How to use admin_bar_menu action in WordPress

admin_bar_menu action

This is the hook used to add, remove, or manipulate admin bar items.

To use admin_bar_menu action, first you have to register it using add_action. You can write this code into functions.php of your activated theme or in a custom WordPress Plugin.

We at WePlugins, always prefer to create a custom WordPress Plugin while using hooks so nothing breaks when you update your WordPress Theme in the future.

In the below live example, we have defined a function execute_on_admin_bar_menu_event which takes 1 parameter and we registered using add_action. The first parameter admin_bar_menu is the name of the hook, the second parameter execute_on_admin_bar_menu_event is the name of the function which needs to be called, the third parameter is the priority of calling the hook if the same hook is used multiple times, and the last parameter is the number of arguments (if any) to be passed in the registered function.

Sometimes, you have to remove a registered hook so you can use remove_action to remove admin_bar_menu action.

Parameters

Below, the 1 parameter is required to use this hook.

• $wp_admin_bar: (WP_Admin_Bar) The WP_Admin_Bar instance, passed by reference.

Live Example 1: Adding an Admin Bar Item

Here is an example of how to add an item to the admin bar:

    add_action( 'admin_bar_menu', 'weplugins_admin_bar_item', 500 );
    function weplugins_admin_bar_item ( WP_Admin_Bar $admin_bar ) {
        if ( ! current_user_can( 'manage_options' ) ) {
            return;
        }
        $admin_bar->add_menu( array(
            'id'    => 'menu-id',
            'parent' => null,
            'group'  => null,
            'title' => 'Menu Title', //you can use img tag with image link. it will show the image icon instead of the title.
            'href'  => admin_url( 'options-general.php' ),
        ));
    }
    

Live Example 2: Custom Function Execution

Below is an example of how you can use this hook to execute custom functionality:

    function weplugins_execute_on_admin_bar_menu_event($wp_admin_bar){
        // You can write code here to be executed when this action occurs in WordPress.
        // Use the parameters received in the function arguments & implement the required additional custom functionality according to your website requirements.
    }
    // add the action
    add_action( "admin_bar_menu", "weplugins_execute_on_admin_bar_menu_event" , 10, 1);
    

Live Example 3: Removing a Hook Callback

To remove a hook callback, use the example below:

    remove_action( "admin_bar_menu", "weplugins_execute_on_admin_bar_menu_event", 10, 1 );
    

Please make sure to provide the same callback function name, priority, and number of arguments while removing the hook callback.

Contact Us

If you’re having any trouble using this hook, please contact our WordPress Development Team and we’d be happy to assist you.