\ud83d\udcda Table of contents<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Before we dive into the ins and outs of transients, let\u2019s have a quick look at two related concepts: caching<\/a> and Application Performance Interfaces (APIs).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Caching in WordPress<\/a> involves saving your website\u2019s data in a temporary cache. This way, the site won\u2019t have to re-run requests for the same data when a user visits it. Instead, it will use the cached data, reducing loading times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Meanwhile, API is a system that enables two different platforms to communicate with each other. For example, if you purchase an email marketing tool, you\u2019ll likely need to enter its API key into your WordPress site so that it can start recording subscriptions and form submissions:<\/p>\n\n\n Now, you may be wondering how transients fit into all of this. Well, some plugin developers use transients to store temporary data in the WordPress database.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is very common with tools that use an API to pull data from another platform. Let\u2019s say you have a social media plugin<\/a> that displays the number of shares on your posts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When a user visits a post, your server will need to connect to your social media pages to fetch those numbers. As you can probably tell, this process can slow down your site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, if the plugin uses a transient, this information will likely be stored in your WordPress database. This means the server won\u2019t need to communicate with the social media platforms – it can simply retrieve the cached data and deliver your content faster.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We\u2019ll take a closer look at the benefits of using transients in the next section. For now, let\u2019s break down the main components of a transient.<\/p>\n\n\n Transients work by storing data in the WordPress database<\/a> using a key-value pair structure. This key is used to identify the transient, while the value specifies the data that\u2019s being stored.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Additionally, some developers set an expiration time for the transient. After this date, the data will become invalid and would need to be fetched again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Using the same example as above, a social media plugin might only store the share count details for two or three weeks. After this period, it will regenerate the data so that the number of shares is updated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \ud83d\udc49 Essentially, every transient is made up of three parts:<\/p>\n\n\n\n To set the transient, you\u2019d need to use the set_transient() <\/em>function. So, here\u2019s what the final result would look like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u231b That example is pulled from the official WordPress Transients documentation [1]<\/sup>. We recommend checking out that page for a full breakdown of transients (and how to use them).<\/p>\n\n\n As mentioned earlier, transients can help improve site performance. Many developers use them to minimize the number of external API calls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If the server has to make several API requests to retrieve data, it can lead to slower loading times for your users. For example, you might be using a social media feed or displaying follower and share counts on your site. If the server has to connect to these third-party platforms to fetch that information, it will take longer for the content to load.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If this data is stored in a temporary cache in the database, the information can be delivered more quickly. Therefore, when used effectively, transients can significantly reduce loading times and help you deliver a better user experience<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n From a web development perspective, transients facilitate easy data management. For example, you can choose which content you want to cache, and how long you want to store it for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This can be particularly useful if you have data that needs to be fetched via an API, but doesn\u2019t change frequently. You can cache this content so that it loads quicker, and refresh it every few months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If your site displays data that needs to be updated in real-time, using transients may not be the best course of action. In some cases, you might want to delete the transient so that the site displays the more recent data all the time. In the next section, we\u2019ll take a closer look at managing your transients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What are WordPress transients?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nHow WordPress transients work<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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set_transient( 'special_query_results', $special_query_results, 12 * HOUR_IN_SECONDS );<\/code><\/p>\n\n\n\nThe benefits of WordPress transients<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
How to manage transients in WordPress<\/h2>\n\n\n