WP_Query – order by date, different sorting options

CHALLENGE: Sort posts using a custom date field

SOLUTION: Use meta_query parameter

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 );

Summary

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.

Follow us for more useful tips and guidelines.

Do you need someone to implement this solution for you? Check out our specialists for hire in the outsourcing section. Are you considering a global project and are uncertain how to proceed? See how we do it.