Image Amy Kamala 11:53 pm on February 12, 2026
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WordPress 7.0 Release Party Schedule

03/10/26 Edit to add security BetaBeta A pre-release of software that is given out to a large group of users to trial under real conditions. Beta versions have gone through alpha testing in-house and are generally fairly close in look, feel and function to the final product; however, design changes often occur as part of the process. 4

WordPress 7.0 is scheduled for release on April 9, 2026! Below is the proposed calendar with expected start times for each release party, and the release squad contributors involved in release parties for the upcoming 7.0 milestone.

This release party schedule will stay in effect during the Release Candidaterelease candidate One of the final stages in the version release cycle, this version signals the potential to be a final release to the public. Also see alpha (beta). phase and the final release of WordPress 7.0. This enables contributors to attend and assist with release testing during the final weeks of the release cycle.

As always, there may be last-minute adjustments. The release squad will do its best to communicate any changes promptly by publishing a post on the change, and updating this post as the canonical reference.

Join us for the 7.0 release parties in the #core channel on the Making WordPress Slack!

Release Schedule

Date (UTC)MilestoneEmcee / Release LeadRelease Lead The community member ultimately responsible for the Release.Committercommitter A developer with commit access. WordPress has five lead developers and four permanent core developers with commit access. Additionally, the project usually has a few guest or component committers - a developer receiving commit access, generally for a single release cycle (sometimes renewed) and/or for a specific component.SecurityMission Control (Coordination)Communications
February 19, 2026 at 15:00 UTCBeta 1@amykamala@ellatrix@audrasjb@sergeybiryukov@amykamala
February 26, 2026 at 15:00 UTCBeta 2@amykamala@ellatrix@audrasjb@sergeybiryukov@amykamala
March 5, 2026 at 14:00 UTC Beta 3@4thhubbard, @amykamala@audrasjb
Committing from WordCampWordCamp WordCamps are casual, locally-organized conferences covering everything related to WordPress. They're one of the places where the WordPress community comes together to teach one another what they’ve learned throughout the year and share the joy. Learn more. Nice Contributor DayContributor Day Contributor Days are standalone days, frequently held before or after WordCamps but they can also happen at any time. They are events where people get together to work on various areas of https://make.wordpress.org/ There are many teams that people can participate in, each with a different focus. https://2017.us.wordcamp.org/contributor-day/ https://make.wordpress.org/support/handbook/getting-started/getting-started-at-a-contributor-day/!		@audrasjb@sergeybiryukov@4thhubbard
March 10, 2026 at 23:30 UTC
Unplanned beta following the 6.9.2-6.9.3 security releases		Beta 4@desrosj@sergeybiryukov@sergeybiryukov@sergeybiryukov
March 12, 2026 at 15:00 UTCBeta 5@chaion07, @amykamala@ellatrix@audrasjb@sergeybiryukov@chaion07
March 19, 2026 at 15:00 UTCRCrelease candidate One of the final stages in the version release cycle, this version signals the potential to be a final release to the public. Also see alpha (beta). 1@amykamala@ellatrix@audrasjb@sergeybiryukov@amykamala
March 26, 2026 at 15:00 UTCRC 2@4thhubbard@ellatrix@audrasjb@sergeybiryukov@4thhubbard
April 2, 2026 at 15:00 UTCRC 3@chaion07@ellatrix@audrasjb@sergeybiryukov@chaion07
Wednesday, April 8, 2026.

Time TBA		Dry Run / 24-Hour Code FreezeTBDTBDTBDTBDTBD
Thursday, April 9, 2026. Live during WordCamp Asia 2026 Contributor Day!

Time TBA		General ReleaseTBDTBDTBDTBDTBD

How to Join the Party

  • All parties happen in the #core channel on Slack.
  • Everyone is welcome! First-timers, veteran contributors, and all those curious about the process are invited.
  • The final General Release will happen during WordCamp Asia 2026 Contributor Day.
  • Everyone is encouraged to attend WordCamp Asia, but traveling and attending the event is not required to participate in the General Release Party. The release party will still happen in the #core channel in SlackSlack Slack is a Collaborative Group Chat Platform https://slack.com/. The WordPress community has its own Slack Channel at https://make.wordpress.org/chat/.
  • @desrosj is leading the coordination between the release squad and WordCamp Asia organizing team for the Dry Run and General Release schedules. More details will be announced as soon as they are finalized.

Here are detailed instructions on how to contribute to a release party.

Thank you to every contributor and community member that helps make 7.0 a success. See you at the parties!

Props to @desrosj, @4thhubbard, @jeffpaul, @chaion07, @audrasjb, @sergeybiryukov, @ellatrix, and @akshayar for collaboration and peer review.

#7-0, #release