The Tool Desk
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How do I publish a WordPress.org plugin?
The process has two distinct stages: submit a complete plugin ZIP for review, then publish approved versions through the plugin’s SVN repository. WordPress.org provides free directory hosting, along with plugin statistics, user reviews, and a support forum. Its directory requires GPLv2-or-later-compatible plugins and compliance with its guidelines on functionality, copyright, trademarks, and other requirements. See the WordPress.org Plugin Directory overview.
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- Finish and test the plugin. Make sure it has a meaningful purpose, works as intended, and is ready for users to install. Run Plugin Check locally and review security, licensing, privacy, and external-service behavior.
- Choose a distinctive name and prepare documentation. WordPress.org does not reserve plugin names for future use, so submit a complete plugin rather than a placeholder intended to claim a name.
- Register a WordPress.org account. Use an email address you check regularly so you can see review questions and status updates.
- Prepare the submission ZIP. It should contain the complete version suitable for manual installation—not an incomplete skeleton or a promise to add functionality later.
- Submit the plugin for review. Provide the requested short description and ZIP, then monitor the submission and respond to reviewer messages.
- After approval, configure the SVN repository. WordPress.org provides repository details for the plugin. Prepare the release files in the required structure and use SVN to publish them.
This sequence synthesizes the official planning and submission guide, the SVN guide, and the Plugin Developer FAQ; it is not a promise of approval or a guarantee about how long a particular review will take.
Can I use Git to publish a WordPress.org plugin?
Use Git for the development workflow that suits your project: track changes, work through iterations, and keep a history of development. WordPress.org’s directory release repository is SVN. A Git commit by itself does not publish anything to the directory; an SVN push does.
| Repository | Purpose | When it is used | What happens when you commit or push |
|---|---|---|---|
| Git | Development history and iterative work | During development and testing | Records changes in your Git workflow; does not publish the directory plugin. |
| WordPress.org SVN | Directory release repository | After approval, for finished releases | Files pushed to the repository are published to users; the WordPress.org FAQ says plugins go live as soon as code is pushed into SVN folders. |
These repositories serve different purposes rather than competing for one role. WordPress.org’s guide to using Subversion describes /trunk as the working release line and tags as the way to mark releases. SVN takes individual files, not a ZIP archive. Keep ordinary development activity in Git, prepare the release files deliberately, and push to SVN only when the contents are ready to deploy. The FAQ warns that there is no simple “off” switch once the code is live.
What should I check before submitting or releasing?
Passing review depends on the plugin and its contents, not on whether a person or AI helped produce the code. Check the following before sending the ZIP for review and again before publishing an update.
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- Purpose and eligibility: the plugin needs practical functionality. The FAQ says new plugins that enable arbitrary code insertion or execution are not accepted, citing PHP or JavaScript editors and file managers as examples.
- Licensing and rights: plugin code, data, images, and third-party libraries must be GPL-compatible. Check that you have the necessary rights and verify the terms for any external services you use.
- Readable source: code must remain mostly human-readable. If you include minified files, the FAQ says to include the non-minified source too or make it available as described in the readme.
- Privacy and external behavior: the guidelines prohibit tracking users without consent and sending executable code through third-party systems. Review what data leaves the site and what external code or services the plugin relies on.
- Version and readme: increment the version for releases and keep the trunk readme’s version current. SVN commits regenerate the downloadable ZIP, so avoid rapid, trivial commits that would create unnecessary package updates.
- Release contents: include only files you are ready to make public. Once pushed to SVN, the release is live rather than sitting in a private staging area.
Consult the current Detailed Plugin Guidelines and Plugin Developer FAQ when preparing a submission; rules and procedures can change.
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Yes. WordPress.org documents an MCP server that can connect to AI-enabled development tools and specifically names Cursor, Claude, and VS Code with AI capabilities as possible clients. The documented tools include guideline support, readme validation, status checks, and help with a submission under review. After approval, updates still go through SVN. The integration is an available option, not evidence that a particular author used it.
WordPress.org applies the same rules regardless of how the code was produced. Its MCP Server documentation states: “You are responsible for all code in your plugin.” That means reviewing AI-generated changes for security vulnerabilities, licensing violations, unnecessary external service calls, and whether the code actually does what the plugin is meant to do. Run Plugin Check locally before submission, then inspect and test the changes rather than treating generated code as approved by default.
A personal account of using Cursor should be specific about what happened in that project: what the author asked the tool to do, which changes were kept or rejected, and how those changes were tested. Platform documentation establishes the responsibility to review code; it cannot verify an individual author’s prompts, model, tests, or results.
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How long does WordPress.org plugin review take?
The planning guide says a queued plugin will be reviewed within 14 business days. Treat that as the guide’s stated review window, not a guaranteed approval deadline: the Plugin Developer FAQ says there is “no official average” because submissions differ. Check the submission status and the email address on the WordPress.org account for questions or review feedback. The two statements appear in the planning guide and FAQ, respectively.
What happens after I push a release?
WordPress.org’s current Automated Security Review page says that, since June 2026, each new plugin release has gone through a cooldown and automated security review before distribution through the update API. Releases assessed as higher risk are blocked from distribution until the identified issues are addressed. This is part of the current documented process; check the official page for the latest details when preparing a release.
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