Here it is! Named “Eckstine” in honor of Billy Eckstine, this latest and greatest version of WordPress is available for download or update in your dashboard.
Welcome to WordPress 5.5.
In WordPress 5.5, your site gets new power in three major areas:
speed, search, and security.
Speed
Posts and pages feel faster, thanks to lazy-loaded images.
Images give your story a lot of impact, but they can sometimes make your site seem slow.
In WordPress 5.5, images wait to load until they’re just about to scroll into view. The technical term is ‘lazy loading.’
On mobile, lazy loading can also keep browsers from loading files meant for other devices. That can save your readers money on data — and help preserve battery life.
Search
Say hello to your new sitemap.
WordPress sites work well with search engines.
Now, by default, WordPress 5.5 includes an XML sitemap that helps search engines discover your most important pages from the very minute you go live.
So more people will find your site sooner, giving you more time to engage, retain and convert them to subscribers, customers or whatever fits your definition of success.
Security
Auto-updates for Plugins and Themes
Now you can set plugins and themes to update automatically — or not! — in the WordPress admin. So you always know your site is running the latest code available.
You can also turn auto-updates on or off for each plugin or theme you have installed — all on the same screens you’ve always used.
Update by uploading ZIP files
If updating plugins and themes manually is your thing, now that’s easier too — just upload a ZIP file.
Highlights from the block editor
Once again, the latest WordPress release packs a long list of exciting new features for the block editor. For example:
Block patterns
New block patterns make it simple and fun to create complex, beautiful layouts, using combinations of text and media that you can mix and match to fit your story.
You will also find block patterns in a wide variety of plugins and themes, with more added all the time. Pick any of them from a single place — just click and go!
The new block directory
Now it’s easier than ever to find the block you need. The new block directory is built right into the block editor, so you can install new block types to your site without ever leaving the editor.
Inline image editing
Crop, rotate, and zoom your photos right from the image block. If you spend a lot of time on images, this could save you hours!
And so much more.
The highlights above are a tiny fraction of the new block editor features you’ve just installed. Open the block editor and enjoy!
Accessibility
Every release adds improvements to the accessible publishing experience, and that remains true for WordPress 5.5.
Now you can copy links in media screens and modal dialogs with a button, instead of trying to highlight a line of text.
You can also move meta boxes with the keyboard, and edit images in WordPress with your assistive device, as it can read you the instructions in the image editor.
For developers
5.5 also brings a big box of changes just for developers.
Server-side registered blocks in the REST API
The addition of block types endpoints means that JavaScript apps (like the block editor) can retrieve definitions for any blocks registered on the server.
Defining environments
WordPress now has a standardized way to define a site’s environment type (staging, production, etc). Retrieve that type with wp_get_environment_type() and execute only the appropriate code.
Dashicons
The Dashicons library has received its final update in 5.5. It adds 39 block editor icons along with 26 others.
Passing data to template files
The template loading functions (get_header(), get_template_part(), etc.) have a new $args argument. So now you can pass an entire array’s worth of data to those templates.
More changes for developers
- The PHPMailer library just got a major update, going from version 5.2.27 to 6.1.6.
- Now get more fine-grained control of
redirect_guess_404_permalink(). - Sites that use PHP’s OPcache will see more reliable cache invalidation, thanks to the new
wp_opcache_invalidate()function during updates (including to plugins and themes). - Custom post types associated with the category taxonomy can now opt-in to supporting the default term.
- Default terms can now be specified for custom taxonomies in
register_taxonomy(). - The REST API now officially supports specifying default metadata values through
register_meta(). - You will find updated versions of these bundled libraries: SimplePie, Twemoji, Masonry, imagesLoaded, getID3, Moment.js, and clipboard.js.
The Squad
Leading this release were Matt Mullenweg, Jake Spurlock, and David Baumwald. Supporting them was this highly enthusiastic release squad:
- Editor Tech: Ella Van Durpe (@ellatrix)
- Editor Design: Michael Arestad (@michael-arestad)
- Core Tech: Sergey Biryukov (@sergeybiryukov)
- Media Tech: Andrew Ozz (@azaozz)
- Accessibility Tech: JB Audras (@audrasjb)
- Docs Coordinator: Justin Ahinon (@justinahinon)
- Marketing/Comms Coordinator: Mary Baum (@marybaum)
Joining the squad throughout the release cycle were 805 generous volunteer contributors who collectively worked on over 523 tickets on Trac and over 1660 pull requests on GitHub.
