Using WordPress ‘get_plugin_data()’ PHP function

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The get_plugin_data() WordPress PHP function parses the plugin contents to retrieve plugin’s metadata.

Usage

$plugin_data = get_plugin_data($plugin_file, $markup = true, $translate = true);

Parameters

  • $plugin_file (string) – Required. Absolute path to the main plugin file.
  • $markup (bool) – Optional. If the returned data should have HTML markup applied. Default: true
  • $translate (bool) – Optional. If the returned data should be translated. Default: true

More information

See WordPress Developer Resources: get_plugin_data()

Examples

Retrieve plugin data in the admin area

This code retrieves the plugin data and displays it in the admin area.

if (is_admin()) {
    if (!function_exists('get_plugin_data')) {
        require_once(ABSPATH . 'wp-admin/includes/plugin.php');
    }
    $plugin_data = get_plugin_data(__FILE__);
    echo "<pre>";
    print_r($plugin_data);
    echo "</pre>";
}

Retrieve plugin data without HTML markup

This code retrieves the plugin data without applying any HTML markup.

$plugin_data = get_plugin_data(__FILE__, false);
echo "<pre>";
print_r($plugin_data);
echo "</pre>";

Retrieve plugin data without translation

This code retrieves the plugin data without translating the content.

$plugin_data = get_plugin_data(__FILE__, true, false);
echo "<pre>";
print_r($plugin_data);
echo "</pre>";

Retrieve specific plugin information

This code retrieves the plugin name and version from the plugin data.

$plugin_data = get_plugin_data(__FILE__);
$plugin_name = $plugin_data['Name'];
$plugin_version = $plugin_data['Version'];
echo "Plugin Name: " . $plugin_name . "<br />";
echo "Plugin Version: " . $plugin_version;

Check if the plugin requires a minimum WordPress version

This code checks if the plugin requires a specific minimum WordPress version.

$plugin_data = get_plugin_data(__FILE__);
$required_wp_version = $plugin_data['Requires at least'];
if (!empty($required_wp_version)) {
    echo "This plugin requires WordPress version " . $required_wp_version . " or higher.";
} else {
    echo "No minimum WordPress version requirement.";
}