The WP Community Collective

The State of the Community

The State of the Community survey aims to understand the current perspective of the people in and around the WordPress open source project community. The survey is open for responses from May 27 through June 28, 2026 at 11:00am UTC.

Take the survey below.

About the Survey

The State of the Community survey is an open survey from The WP Community Collective inviting anyone who works with, builds on, contributes to, or cares about the WordPress open source project to share their perspectives on the community and its ecosystem.

The survey takes 10-20 minutes to complete and covers topics including overall sentiment toward the WordPress open source project, community participation, open source values, and the impact of AI. All responses are anonymous.

About You
Sentiment about the WordPress Open Source Project
Community Participation
Event Participation
Open Source
AI
Closing

The State of the Community Survey

Facebook

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Section 1: About You

What is your age?(Required)

What is your gender?(Required)

Please indicate your gender identification:

Optional

What country do you primarily work from?(Required)

Which best describes your current work type?(Required)

Select all that apply.

Employee

Freelancer / Contractor

Executive

Business owner

Non-working, looking for work

Non-working, not looking for work

Student

Other

What size is the company you work for?(Required)

What size is your company?(Required)

Describe your work type:

Optional

Which of the following WordPress-related activities do you engage in?(Required)

Please indicate both previous and/or current participation. Select all that apply.

Describe the WordPress-related activities you engage in:(Required)

Where do you participate in the WordPress open source project?(Required)

Please indicate both previous and/or current participation. Select all that apply.

Make WordPress (WordPress Slack)

WordPress.org (forums, posts, etc.)

Official WordPress events (WordCamps, etc.)

WordPress-adjacent events (PressConf, WordSesh, etc.)

Membership-based communities (Post Status, The Repository, etc.)

Product-related communities

WordPress communities on social media (Discord, Reddit, etc.)

I do not participate in the WordPress open source project.

Other (please describe)

Describe where you participate in the WordPress open source project:(Required)

Which of the following describe the type of work you do with regard to the WordPress open source project?(Required)

Please indicate both previous and/or current participation. Select all that apply.

Building or developing with WordPress (sites, applications, etc.)

Creating products to use with WordPress (plugins, themes, tools, etc.)

Providing services to WordPress users or businesses

Contributing to the WordPress open source project

Contributing to the WordPress community

Using WordPress personally or for your organization

Working adjacent to WordPress (not directly building or using it)

Not currently using WordPress

Other (please describe)

Describe your working situation with regard to the WordPress open source project.(Required)

Are you or have you ever been paid for any of your time spent participating in the WordPress open source project?(Required)

Yes, directly – Some or all of my work duties include participating in WordPress

Yes, indirectly – I participate in WordPress for work, but am not required to do so

No – I am not paid for any of my participation in WordPress

Are you currently being paid for any of your time spent participating in the WordPress open source project?(Required)

Yes

Does the WordPress open source project affect your income?(Required)

Yes

Partially

Other

How does the WordPress open source project affect your income?

Optional

I consider myself to be a contributor to the WordPress open source project.(Required)

Which forms of contribution describe your participation in the WordPress open source project?(Required)

Please indicate both previous and/or current participation. Select all that apply.

What other form of contribution describes your participation in the WordPress open source project?(Required)

I consider myself to be a member of the WordPress community.(Required)

How long have you been part of the WordPress community?(Required)

Less than 1 year

1-2 years

3-6 years

6-10 years

10-15 years

15+ years

Have you ever considered yourself a member of the WordPress community?(Required)

Yes

How long were you a part of the WordPress community?(Required)

(Whatever that means to you!)

Less than 1 year

1-2 years

3-6 years

6-10 years

10-15 years

15+ years

Why do you not consider yourself to be a member of the WordPress community?

Optional

Why do you no longer consider yourself to be a member of the WordPress community?

Optional

Section 2: Sentiment about the WordPress Open Source Project

Right now, how do you feel overall about the WordPress open source project?(Required)

Very positive

Positive

Neutral / Unsure

Negative

Very negative

Has your sentiment toward the WordPress open source project changed over the past 24 months?(Required)

Yes

How has your sentiment toward the WordPress open source project changed over the past 24 months?(Required)

I feel more positively about the WordPress open source project than I did 24 months ago

I feel more negatively about the WordPress open source project than I did 24 months ago

How do you feel about the future of the WordPress open source project?(Required)

Very positive

Positive

Neutral / Unsure

Negative

Very negative

What is supporting your positive feelings about the future of the WordPress open source project?