Put on a Billy Eckstine playlist, click that update button (or download it directly), and check the profiles of the fine folks that helped:
A2 Hosting · a4jp · a6software · Aaron D. Campbell · Aaron Jorbin · Abha Thakor · Achal Jain · achbed · Achyuth Ajoy · acosmin · acsnaterse · Adam Silverstein · Addie · addyosmani · adnan.limdi · adrian · airamerica · Ajay Ghaghretiya · Ajit Bohra · akbarhusen · akbarhusen429 · Akhilesh Sabharwal · Aki Hamano · Akira Tachibana · Alain Schlesser · Albert Juhé Lluveras · Alex Concha · Alex Kirk · Alex Lende · Alex Shiels · Ali Shadloo · Ali Shan · Allen Snook · amaschas · Amitkumar Dudhat · Amogh Harish · anbumz · andfinally · Andrea Fercia · Andrea Middleton · Andrea Tarantini · Andrei Draganescu · Andrew Duthie · Andrew Nacin · Andrew Nevins · Andrew Ozz · Andrey “Rarst” Savchenko · Andrés Maneiro · Andy Fragen · Andy Meerwaldt · Andy Peatling · Angel Hess · Angela Jin · Angelika Reisiger · Ankit Gade · Ankit K Gupta · Ankit Panchal · Anne McCarthy · Anthony Burchell · Anthony Hortin · Anton Timmermans · Antonis Lilis · apedog · archon810 · argentite · Arpit G Shah · Arslan Kalwar · asalce · ashiagr · ashour · Atharva Dhekne · Aurélien Joahny · aussi · automaton · avixansa · Ayesh Karunaratne · BackuPs · Barry · Barry Ceelen · Bart · Bart Czyz · bartekcholewa · Bastien Ho · Bastien Martinent · bcworkz · bdbch · bdcstr · Ben Dunkle · Ben Dwyer · Ben Word · Benachi · Bence Szalai · bencroskery · Benjamin Gosset · Benoit Chantre · bernhard-reiter · BettyJJ · bgermann · bigcloudmedia · bigdawggi · Bill Erickson · Birgir Erlendsson (birgire) · Birgit Pauli-Haack · BjornW · bobbingwide · bonger · Boone Gorges · Boris Brdarić · Brandon Kraft · Brandon Payton · Brent Swisher · Brian Hogg · Brian Krogsgard · Bridget Willard · bruandet · Bunty · Burhan Nasir · caiocrcosta · Cameron Voell · cameronamcintyre · Carike · Carl Wuensche · Carlos Galarza · Carolina Nymark · Caroline Moore · Carrigan · ceyhun · Chad Butler · Chad Chadbourne · Charles Fulton · Chetan Prajapati · Chintan hingrajiya · Chip Snyder · Chloé Bringmann · Chouby · Chris Van Patten · chriscct7 · Christian Chung · Christian Jongeneel · Christian Sabo · Christian Wach · Christoph Herr · Christopher Churchill · chunkysteveo · cklee · clayray · Clayton Collie · Clifford Paulick · codeforest · Commeuneimage · Copons · Corey McKrill · cpasqualini · Cristovao Verstraeten · Csaba (LittleBigThings) · Curtis Belt · Cyrus Collier · d6 · Dani Llewellyn · Daniel Bachhuber · Daniel Hüsken · Daniel Richards · Daniel Roch · Daniele Scasciafratte · danieltj · Danila Vershinin · Danny · Darko G. · Darren Ethier (nerrad) · Dave McHale · Dave Whitley · David A. 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Smith · David Herrera · David Levine · David Péronne · David Ryan · David Shanske · David Smith · davidvee · Davis Shaver · dchymko · Debabrata Karfa · Deepak Lalwani · dekervit · Delowar Hossain · demetris (Demetris Kikizas) · Denis Yanchevskiy · Denis Žoljom · derekakelly · Derrick Hammer · Derrick Tennant · Diane Co · Dilip Bheda · Dimitris Mitsis · Dion Hulse · Dixita Dusara · djennez · dmenard · dmethvin · doc987 · Dominik Schilling · Dono12 · Doobeedoo · Dossy Shiobara · dpacks · dratwas · Drew Jaynes · DrLightman · DrProtocols · dsifford · dudo · dushakov · Dustin Bolton · Dylan Kuhn · Earle Davies · Ebonie Butler · Eddie Moya · Eddy · Edi Amin · Ehtisham Siddiqui · Eileen Violini · Ekaterina · Ella van Durpe · ElmaStudio · Emanuel Blagonic · Emilie LEBRUN · Emmanuel Hesry · Enej Bajgorić · Enrico Sorcinelli · Enrique Piqueras · Enrique Sánchez · Eric · Eric Andrew Lewis · Eric Binnion · Erik · Erin ‘Folletto’ Casali · esemlabel · esoj · Estela