wp_tag_cloud( array|string $args = '' ): void|string|string[]

Description

Compatibility

Present in every tracked release (6.7.7 to 7.1.0), and compiles on PHP 7.4 through 8.6-dev.

Parameters

$argsarray|stringoptional

Array or string of arguments for displaying a tag cloud. See wp_generate_tag_cloud() and get_terms() for the full lists of arguments that can be passed in $args.Default: ''

• $numberintdefault: 45

  The number of tags to display. Accepts any positive integer or zero to return all.

• $linkstringdefault: 'view'

  Whether to display term editing links or term permalinks. Accepts 'edit' and 'view'.

• $post_typestring

  The post type. Used to highlight the proper post type menu on the linked edit page. Defaults to the first post type associated with the taxonomy.

• $echobooldefault: true

  Whether or not to echo the return value.

Return value

void|string|string[]

Void if 'echo' argument is true, or on failure. Otherwise, tag cloud as a string or an array, depending on 'format' argument.

Performance profile

How much work a call to wp_tag_cloud() does, and what it touches: the algorithmic scaling, the Zend instruction count per call across PHP versions, the hooks it hands control to, and the core code that calls it. Measured from the compiled opcodes, not a stopwatch, so every number is identical on any machine running the same PHP version, and every function in core is ranked by cost.

Cost class

Heavy

Reaches the database via get_terms().

Scaling

Scales with input

The body loops, so the work grows with what you pass in.

Instructions

18–44

Executed per call on PHP 8.5, depending on the branch taken. The body compiles to 80.

Plugin surface

1 hook

Third-party callbacks on 'wp_tag_cloud' run inside this call, and their cost is not bounded by anything here.

Called by

2

2 places in core call this, so the cost is paid more often than your own code shows.

What it touches

• querycontent queryget_terms()called directly
• hookthird-party callbacksapply_filters()called directly

Further down the call graph this can also reach option, cache, serialize and transient. Those are the worst case, several calls deep and usually down an error path, not what a normal call pays.

What one call costs · 5 distinct outcomes

One number would be a lie: the work depends on which branch runs. These are every distinct cost wp_tag_cloud() can have, taken from its control-flow graph on PHP 8.5.

Hooks and filters fired · 1

One hook fires while wp_tag_cloud() runs, in this order:

1. 1
   apply_filters( wp_tag_cloud )filterline 778 (+62 into the body)

   Filters the tag cloud output.

Uses · 7

• wp_parse_args()Merges user defined arguments into defaults array.
• get_terms()Retrieves the terms in a given taxonomy or list of taxonomies.
• is_wp_error()Checks whether the given variable is a WordPress Error.
• get_edit_term_link()Retrieves the URL for editing a given term.
• get_term_link()Generates a permalink for a taxonomy term archive.
• wp_generate_tag_cloud()Generates a tag cloud (heatmap) from provided data.
• apply_filters()Calls the callback functions that have been added to a filter hook.

Used by · 2

• WP_Widget_Tag_Cloud::widget()Outputs the content for the current Tag Cloud widget instance.
• render_block_core_tag_cloud()Renders the `core/tag-cloud` block on server.

Source code

View on Trac ↗View on GitHub ↗

716function wp_tag_cloud( $args = '' ) {717	$defaults = array(718		'smallest'   => 8,719		'largest'    => 22,720		'unit'       => 'pt',721		'number'     => 45,722		'format'     => 'flat',723		'separator'  => "\n",724		'orderby'    => 'name',725		'order'      => 'ASC',726		'exclude'    => '',727		'include'    => '',728		'link'       => 'view',729		'taxonomy'   => 'post_tag',730		'post_type'  => '',731		'echo'       => true,732		'show_count' => 0,733	);734 735	$args = wp_parse_args( $args, $defaults );736 737	$tags = get_terms(738		array_merge(739			$args,740			array(741				'orderby' => 'count',742				'order'   => 'DESC',743			)744		)745	); // Always query top tags.746 747	if ( empty( $tags ) || is_wp_error( $tags ) ) {748		return;749	}750 751	foreach ( $tags as $key => $tag ) {752		if ( 'edit' === $args['link'] ) {753			$link = get_edit_term_link( $tag, $tag->taxonomy, $args['post_type'] );754		} else {755			$link = get_term_link( $tag, $tag->taxonomy );756		}757 758		if ( is_wp_error( $link ) ) {759			return;760		}761 762		$tags[ $key ]->link = $link;763		$tags[ $key ]->id   = $tag->term_id;764	}765 766	// Here's where those top tags get sorted according to $args.767	$return = wp_generate_tag_cloud( $tags, $args );768 769	/**770	 * Filters the tag cloud output.771	 *772	 * @since 2.3.0773	 *774	 * @param string|string[] $return Tag cloud as a string or an array, depending on 'format' argument.775	 * @param array           $args   An array of tag cloud arguments. See wp_tag_cloud()776	 *                                for information on accepted arguments.777	 */778	$return = apply_filters( 'wp_tag_cloud', $return, $args );779 780	if ( 'array' === $args['format'] || empty( $args['echo'] ) ) {781		return $return;782	}783 784	echo $return;785}

Changelog

Introduced in 2.3.0. Unchanged from 6.7.7 through 7.1.0.

1. 6.7.7
2. 6.8.8
3. 6.9.7
4. 7.0.4
5. 7.1.0

Signature, return type and hooks compared across 5 parsed releases.

About this page

Parsed data

Generated from the wordpress-develop 7.1.0 tag, from src/wp-includes/category-template.php, and regenerated for each WordPress release so it tracks the code rather than a snapshot of it.

Corrections

Something wrong on this page? Report it and it gets fixed in the next regeneration.