How to Use the get_the_terms Function in WordPress: A Complete Guide

Organizing content in WordPress often involves working with taxonomies like categories, tags, or custom terms. To display these terms properly in your theme, get_the_terms() is the function you’ll rely on. It helps you fetch the terms assigned to any post and use them wherever needed, like in post meta, sidebars, or even breadcrumb trails. It keeps your templates clean and dynamic.

Whether you’re managing your WordPress site yourself or working with a WordPress development services provider, knowing how get_the_terms() works can make your site more structured and user-friendly.

In this blog, we’ll break down how this function works, where to use it, and share some practical examples to help you use it better in real projects.

What is the get_the_terms() Function in WordPress?

Once you’ve assigned categories, tags, or custom taxonomy terms to your posts, you’ll often want to display or use them dynamically in your theme. That’s exactly what the get_the_terms() function is made for. It lets you retrieve all the terms linked to a specific post under a specific taxonomy in WordPress. Here’s the basic syntax:

get_the_terms( int $post_id, string $taxonomy );

• $post_id is the ID of the post you want to fetch terms for.
• $taxonomy is the name of the taxonomy (like ‘category’, ‘post_tag’, or a custom one like ‘genre’).

If successful, it returns an array of WP_Term objects – each containing useful data like the term name, slug, description, and ID. If there are no terms or an error occurs, it returns false or null.

Whether you’re building tag clouds, showing categories, or filtering related posts, get_the_terms() gives you the structure you need to work with post-related taxonomy data efficiently.

How to Use get_the_terms() in WordPress Templates?

Getting started with get_the_terms() is easier than you might think. Here are three practical examples that cover the most common scenarios when working with taxonomy terms in WordPress.

Display Post Categories

If you want to show which categories a post belongs to, this is a quick and effective way to do it. Categories help users understand the broader topic of your content, and displaying them clearly can improve both user navigation and SEO.

$categories = get_the_terms( get_the_ID(), 'category' );
if ( ! empty( $categories ) && ! is_wp_error( $categories ) ) {
    foreach ( $categories as $category ) {
        echo esc_html( $category->name ) . ' ';
    }
}

This code fetches all categories attached to the current post and outputs their names. It ensures the returned data is valid before looping through.

Display Post Tags

Tags are another built-in taxonomy in WordPress. They give more specific context to your posts and help with internal linking and filtering. This example shows how to retrieve and display tags associated with a post:

$tags = get_the_terms( get_the_ID(), 'post_tag' );
if ( ! empty( $tags ) && ! is_wp_error( $tags ) ) {
    foreach ( $tags as $tag ) {
        echo esc_html( $tag->name ) . ' ';
    }
}

Similar to categories, this fetches all tags assigned to the post and displays their names.

Proper Error Handling

While get_the_terms() is reliable, it’s always a good idea to handle edge cases like when no terms are found or an error is returned. This example adds a fallback message to make your templates more robust and user-friendly:

$terms = get_the_terms( get_the_ID(), 'category' );
if ( $terms && ! is_wp_error( $terms ) ) {
    foreach ( $terms as $term ) {
        echo esc_html( $term->name ) . ' ';
    }
} else {
    echo 'No terms found or an error occurred.';
}

This snippet adds an extra layer of robustness by handling cases where no terms are found or when an error is returned.

These examples cover the basics of fetching and displaying taxonomy terms safely, laying a solid foundation for more advanced uses.

Using get_the_terms() for Custom Content Types

WordPress lets you create your own taxonomies to better organize content that doesn’t fit into categories or tags. Whether you’re building a movie database with genres or a recipe site with difficulty levels, custom taxonomies give you the flexibility you need.

To use get_the_terms() with a custom taxonomy, make sure the taxonomy is registered and attached to your post type. Here’s a quick example of registering a simple custom taxonomy called genre:

register_taxonomy( 'genre', 'movie', array(
    'label' => 'Genre',
    'hierarchical' => true,
) );

Once registered, you can retrieve terms from this taxonomy like this:

$genres = get_the_terms( get_the_ID(), 'genre' );
if ( ! empty( $genres ) && ! is_wp_error( $genres ) ) {
    foreach ( $genres as $genre ) {
        echo esc_html( $genre->name ) . ' ';
    }
}

This lets you display all the genres assigned to a movie post. Using custom taxonomies with get_the_terms() unlocks powerful ways to organize and present your content exactly how you want it.

How Developers Use get_the_terms() For Daily Work?

Understanding how to retrieve taxonomy terms is great, but knowing how to apply this in real projects is what truly makes get_the_terms() valuable. Here are some practical scenarios where this function shines.

Dynamic Term Display in Templates

You can easily show categories, tags, or custom terms anywhere in your post template–like above the title, in the footer, or in sidebars to give readers quick context.

$terms = get_the_terms( get_the_ID(), 'category' );
if ( ! empty( $terms ) && ! is_wp_error( $terms ) ) {
    foreach ( $terms as $term ) {
        echo '<span class="post-category">' . esc_html( $term->name ) . '</span> ';
    }
}

Related Posts by Shared Terms

By fetching terms and using them in a custom query, you can show related posts that share categories or tags, enhancing user engagement.