Rueda · etoledom · etruel · Ev3rywh3re · Evan Mullins · Fabian Kägy · Fabian Todt · Faisal Ahmed · Felix Arntz · Felix Edelmann · ferdiesletering · Florian Brinkmann · Florian TIAR · Florian Truchot · florianatwhodunit · FolioVision · Francesca Marano · Francois Thibaud · Frank Goossens · Frank Klein · Frank.Prendergast · Frankie Jarrett · Franz Armas · Gabe · Gabriel Koen · Gabriel Maldonado · Gal Baras · Garavani · garethgillman · Garrett Hyder · Gary Cao · Gary Jones · Gary Pendergast · gchtr · Geert De Deckere · Gemini Labs · Gennady Kovshenin · Gerardo Pacheco · Giorgio25b · gisselfeldt · Glen Davies · goldsounds · Goto Hayato · Govind · Grégory Viguier · gradina · Greg Ziółkowski · gregmulhauser · grierson · Grzegorz.Janoszka · gsmumbo (a11n) · Guido Scialfa · guidobras · Gunther Pilz · H-var · hakre · Hal Gatewood · hankthetank · Hapiuc Robert · Hareesh S · haukep · Hauwa Abashiya · Haz · Helen Hou-Sandi · Henry Wright · Herre Groen · hlanggo · hommealone · Hossein · Howdy_McGee · Hronak Nahar · Hugh Lashbrooke · huntlyc · Ian Belanger · Ian Dunn · Ian Stewart · ianjvr · ifrins · Igor Radovanov · infinum · Ipstenu (Mika Epstein) · Isabel Brison · ishitaka · J.D. 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· Michele Butcher-Jones · Michelle · Miguel Fonseca · mihdan · Miina Sikk · Mikael Korpela · mikaumoto · Mike Crantea · Mike Glendinning · Mike Haydon · Mike Ritter · Mike Schinkel · Mike Schroder · Mikey (a11n) · Milan Dinić · Milana Cap · Milind More · mimi · mislavjuric · Mohammad Jangda · Mohammad Rockeybul Alam · Mohsin Rasool · Monika Rao · Morgan Kay · Morten Rand-Hendriksen · Morteza Geransayeh · mrgrt · mrmist · mrTall · Muhammad Usama Masood · Mukesh Panchal · munyagu · Nabil Moqbel · Nadir Seghir · Nahid Ferdous Mohit · Nalini Thakor · Naoko Takano · narwen · Nate Gay · Nathan Rice · Navid · neonkowy · net · netpassprodsr · Nextendweb · Ngan Tengyuen · Nick Daugherty · Nicky Lim · nicolad · Nicolas Juen · NicolasKulka · Nidhi Jain · Niels de Blaauw · Niels Lange · nigro.simone · Nik Tsekouras · Nikhil Bhansi · Nikolay Bachiyski · Nilo Velez · Niresh · nmenescardi · Noah Allen · NONE · NumidWasNotAvailable · obliviousharmony · ockham · Olga Gleckler · Omar Alshaker · Omar 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tobifjellner (Tor-Bjorn Fjellner) · Tofandel · tomdude · Tommy Ferry · Tony G · Tonya Mork · Toro_Unit (Hiroshi Urabe) · torres126 · Torsten Landsiedel · Toru Miki · Towhidul I Chowdhury · Tran Ngoc Tuan Anh · Travis Northcutt · treecutter · truongwp · tsimmons · Tung Du · Udit Desai · Ulrich · Vagios Vlachos · valchovski · Valentin Bora · Vayu Robins · veromary · Viktor Szépe · Vinayak Anivase · vinkla · virginienacci · Vladimir Palant · Vladislav Abrashev · vortfu · voyager131 · vtieu · webaware · Weston Ruter · Will Skora · William Earnhardt · williampatton · Winstina · Witt Witsan · wittich · wpdesk · WPDO · WPMarmite · wptali · Yahil Madakiya · yashrs · yoancutillas · Yoav Farhi · yohannp · yuhin · Yui · Yuri Salame · Yvette Sonneveld · Zack Tollman · zaheerahmad · zakkath · Zebulan Stanphill · zieladam · Česlav Przywara
Many thanks to all of the community volunteers who contribute in the support forums. They answer questions from people across the world, whether they are using WordPress for the first time or since the first release. These releases are more successful for their efforts!
Finally, thanks to all the community translators who worked on WordPress 5.5. Their efforts bring WordPress fully translated to 46 languages at release time, with more on the way.
If you want to learn more about volunteering with WordPress, check out Make WordPress or the core development blog.