Custom Post Types in WordPress

Last updated: March 22, 2024 Difficulty: Intermediate

Learn how to create and register custom post types in WordPress. This snippet provides a clean, reusable function for adding custom post types to your theme or plugin.

Code Snippet

/**
 * Register Custom Post Type
 *
 * @param string $post_type Post type name
 * @param string $singular Singular name
 * @param string $plural Plural name
 * @param array $args Additional arguments
 */
function register_custom_post_type($post_type, $singular, $plural, $args = []) {
    $labels = [
        'name'               => $plural,
        'singular_name'      => $singular,
        'menu_name'          => $plural,
        'add_new'           => 'Add New',
        'add_new_item'      => 'Add New ' . $singular,
        'edit_item'         => 'Edit ' . $singular,
        'new_item'          => 'New ' . $singular,
        'view_item'         => 'View ' . $singular,
        'search_items'      => 'Search ' . $plural,
        'not_found'         => 'No ' . strtolower($plural) . ' found',
        'not_found_in_trash'=> 'No ' . strtolower($plural) . ' found in Trash'
    ];

    $defaults = [
        'labels'              => $labels,
        'public'              => true,
        'show_ui'             => true,
        'show_in_menu'        => true,
        'show_in_nav_menus'   => true,
        'show_in_admin_bar'   => true,
        'menu_position'       => 5,
        'can_export'          => true,
        'has_archive'         => true,
        'exclude_from_search' => false,
        'publicly_queryable'  => true,
        'capability_type'     => 'post',
        'show_in_rest'        => true,
        'supports'            => ['title', 'editor', 'thumbnail', 'excerpt']
    ];

    $args = wp_parse_args($args, $defaults);
    register_post_type($post_type, $args);
}

// Example usage:
register_custom_post_type(
    'portfolio',
    'Portfolio Item',
    'Portfolio Items',
    [
        'menu_icon' => 'dashicons-portfolio',
        'supports'  => ['title', 'editor', 'thumbnail', 'excerpt', 'custom-fields']
    ]
);

How to Use

Add this code to your theme's functions.php file or in your custom plugin. Then call the function with your desired post type details.

Example Usage

// Register a Portfolio post type
register_custom_post_type(
    'portfolio',
    'Portfolio Item',
    'Portfolio Items',
    [
        'menu_icon' => 'dashicons-portfolio',
        'supports'  => ['title', 'editor', 'thumbnail', 'excerpt', 'custom-fields']
    ]
);

// Register a Testimonials post type
register_custom_post_type(
    'testimonial',
    'Testimonial',
    'Testimonials',
    [
        'menu_icon' => 'dashicons-format-quote',
        'supports'  => ['title', 'editor', 'thumbnail']
    ]
);

Notes

  • This function provides a clean, reusable way to register custom post types
  • All arguments are optional and will fall back to sensible defaults
  • Supports Gutenberg editor by default (show_in_rest => true)
  • Includes common features like title, editor, thumbnail, and excerpt support

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