Hooks

Hooks are a way for one piece of code to interact/modify another piece of code. They make up the foundation for how plugins and themes interact with WordPress Core, but they’re also used extensively by Core itself.

There are two types of hooks: Actions and Filters. To use either, you need to write a custom function known as a Callback, and then register it with WordPress hook for a specific Action or Filter.

Actions allow you to add data or change how WordPress operates. Callback functions for Actions will run at a specific point in in the execution of WordPress, and can perform some kind of a task, like echoing output to the user or inserting something into the database.

Filters give you the ability to change data during the execution of WordPress. Callback functions for Filters will accept a variable, modify it, and return it. They are meant to work in an isolated manner, and should never have side effects such as affecting global variables and output.

WordPress provides many hooks that you can use, but you can also create your own so that other developers can extend and modify your plugin or theme.

External Resources

• Filter Reference
• Action Reference
• Adam Brown’s database of hooks
• Actions and Filters are Not the Same Thing