WordPress Performance Review
A severity-ranked code review skill that scans WordPress themes and plugins for performance anti-patterns.
What it does
Reviews WordPress PHP/JS code by file type and reports performance problems with line numbers and severity.
- Critical: unbounded queries (
posts_per_page => -1),query_posts(), frontendsession_start()(kills full-page cache), N+1 queries in loops, JSsetIntervalpolling (self-DDoS), long-running WP-Cron jobs - Warning: unindexed
meta_queryvalue scans, leading-wildcardLIKE '%term%', uncachedwp_remote_get, dynamic transient keys bloatingwp_options, globally enqueued assets - Info: missing
no_found_rows, batch cache lookups, script versioning and defer strategy
It also ships quick-detection grep commands, hosting-aware guidance (managed vs. self-hosted vs. shared), a severity table, and a report template with a findings summary.
Who it's for
- WordPress developers reviewing theme/plugin pull requests
- Teams auditing a site before a launch, sale, or traffic spike
- Operators tracking down 500 errors, timeouts, or memory exhaustion
- Freelancers trimming queries and assets on WooCommerce-heavy sites
Example uses
- "Run a performance review on this plugin folder" → unbounded queries and cache-bypassing code listed by severity with line numbers
- "The cart page keeps timing out, find why" → checks templates for external HTTP calls, N+1 queries, and AJAX polling
- "Prep this site for Black Friday traffic" → flags transient misuse, oversized autoloaded options, and long cron callbacks
· · · Install guide · · ·
Try it now, no install
Paste this into Claude to use the skill without installing anything.
Read the instructions in this file and follow them to help me: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/elvismdev/claude-wordpress-skills/HEAD/skills/wp-performance-review/SKILL.md What I want: (describe your task here)
If Claude can't open the link, open it yourself and paste the contents instead.
↓ If it works for you, download the ZIP below and install it. Then it runs on its own — no pasting each time.
Install in the Claude app (no terminal)
- Download the ZIP with the button below.
- In Claude, open Settings → Capabilities and turn on 'Code execution and file creation'. (one time)
- Go to Customize → Skills → + → 'Upload a skill' and upload the ZIP.
Install in Claude Code
Let Claude do it — paste this into Claude Code
Install the skill I found on Claude Skill Mart. Copy the skills/wp-performance-review folder from the GitHub repo elvismdev/claude-wordpress-skills into my ~/.claude/skills/wp-performance-review/. When it's done, tell me in one line what this skill can do.
Install with a command instead
git clone https://github.com/elvismdev/claude-wordpress-skills.git && mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills && cp -r claude-wordpress-skills/skills/wp-performance-review ~/.claude/skills/⚠ This is a third-party skill. Check the source repository before installing.
- Open a terminal (Terminal on macOS, Git Bash or WSL on Windows).
- Clone the skills repo:
git clone https://github.com/elvismdev/claude-wordpress-skills.git - Create the skills directory if needed:
mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills - Copy the skill:
cp -r claude-wordpress-skills/skills/wp-performance-review ~/.claude/skills/ - Confirm the
references/folder came along:ls ~/.claude/skills/wp-performance-review - Restart Claude Code, open your WordPress project, and ask "review this theme for performance issues" to trigger the skill.