Theme Customizer

intro guide to wordpress theme customizer settings

Creating Your Own Editor Buttons

tinymce textfield editor buttons custom wordpress

Lazy Loading Social Sharing Buttons

lazy load wordpress sharing badges

Customizing the WP Admin Dashboard

tutorial custom metaboxes dashboard wordpress

Image-Based Archive Page

wordpress creating image thumbnail archive page

Client Testimonials With Custom Post Types

wordpress custom client testimonials cpt tutorial

Add Voting to WordPress Comments

wordpress ajax comments voting tutorial

Responsive Pricing Table Plugin

tutorial how to create responsive price tables

Metaboxes based on Post Format

custom display metaboxes based on post format tutorial

Build a Simple Announcements Plugin

simple wordpress announcements plugin tutorial

Data Sanitization and Validation

wordpress howto data sanitize validate

Make a Radio Station Schedule Using WordPress

cpt tutorial wordpress radio station howto

WordPress as a Web Application Framework

howto wordpress setup backend web application

Writing Custom Queries in WordPress

writing custom wp query wordpress tutorial

The Rewrite API: Post Types & Taxonomies

wordpress rewrite api post types howto