$categories = get_the_terms( get_the_ID(), 'category' );
if ( ! empty( $categories ) && ! is_wp_error( $categories ) ) {
    $category_ids = wp_list_pluck( $categories, 'term_id' );
    $related_posts = new WP_Query( array(
        'category__in'   => $category_ids,
        'post__not_in'   => array( get_the_ID() ),
        'posts_per_page' => 3,
    ) );
    if ( $related_posts->have_posts() ) {
        while ( $related_posts->have_posts() ) {
            $related_posts->the_post();
            echo '<a href="' . get_permalink() . '">' . get_the_title() . '</a><br>';
        }
        wp_reset_postdata();
    }
}

Creating Linked Term Lists

Linking terms to their archive pages helps users explore related content easily.

foreach ( $terms as $term ) {
    echo '<a href="' . esc_url( get_term_link( $term ) ) . '">' . esc_html( $term->name ) . '</a> ';
}

Building Breadcrumb Trails

Use hierarchical taxonomies to generate breadcrumbs, improving site navigation and SEO.

$terms = get_the_terms( get_the_ID(), 'category' );
if ( ! empty( $terms ) && ! is_wp_error( $terms ) ) {
    $term = $terms[0];
    if ( $term->parent ) {
        $parent = get_term( $term->parent, 'category' );
        echo '<a href="' . esc_url( get_term_link( $parent ) ) . '">' . esc_html( $parent->name ) . '</a> » ';
    }
    echo esc_html( $term->name );
}

With these practical examples, you can see how get_the_terms() helps build dynamic, user-friendly WordPress sites. It’s a simple function with a big impact.

Advanced Term Handling Techniques in WordPress

Once you’re comfortable with the basics, there are some advanced techniques and lesser-known tricks that can take your use of get_the_terms() to the next level. These approaches help you handle complex scenarios and add extra polish to your projects.

Loop Through All Taxonomies for a Post

Sometimes, you want to retrieve terms from every taxonomy associated with a post, not just one. This is especially useful when working with Custom Post Types that have multiple taxonomies.

$taxonomies = get_object_taxonomies( get_post_type(), 'names' );
foreach ( $taxonomies as $taxonomy ) {
    $terms = get_the_terms( get_the_ID(), $taxonomy );
    if ( ! empty( $terms ) && ! is_wp_error( $terms ) ) {
        echo '<strong>' . esc_html( $taxonomy ) . ':</strong> ';
        foreach ( $terms as $term ) {
            echo esc_html( $term->name ) . ' ';
        }
        echo '<br>';
    }
}

This loops through each taxonomy and displays its terms neatly grouped.

Accessing Term Metadata

WordPress allows you to add custom metadata to terms, such as colors, icons, or descriptions. You can easily retrieve this metadata to enhance how terms are displayed.

$terms = get_the_terms( get_the_ID(), 'genre' );
if ( ! empty( $terms ) && ! is_wp_error( $terms ) ) {
    foreach ( $terms as $term ) {
        $color = get_term_meta( $term->term_id, 'term_color', true );
        echo '<span style="color:' . esc_attr( $color ) . ';">' . esc_html( $term->name ) . '</span> ';
    }
}

This example shows how to apply custom colors stored in term metadata to each term’s name. These advanced uses of get_the_terms() open up creative ways to organize and style your content, making your WordPress site more dynamic and tailored.

Essential Guidelines for Reliable Term Handling

Using get_the_terms() effectively means following some best practices while being aware of common mistakes that can cause bugs or performance issues. Keeping these in mind helps you write cleaner, more reliable code.

Always Check for Errors and Empty Results
The function can return false or a WP_Error object, so always verify the result before using it. This prevents warnings and ensures your site won’t break when a post has no terms assigned.

$terms = get_the_terms( get_the_ID(), 'category' );
if ( ! empty( $terms ) && ! is_wp_error( $terms ) ) {
    // Safe to use $terms here
}

Escape Output Properly
When displaying term data, especially names or descriptions, use escaping functions like esc_html() or esc_attr() to avoid security vulnerabilities.

Be Mindful of Performance
Avoid calling get_the_terms() repeatedly inside large loops without caching results, as it can slow down page loading. If needed, store terms in a variable and reuse it.

Know Your Taxonomies
Always confirm that the taxonomy you’re querying exists and is registered for the post type, especially when working with custom taxonomies.

By following these tips, you ensure your use of get_the_terms() is robust, secure, and efficient–helping maintain a smooth user experience on your site.

A Quick Helper Function for Term Display in WordPress

To save time and avoid repetitive code, here’s a handy utility function you can drop into your theme’s functions.php or a plugin.

It safely fetches and displays terms for any post and taxonomy, handling errors and output formatting for you.

function display_post_terms( $post_id, $taxonomy, $before = '', $after = '', $separator = ', ' ) {
    $terms = get_the_terms( $post_id, $taxonomy );
    if ( ! empty( $terms ) && ! is_wp_error( $terms ) ) {
        $term_names = wp_list_pluck( $terms, 'name' );
        echo $before . esc_html( implode( $separator, $term_names ) ) . $after;
    } else {
        echo 'No terms found.';
    }
}

How to use it:

display_post_terms( get_the_ID(), 'category', '<p>Categories: ', '</p>' );
display_post_terms( get_the_ID(), 'post_tag', '<p>Tags: ', '</p>' );

This function simplifies your templates by consolidating term retrieval and output into one clean call, reducing errors and improving readability.

FAQs for WordPress get_the_terms() Function

Summary

Understanding how to use get_the_terms() gives you more control over how taxonomy terms appear on your WordPress site. Whether it’s categories, tags, or custom taxonomies, this function helps you fetch and display them cleanly in your templates.

From basic term display to dynamic layouts and advanced features like breadcrumbs or related posts, this function plays a key role in improving site structure and user experience. It’s a must-know for anyone customizing WordPress themes.

If you need help implementing these features or building custom WordPress solutions, our expert team can help. As a trusted WordPress development agency, we specialize in building fast, flexible, and scalable WordPress websites. Contact us today to get started!