How to operate WordPress: 12 useful self-help resources for developers & site owners

One of the reasons we decided to specialize solely in WordPress is due to how easy it is for our clients to learn how to operate WordPress independently from a webmaster.

What makes WordPress so good?

1. The CMS is user-friendly, making it easy to use for all experience levels.
2. There are a huge amount of resources available to website owners to update and improve their WordPress website.

Although we always offer WordPress training with every website or new feature we build, by accessing these available resources online and in person, clients can easily carry on developing their WordPress website management skills so they can continue getting the most out of their website.

The majority of our team is self-taught in using and developing WordPress with the help of resources they’ve found online or by attending local workshops or conferences. Whether they’re one of our developers toning their web development skills, or our internal team improving their knowledge of using the WordPress CMS to improve our own WordPress website, we’ve found there are training resources available for all experience levels.

The resources and support available dedicated to showing people of all experience levels how to use and improve their WordPress knowledge are invaluable. We’ve compiled this list of our favorite training resources we’ve gathered over the years and that we recommend to clients and our team.

For developers, we recommend:

Pluralsight (previously Code School)

We recommend Pluralsight (previously Code School) for developers who enjoy learning by doing. They offer interactive courses in coding and software development, with categories such as JavaScript, HTML, Git, and more.

I’ve used Code School to refresh my knowledge and learn the basics of particular web development tools. I’ve taken a total of 8 of their courses so far ranging across CSS (SASS), JavaScript, HTML and Git. I’ve enjoyed every course, and they’ve successfully helped me improve my skills I use in WordPress development.

Tom Barrett

WPSessions

WPSessions is aimed at developers wanting to build a new WordPress website. They offer courses on BuddyPress, WP-CLI, unit tests, building a membership site, optimizing your site, Boilerplate, SASS, and building your own plugin.

Learn WordPress

The Beginner WordPress Developer course teaches the basics of WordPress development. You’ll learn to set up a development environment, create custom themes and plugins, and use essential WordPress functions like hooks and the REST API. Ideal for those wanting to build and customize WordPress websites from scratch.

Codecademy

Codecademy is brilliant for the interactive aspect and the fun tone.

Sam Lay

Codecademy is an interactive learning resource for developers helping you learn skills in HTML & CSS, JavaScript, jQuery, PHP, Python, Ruby, and APIs. On each course, they offer a couple of lessons for free, with their more advanced lessons being reserved only for their Codecademy Pro-Subscribers. Pro-Subscribers have more of a personalized learning plan that includes interactive lessons, quizzes at the end of each lesson unit, and real-world projects so you can apply what you’re learning.

I’ve used Codeacademy for learning the basics of several languages, including Javascript, HTML, CSS and PHP. All of which are useful for WordPress development. Codeacademy is great for it’s interactivity, and it introduces you to new concepts with helpful examples and ‘easy-to-understand’ copy.

Adam Hollister

The Lodge

The Lodge is a training resource by a CSS-focused blog: CSS-Tricks. They offer 4 different free courses on web design and development covering SVG, learning jQuery from scratch, redesigning a website, and building a mobile-first website.

Treehouse

Treehouse provides in-depth training courses on WordPress basics and WordPress development. Their lessons are divided into beginner, immediate, and advanced skill levels. Each course lets you know how long it will take to complete, and they also offer a free trial, so you know what to expect before you commit to the lessons.

I often use Treehouse to delve more deeply into a specific subject. They have a massive library of content ranging from topics like ‘WordPress Customizer API’ to things like ‘Video Game Development’. The course teachers are great and the combination of videos, tasks and quizzes make learning with Treehouse easier for me than with some of the other online training tools. – Adam Hollister

Sadly Treehouse no longer supports WordPress and will not be uploading any new or updating existing content to their site. You can find out more about their decision on WP Tavern. However, we’re pleased to announce Zac from Treehouse’s new venture: Javascript for WordPress.

For users, we recommend:

WordPress 101

WordPress 101 boosts the fastest and easiest way to learn WordPress. They offer courses on getting started and the basics, to tutorials on the Yoast SEO plugin. Their easy-to-follow screencasts are best suited to beginners who want to learn how to use the WordPress CMS.

They also have a plugin that offers their WordPress training videos for easy access within the WordPress admin dashboard.

Learn WordPress

The Beginner WordPress User course guides you through the essentials of using WordPress. You’ll learn how to set up a site, manage content, customize themes, and use plugins effectively. Perfect for new users wanting to create and maintain their own WordPress website.

Lynda

Lynda is an online video tutorial website by LinkedIn. They offer 89 WordPress courses which are broken down into a total of 2,178 video tutorials. In their WordPress courses, they show you the stages of building a website with the CMS from start to finish. Beyond the build, they also offer optimization advice and training on adding and editing content.

You have to be a member to view their courses, but once you’re signed up you have access to all the courses on Lynda, including their PHP-related courses which can help improve developers WordPress coding knowledge.

Face-to-face training:

Codebar

Codebar is a non-profit committed to building a diverse tech community. They run free workshops teaching HTML & CSS, JavaScript, Ruby, and Python as well as programming concepts. They aim their workshops at under-represented groups and they’re currently available in Brighton, London, Cambridge, and Birmingham. Their events are usually sponsored and hosted by local tech companies. The format of the meetups follows a 30-minute registration, networking, and chatting over nibbles, followed by lots of coding and coaching.

The Codebar workshops have been an invaluable support during my training in Web Development. It is run by developers who give up their spare time to coach people in under-represented groups in tech, and I love that sense of community.

Romy Viflic

Meetup

Explore WordPress Meetups to connect with like-minded enthusiasts and professionals. These events cover various topics, including site building, plugin development, and theme customization. Perfect for users of all skill levels looking to enhance their WordPress knowledge, network, and share experiences.

WordUp Brighton

Monthly event

These friendly monthly meetups are a great way to meet and network with fellow WordPress users and developers in Brighton. The meetups are relaxed and often include snacks and drinks provided by local companies. Each meetup is different and attracts a varied crowd, so if there currently isn’t an event planned that’s of interest to you, there should be soon!

WordCamp Europe

5th–7th June 2025

WordCamp Europe is an enormous conference attracting thousands of WordPress users around the world. Next year it’s their thirteenth conference, and each year it is held in a different European city. Many WordPress specialist organizations such as ourselves take their whole company along for the conference – they’re just that good! WordCamp Europe offers a huge variety of talks, covering everything from web design and development to marketing, performance, and content creation and management.

We hope you’ve found our resources useful! If you’d like to know more about our WordPress services and how Angry Creative can help you, start by scheduling a meeting with our expert, Amy, today!