To write a custom REST API endpoint in WordPress, you’ll need to use the WordPress REST API infrastructure. WordPress provides a powerful REST API that allows you to create custom endpoints for your specific needs. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to create a custom REST API endpoint in WordPress:

1. Create a Plugin or Use Your Theme’s functions.php:

First, you need to create a plugin or add the code to your theme’s functions.php file. It’s recommended to use a plugin to keep the code separate and portable.

2. Define Your Custom Endpoint:

// In your plugin or functions.php

function custom_api_route() {
    register_rest_route('custom/v1', '/example/', array(
        'methods' => 'GET',
        'callback' => 'custom_api_callback',
    ));
}

add_action('rest_api_init', 'custom_api_route');

In this example, we are registering a route with the base namespace custom/v1 and endpoint /example/. The methods parameter specifies which HTTP methods are allowed (e.g., 'GET', 'POST', 'PUT', 'DELETE'). The callback parameter points to the function that will handle the request.

3. Implement the Callback Function:

// Callback function for your custom endpoint

function custom_api_callback($data) {
    $response = array(
        'status' => 'success',
        'message' => 'Custom API endpoint is working!',
        'data' => $data,
    );

    return rest_ensure_response($response);
}

In this example, the custom_api_callback function simply returns a response array. You can customize this function to perform any logic based on the data received in the request.

4. Access Your Custom Endpoint:

Now, you can access your custom API endpoint by making a request to the following URL:

https://yoursite.com/wp-json/custom/v1/example/

Replace yoursite.com with your actual domain.

Notes:

  • Always sanitize and validate input data to ensure security.
  • You can use the permission_callback parameter when registering the route to control access to your custom endpoint.
  • You may need to handle authentication if your endpoint requires it.
  • If your endpoint needs to accept data through POST or other methods, adjust the 'methods' parameter accordingly.

This is a basic example, and you can expand it based on your specific requirements. The WordPress REST API is powerful and flexible, allowing you to create complex custom endpoints for your application.

API, PHP, Wordpress

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