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wp eval

Overview

Execute a PHP expression or a block of code directly within the fully bootstrapped WordPress environment. This is the Swiss Army knife of WP-CLI — perfect for one-off tasks, testing internal function behavior, inspecting globals, or modifying data that lacks a dedicated CLI command.

What It Does​

wp eval initializes the WordPress environment (loading wp-config.php, core files, and active plugins) and then evaluates the PHP string you provide. The code runs with full access to all WordPress functions, globals, and constants — exactly as if it were executing inside a plugin.

Syntax​

wp eval <php-code> [--skip-wordpress]

Options​

FlagDescription
--skip-wordpressRun PHP without bootstrapping WordPress (raw PHP environment only)
--skip-pluginsLoad WP without active plugins
--skip-themesLoad WP without active themes

Basic Examples​

wp eval 'echo get_option("siteurl");'

Output:

https://example.com

Get the site name​

wp eval 'echo get_bloginfo("name");'

Output:

My WordPress Site

Check the WordPress version from PHP​

wp eval 'global $wp_version; echo $wp_version;'

Output:

6.4.2

Check the active theme name​

wp eval 'echo wp_get_theme()->get("Name");'

Output:

Twenty Twenty-Four

Check current PHP memory limit​

wp eval 'echo ini_get("memory_limit");'

Output:

256M

Inspecting Data​

Dump all registered post types​

wp eval 'print_r(array_keys(get_post_types()));'

Output:

Array
(
    [0] => post
    [1] => page
    [2] => attachment
    [3] => revision
    [4] => nav_menu_item
    [5] => product
    ...
)

Count posts of a given type​

wp eval 'echo wp_count_posts("post")->publish;'

Output:

142

Inspect a specific option (serialized data)​

wp eval 'var_dump(get_option("active_plugins"));'

Output:

array(5) {
  [0] => string(27) "akismet/akismet.php"
  [1] => string(31) "woocommerce/woocommerce.php"
  ...
}

Inspect a user object​

wp eval 'var_dump(get_userdata(1)->user_email);'

Output:

string(17) "admin@example.com"

Modifying Data​

Update a single option​

wp eval 'update_option("blogdescription", "The best site on the web.");'

Output: (no output — runs silently)

Verify it worked:

wp eval 'echo get_option("blogdescription");'

Output:

The best site on the web.

Clear a specific transient​

wp eval 'var_dump(delete_transient("my_weather_data"));'

Output:

bool(true)

Trigger a custom action hook for testing​

wp eval 'do_action("my_plugin_daily_cron");'

Force-send a test email​

wp eval 'var_dump(wp_mail("admin@example.com", "Test", "Hello from WP-CLI"));'

Output:

bool(true)

Advanced Usage​

Run multi-line code​

wp eval '
$args = [
    "post_type" => "product",
    "post_status" => "publish",
    "posts_per_page" => -1,
];
$q = new WP_Query($args);
echo "Products: " . $q->found_posts;
wp_reset_postdata();
'

Output:

Products: 87

Modify a nested serialized option​

wp eval '
$settings = get_option("my_plugin_settings");
$settings["api"]["timeout"] = 30;
update_option("my_plugin_settings", $settings);
echo "Updated timeout.";
'

Output:

Updated timeout.

Check database table sizes​

wp eval '
global $wpdb;
$tables = $wpdb->get_results("SHOW TABLE STATUS");
foreach ($tables as $t) {
    echo $t->Name . ": " . round(($t->Data_length + $t->Index_length) / 1024, 2) . " KB\n";
}
'

Output:

wp_posts: 1024.50 KB
wp_options: 256.75 KB
wp_postmeta: 512.00 KB
...

Inspect a global object​

wp eval 'global $current_user; var_dump($current_user->roles);'

Output:

array(1) {
  [0] => string(13) "administrator"
}

Shell Escaping Rules​

Shell Escaping

This is the most common source of errors with wp eval.

Rule: Always wrap your PHP in single quotes '...' so the shell does not interpret $ as a shell variable.

✅ Correct — shell won't evaluate $wpdb:

wp eval 'global $wpdb; echo $wpdb->dbname;'

❌ Wrong — shell evaluates $wpdb as an empty shell variable:

wp eval "global $wpdb; echo $wpdb->dbname;"

If you must use double quotes, escape every $:

wp eval "global \$wpdb; echo \$wpdb->dbname;"

Error Handling​

PHP errors surface directly in the terminal:

wp eval 'undefined_function_call();'

Output:

PHP Fatal error:  Uncaught Error: Call to undefined function undefined_function_call()
wp eval 'echo get_option("siteurl")'  # missing semicolon

Output:

PHP Parse error:  syntax error, unexpected end of file

Comparison: wp eval vs wp eval-file vs wp shell​

ToolBest For
wp evalQuick one-liners, ad-hoc debugging
wp eval-fileMulti-step scripts, reusable migrations
wp shellInteractive experimentation (REPL)

Quick Reference​

wp eval 'echo get_option("siteurl");'                  # Print option
wp eval 'var_dump(is_plugin_active("akismet/akismet.php"));' # Debug
wp eval 'update_option("blogname", "New Name");'        # Modify
wp eval 'echo wp_count_posts("post")->publish;'         # Count
wp eval 'delete_transient("my_key");'                  # Clear transient

Next Steps​