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WordPress powers around 43% of the web, and behind all those sites is an even bigger community of people who use, teach, and improve it, meeting up all the time to swap ideas and lend a hand. |
This vibrant community has global IRL touch points as well as virtual ones that include local meetups, WordCamps, and opportunities surfaced using the WordPress Events and News widget in WP Admin. |
Start with a local WordPress meetup |
A local meetup is the lowest-commitment way to start. Meetups are smaller and more informal than conferences and typically last only a few hours. |
At a WordPress meetup, you’ll find a gathering of like-minded people who get together to share their WordPress experiences. |
There’s no required format, so in practice, that might be a talk at a coworking space, a hands-on workshop, a help desk where you can get one-on-one help with your site, or a table in a coffee shop. |
Groups commonly meet about once a month, and where an event charges for attendance, the fee only covers costs. |
Expect a wide mix of people, including bloggers, freelancers, ecommerce shop owners, agency developers, and at least one person still partway through building their first site. Everybody’s welcome, and nobody checks credentials at the door. |
The official WordPress events directory is the place to look for a local event: it lists upcoming meetups and WordCamps by location, plus online meetups if you’d rather attend remotely or there’s nothing in person nearby. |
Many groups organize their RSVPs on Meetup.com, so it’s worth searching for ‘WordPress’ on there as well. |
| The official events directory maps upcoming meetups and WordCamps worldwide. |
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For something bigger, look no further than WordCamp. They’re community-organized WordPress conferences, and cater to all abilities. |
Most WordCamps run for a few days, with talks and workshops across several tracks, a sponsor hall where you can meet the people behind your favorite themes and plugins (and pick up some swag), and hallway conversations that make memorable moments. |
You can also get a feel for a WordCamp before committing to one. Session recordings on WordPress.tv show you what the talks are like, and the WordCamp US 2025 recap describes what attending a full event feels like, from someone who went. |
On WordPress.com, open WP Admin and look for the WordPress Events and News widget. It lists upcoming meetups and WordCamps for your area, along with community news. |
Select your nearest city once to see nearby events. If the widget is hidden, open “Screen Options” and enable “WordPress Events and News.” |
| Set your nearest city once, and the widget lists the local meetups and WordCamps. |
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The widget is part of WordPress core, so it is available whether your site runs on WordPress.com or another WordPress host. |
Make your first event easier |
These events are built for every experience level, including total beginners. |
First-timers tend to wonder the same things: Will everyone know more than me? Do I have to talk? Can I come along if I only run a blog? |
Some people will know more than you about parts of WordPress, and you’ll know more than them about others. Running a blog is more than enough reason to come. |
A few small steps make the first visit smoother: |
- Pick an event that’s right for you: The description tells you the format, the venue, and whether it’s aimed at a specific audience, such as developers or bloggers.
- Bring something to talk about: A question, a problem you’re stuck on, or the thing you’re building gives every “so, how do you use WordPress?” conversation an icebreaker.
- Tell the organizer it’s your first time: Organizers are volunteers who want people to come back, and they’re used to helping first-timers get settled.
- It’s okay to just listen: Attending without saying much is a perfectly good way to spend a first meetup.
Even one or two of these can take the edge off at your first event. |
Connect with the WordPress community |
While WordCamp events offer a lot, you don’t need to travel to a flagship event to get started. |
Open WP Admin to see what the WordPress Events and News widget shows for your area. |
If you use WordPress, you’re already part of the community. The only step left is connecting with your people. |
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