PhpStorm from JetBrains is far and away the most favored IDE for PHP developers. In March, PhpStorm announced that the upcoming version 8 would add official support for WordPress. The official release is finally here and delivers on that promise, adding a deeper level of support for developers who work with the WordPress code base.
PhpStorm 8 makes it easy to set up your development environment configuration specifically for WordPress. You can now add WordPress integration when creating a new project, or add it to existing projects.
In version 8 you’ll find an impressive array of built-in hook features:
- Completion for WordPress Action and Filter functions parameters (hooks completion)
- Navigation from Action and Filter functions (hook registration) to hook invocation
- Callbacks from Hook Registration
- With Navigate | Symbol…you can search for hook invocations and easily navigate to them
- Find Usages for Hook Registration Functions
This release adds WordPress code style, the ability to search on WordPress.org right from the editor, and support for WP-CLI. It also includes PHP Code Sniffer with WordPress Coding Standards integration to help you keep your project in line with WP coding conventions.
PhpStorm 8 includes a plugin skeleton to help you get started. It creates a plugin-name.php file with the proper meta information.
Check out the online documentation for a guide to configuring your development environment for WordPress projects. If you’re curious to know how much work went into building in WordPress support, have a look at the number of issues tracked during development for this version.
A PhpStorm license is $199, but if you contribute to an open source project or create open source extensions for WordPress, you may be eligible for a free Open Source License.
Hey Sarah,
There is almost always a major sale on PHPStorm towards the end of the year and once you buy the license, the annual renewal is much cheaper. Last two years running, if memory serves, there was a 50% off sale during the holidays.
I bounce back and forth between PHPStorm and Sublime 3, depending on the project. The problem with both products is that pesky 30 day trial. By the end of it, you’re cursing yourself because buying the license is no longer a choice. They hook you. By the end of that period, you no longer want to write code without a real IDE.