Optional

What is affecting your negative feelings about the future of the WordPress open source project?

Optional

How important are each of the following aspects of the WordPress open source project to you?(Required)

	Not Important	Somewhat unimportant	Neutral	Important	Very Important
WordPress open source software required
The WordPress community required
WordPress events and meetups required
Contributing to WordPress required
Open source values required
AI in WordPress required
Security in WordPress required
Web standards and compliance required
WordPress leadership required
WordPress governance required
Business issues (mergers & acquisitions, product ecosystem, private equity investment, etc.) required
Enterprise/scale issues required
Collaboration with the greater open source ecosystem required

What else is important to you when deciding to participate in the WordPress open source project?

Optional

Section 3: Community Participation

How would you describe your current level of community participation in the WordPress open source project?(Required)

Very active participation

Moderately active participation

Occasional participation

Observational only

Inactive

Do not participate / Not applicable

Has your level of community participation in the WordPress open source project changed in the last 24 months?(Required)

Significantly increased

Increased

No change / About the same

Decreased

Significantly decreased

When deciding to participate in the WordPress open source project, how important are each of the following to you?(Required)

	Not Important	Somewhat unimportant	Neutral	Important	Very Important
Personal capacity
Financial incentives/restraints
Impact of my contributions to the project
Impact of my participation on my professional or personal life
Understanding how to participate
Mentorship or guidance
Project roadmap
Project leadership
Project governance/policies required
Advocacy on behalf of web standards (accessibility, privacy, etc.) required
Participation in the WordPress community required
Feeling welcome/included required
Participating in a language other than English required
Working asynchronously required

What other factors are important to you when deciding how to participate in the WordPress open source project?

Optional

Have you ever sought or received help from others in the WordPress community related to participating or contributing?(Required)

Select all that apply.

I asked for help in a public forum (Slack, forums, GitHub, social media, etc.) and received a useful response

I reached out directly to someone I know in the community and they helped me

I found help through community documentation, guides, or onboarding resources

I sought help, but did not receive a useful response

I wanted help, but didn’t feel comfortable asking

I have not needed to seek this type of help

Other (please describe)

What type of help have you sought or received from others in the WordPress community related to participating or contributing?(Required)

What made you uncomfortable asking for help?

Select all that apply.

I didn’t know who to ask

I was concerned about how my question would be received

I had experienced or witnessed negative interactions before

I felt like an outsider or newcomer

Other (please describe)

What else made you uncomfortable asking for help?

Optional

Have you personally experienced any of the following when contributing to the WordPress community?(Required)

Select all that apply.

Lack of response to my contributions, questions, or requests for help

Contributions or ideas rejected without explanation

Dismissive or condescending responses to my contributions or questions

Unclear, incomplete, or unwelcoming documentation or onboarding

Difficulty finding where or how to get started

I have not encountered any of the above

Other (please describe)

What issues have you personally encountered when contributing to the WordPress community?(Required)

Have you personally experienced or witnessed any of the following issues in the WordPress community?(Required)

	Myself	Others	Both myself and others	Have not experienced/witnessed
Hostility or rudeness required
Dismissive or condescending responses to contributions or questions required
Name-calling or personal attacks required
Harassment or targeted negative behavior required
Conflict or ongoing interpersonal tension between community members required
Language or content that made me or others feel unwelcome or excluded required
Problems with project leadership or governance required
Other (please describe) required

What other issues have you personally experienced or witnessed in the WordPress community?(Required)

As a result of experiencing any of the above, are any of the following true for you?(Required)

Select all that apply.

I stopped contributing to a project or team

I stepped back from community participation generally

I moved my activity to other channels

I did not change my participation, but it affected how I feel about my participation

I filed a code of conduct report and it was resolved

I filed a code of conduct report and it was not resolved

It did not change my participation

Other (please describe)

How did your experience above affect how you participate in the WordPress community?(Required)

Section 4: Event Participation

Attending in-person WordPress-related events is important to me.(Required)

Which best describes your participation in official WordPress open source project events (such as WordCamps and Meetups)?(Required)

I participate in WordPress events multiple times per year

I participate in WordPress events annually or occasionally

I used to participate in WordPress events, but I no longer do

I have not attended any WordPress events, but I’d like to or am planning to

I have not attended any WordPress events, and I’m not interested in attending

Other (please describe)

Describe your participation in official WordPress open source project events:

Optional

Which best describes your participation in unofficial, WordPress-adjacent in-person events (such as PressConf or LoopConf)?(Required)

I participate in WordPress-adjacent in-person events multiple times per year

I participate in WordPress-adjacent in-person events annually or occasionally.

