WP_Query – order by date, different sorting options

Contents

Understanding WP_Query Order By parameter in WordPress
Summary – Now you know how to use wp query order by

CHALLENGE: Sort posts using a custom date field in WordPress

SOLUTION: Use meta_query parameter

This article was checked and updated in August 2024 to make sure it’s up to date.

The WordPress CMS functionality provides an option to create custom post types. We often want to display items in a particular order, mostly DESC (newest at the top).

Order using default post_date (published date)

$args = [
            'post_type'   => 'my_custom_post_type',
            'posts_per_page' => -1,
            'orderby' => 'date',
            'order'   => 'DESC',
        ];
$postslist = get_posts( $args );

But what if we want to store a date in a custom field ( Advanced Custom Fields plugin )? Having a custom field defined as a date allows us to have better control over data. We can also fill in the date value from the future, which is not really possible when using published_date from WordPress. In this example, the custom field name is: ‘custom_date’ and the example value will be: November 30, 2020, stored in the database as the following string: 20201130 . To render a list from newest to oldest :

 $args = [
            'post_type'   => 'my_custom_post_type',
            'posts_per_page' => -1,
            'post_status' => 'publish',
            'order'=>'DESC',
            'orderby'=>'meta_value_num',
            'meta_key'=>'custom_date',
        ];
$postslist = get_posts( $args );

WordPress meta_query is a very powerful tool, we can adjust query logic to our needs. Let’s try now: display all items with a custom date in the future.

// DB format for custom_date : 20201130
        $today = date('Ymd');
        $args = [
            'post_type'   => 'my_custom_post_type',
            'posts_per_page' => -1,
            'post_status' => 'publish',
            'order'=>'DESC',
            'orderby'=>'meta_value_num',
            'meta_key'=>'custom_date',
            'meta_query' => array(
                'relation' => 'AND',
                array(
                    'key'     => 'custom_date',
                    'value'   =>  $today,
                    'compare' => '>'
                ),
                array(
                    'key' => 'custom_date',
                    'compare' => 'EXISTS',
                ),
            ),
        ];
$postslist = get_posts( $args );

What about showing all items from the last 4 weeks, starting today? We can use this meta_query:

$today = date('Ymd');
        $date_4_weeks_ago = strtotime($today.'- 4 weeks');
        $date_4_weeks_ago_ymd_val = date('Ymd',$date_4_weeks_ago);
        $args = [
            'post_type'   => 'my_custom_post_type',
            'posts_per_page' => -1,
            'post_status' => 'publish',
            'meta_query' => array(
                'relation' => 'AND',
                array(
                    'key'     => 'custom_date',
                    'value'   =>  $today,
                    'compare' => '<='
                ),
                array(
                    'key'     => 'custom_date',
                    'value'   =>  $date_4_weeks_ago_ymd_val,
                    'compare' => '>='
                ),
            ),
            'order'=>'DESC',
            'orderby'=>'meta_value_num',
            'meta_key'=>'custom_date',
        ];
$postslist = get_posts( $args );

Understanding WP_Query Order By parameter in WordPress

The WP_Query class in WordPress is an incredibly powerful tool that allows developers to create custom queries to interact with the database and retrieve posts based on specific criteria. One of the essential features of WP_Query is the order_by parameter, which determines the sorting order of the query results. This parameter can sort posts based on various fields such as post date, title, ID, author, and more. For instance, setting order_by to ‘date’ will organize the posts by their publication date. Additionally, order can be set to ‘ASC’ for ascending or ‘DESC’ for descending order. This level of customization helps developers display content in a precise order, enhancing the flexibility and functionality of WordPress themes and plugins.

Summary – Now you know how to use wp query order by

Wp-query – a built-in WordPress functionality – provides an option to sort elements using post_date. We can even use a custom field with a custom format (a date defined as string value Ymd) and order elements according to our needs. Using a custom field for a date is more flexible than WordPress publish_date and allows to have items with dates in the future.

Do you need someone to implement this custom web application solution for you? Check out our specialists for hire in the outsourcing section.