Creating a Custom Login and Logout Process in WordPress

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October 10, 2023

Managing user sessions effectively is crucial for maintaining a secure, organized, and user-friendly WordPress website. An integral part of this process involves understanding how to handle login and logout functionalities. In this article, we delve into the methods to add login and logout links in WordPress, helping users navigate through your site more efficiently without encountering any unnecessary issues. Whether you’re a seasoned developer or a site owner seeking to enhance your users’ experience, we’ll guide you every step of the way.

					function wpturbo_login_logout() {
    if ( is_user_logged_in() ) {
        $link = '<a href="' . wp_logout_url() . '">' . __('Log Out', 'wpturbo') . '</a>';
    } else {
        $link = '<a href="' . wp_login_url() . '">' . __('Log In', 'wpturbo') . '</a>';
    }
    return $link;
}
add_shortcode('login-logout-link', 'wpturbo_login_logout');

The first line of the code snippet defines a new function called wpturbo_login_logout(). This function works by checking the user’s login status on your website and displays the appropriate login or logout link accordingly.

Right at the start, we’ve used is_user_logged_in() function, which is a WordPress built-in function. This function, as the name suggests, checks if the user is logged in to the WordPress site or not.

if ( is_user_logged_in() ) {
    $link = '<a href="' . wp_logout_url() . '">' . __('Log Out', 'wpturbo') . '</a>';
} else {
    $link = '<a href="' . wp_login_url() . '">' . __('Log In', 'wpturbo') . '</a>';
}

If the user is logged in, is_user_logged_in() returns true and the logout link is stored in the $link variable. In the HTML string that constructs the logout link, the wp_logout_url() function generates the URL for logging out of WordPress. __('Log Out', 'wpturbo') is the text for the logout link, which can be translated into other languages if the ‘wpturbo’ text domain has been properly set up.

If the user is not logged in, is_user_logged_in() returns false and the login link is stored in the $link variable. Similar to the logout URL, wp_login_url() generates the URL for the WordPress login page, and __('Log In', 'wpturbo') is the translatable login link text.

return $link;

Finally, the function returns the appropriate login or logout link based on the user’s login status.

add_shortcode('login-logout-link', 'wpturbo_login_logout');

In the last line, add_shortcode() function is used to register the login-logout-link shortcode, allowing the login or logout link to be rendered anywhere on your site using the [login-logout-link] shortcode. ‘wpturbo_login_logout’ is the name of the function here.

So, by calling [login-logout-link] shortcode in the post content, widget, or in the PHP code by do_shortcode() function, it automatically places a Log In or Log Out link depending on the user’s login status.

Creating a Custom Login and Logout Process in WordPress

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