I used to participate in WordPress-adjacent in-person events, but I no longer do

I have not attended any WordPress-adjacent in-person events, but I’d like to or am planning to

I have not attended any WordPress-adjacent in-person events, and I’m not interested in attending

Other (please describe)

Describe your participation in unofficial, WordPress-adjacent in-person events:

Optional

Have you attended any other open source or tech-related in-person conferences or events in the past 24 months?(Required)

Yes

What other open source or tech-related in-person conferences or events have you attended?

Optional

When deciding to attend in-person conferences or events, how important are each of the following to you?(Required)

	Not Important	Somewhat unimportant	Neutral	Important	Very Important
A location local to you required
A regional/destination location required
Events with smaller attendance required
Events with larger attendance required
Hard skill development (technical instruction, workshops, etc.) required
Soft skill development (business development, personal development, etc.) required
Topics of sessions / panels required
Particular speakers / keynotes required
Meeting professional development requirements required
Networking opportunities required
Community development/engagement required
Cost of ticket required
Cost of attendance (travel, housing, etc.) required

What else is important to you when deciding to attend in-person conferences or events?

Optional

Section 5: Open Source

Right now, how do you generally feel about open source software?(Required)

Very positive

Positive

Neutral / Unsure

Negative

Very negative

Has your sentiment toward open source software changed over the past 24 months?(Required)

Yes

How has your sentiment toward open source software changed over the past 24 months?(Required)

I feel more positively about open source software than I did 24 months ago

I feel more negatively about open source software than I did 24 months ago

How important are the following to you?(Required)

	Not Important	Somewhat unimportant	Neutral	Important	Very Important
Open source software required
Open source values (whatever that means to you)required
The sustainability of open source projects required
Open source in WordPress required
Open source in AI required

Do you contribute to open source projects other than the WordPress open source project?(Required)

Yes, regularly

Yes, occasionally

I’d like to in the future

I used to, but have stopped

No, and I don’t plan to

Do you contribute to or volunteer for organizations, projects or causes other than WordPress or open source projects?(Required)

Yes, regularly

Yes, occasionally

I’d like to in the future

I used to, but have stopped

No, and I don’t plan to

Section 6: AI

Are you currently using AI in your work?(Required)

Yes

Describe how you are using AI in your work:

Optional

Right now, how do you generally feel about AI in the tech industry?(Required)

Very positive

Positive

Neutral / Unsure

Negative

Very negative

Right now, how do you generally feel about AI in WordPress?(Required)

Very positive

Positive

Neutral / Unsure

Negative

Very negative

Right now, how do you generally feel about AI in web development (vibe coding, agentic development, etc.)?(Required)

Very positive

Positive

Neutral / Unsure

Negative

Very negative

How are you currently using AI in your work?(Required)

Select all that apply

With regard to AI's current impact on your work or income, which of the following are true for you?(Required)

AI has had a positive impact on my work or income

AI has had a negative impact on my work or income

AI has not significantly impacted my work or income

Other (please describe)

Describe how AI has impacted your income, job security, or client base:

Optional

With regard to AI's future impact on your work or income, which of the following are true for you?(Required)

AI will probably positively impact my work or income in the future

AI will probably negatively impact my work or income in the future

AI will probably not impact my work or income in the future

Other (please describe)

How do you think AI will impact your work or income in the future?

Optional

Section 7: Closing

Is there anything else you'd like to share about how you're feeling about WordPress, the community, open source, or the greater tech industry?

Optional.

May we publicly cite and/or publish your free-written comments?

The WPCC will collect and summarize the free-written comments. We may also publicly cite or publish free-written comments. Please indicate if you permit all, some, or none of your free-written comments to be publicly cited and/or published. Even with permissions, we will make every effort to remove any possibly identifying details from any comments we share.