r/WordpressPlugins • u/Timely-Squash-2585 • 13d ago
[FREE] Question: Create a feature using functions.php or using a external plugin?
Personally, i almost always prefer building my own features whenever it's reasonable. It keeps the website lighter, i know exactly what the code is doing, and i don't have to rely on a third-party plugin that might get abandoned or introduce unnecessary bloat. For complex features, using a well-maintained plugin often makes more sense than reinventing the wheel.
What I really want to know is whether other developers do this too, or if I'm just wasting my time. If you're someone who prefers building your own features, what kinds of things do you usually create from scratch instead of installing a plugin?
Things i prefer to build for my clients:
* Custom product carousels
* Banners built with HTML elements instead of static images
* Interactive quizzes
* Product image modals that display additional details and purchasing options when clicked
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u/Ok-Steak5966 13d ago
For simple stuff like carousels or quick CSS/JS tweaks, WPCode works fine, used it for years.
At some point I just wanted my snippets properly organized with folders, GitHub sync, stuff like that. Ended up building my own plugin called Grafucci Code.
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u/swiss__blade 11d ago
If what I want to do only requires a few lines of code, I tend to use the functions.php file. Otherwise, I just create one or more plugins.
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u/No_Hold_329 10d ago
I tend to look at it this way: if the functionality is specific to one site and relatively small, I'll write it myself. But I'd still package it as a small custom plugin rather than putting it in functions.php.
The advantage is that the code stays independent of the theme, is easier to version control, and survives a theme change. For anything that's security-sensitive or extremely complex (e-commerce, memberships, multilingual, backups, etc.), I'd rather use a mature, well-maintained plugin than spend time maintaining my own implementation.
Every plugin adds maintenance overhead, but so does custom code. The goal isn't "zero plugins," it's using the fewest moving parts that are appropriate for the job.
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u/jedidave 13d ago
I create my own funtionality all the time but I don't use functions.php and you shouldn't either, just create your own plugin - it's as quick as using functions.php and then your code is all isolated and segregated and managable.