woocommerce-hpos

WooCommerce HPOS (High-Performance Order Storage)

Since: WooCommerce 8.2 (Oct 2023, default for new installs) | Source: developer.woocommerce.com | Updated: 2026-03-15

HPOS replaces the legacy wp_posts + wp_postmeta order storage with four dedicated tables optimized for eCommerce queries. Performance gains: up to 5x faster order creation, 1.5x faster checkout, 40x faster order lookups. Order INSERTs drop from ~40 to at most 5 per order.

Database Tables

Table	Purpose
wp_wc_orders	Primary order data (status, currency, totals, customer, payment, dates)
wp_wc_order_addresses	Billing and shipping addresses (one row per address type per order)
wp_wc_order_operational_data	Internal state flags (created_via, order_key, stock_reduced, email_sent, etc.)
wp_wc_orders_meta	Extension/custom metadata (replaces wp_postmeta for orders)

Order notes remain in wp_comments. Order items retain their dedicated tables. See references/database-schema.md for full column definitions.

Core API Quick Reference

Detect HPOS Status

use Automattic\WooCommerce\Utilities\OrderUtil;

if ( OrderUtil::custom_orders_table_usage_is_enabled() ) {
    // HPOS is active
} else {
    // Legacy CPT storage
}

Get/Create/Update Orders (works with both storage backends)

// Get order -- replaces get_post()
$order = wc_get_order( $order_id );

// Read data
$status = $order->get_status();
$total  = $order->get_total();
$email  = $order->get_billing_email();

// Update metadata -- replaces update_post_meta()
$order->update_meta_data( '_custom_key', 'value' );
$order->save(); // Required! Expensive -- batch changes before calling.

// Delete metadata -- replaces delete_post_meta()
$order->delete_meta_data( '_custom_key' );
$order->save();

Check Order Type

use Automattic\WooCommerce\Utilities\OrderUtil;

// replaces: 'shop_order' === get_post_type( $id )
'shop_order' === OrderUtil::get_order_type( $id );

// replaces: in_array( get_post_type( $id ), wc_get_order_types() )
OrderUtil::is_order( $id, wc_get_order_types() );

Declare Plugin Compatibility (in main plugin file)

add_action( 'before_woocommerce_init', function() {
    if ( class_exists( \Automattic\WooCommerce\Utilities\FeaturesUtil::class ) ) {
        \Automattic\WooCommerce\Utilities\FeaturesUtil::declare_compatibility(
            'custom_order_tables', __FILE__, true
        );
    }
} );

Pass false as third arg to declare incompatibility. Use 'my-plugin-slug/my-plugin.php' instead of __FILE__ if the declaration is outside the main plugin file.

Register Meta Boxes (dual-compatible)

use Automattic\WooCommerce\Internal\DataStores\Orders\CustomOrdersTableController;

add_action( 'add_meta_boxes', function() {
    $screen = class_exists( CustomOrdersTableController::class )
        && wc_get_container()->get( CustomOrdersTableController::class )
            ->custom_orders_table_usage_is_enabled()
        ? wc_get_page_screen_id( 'shop-order' )
        : 'shop_order';

    add_meta_box( 'my-box', 'Title', 'render_callback', $screen, 'side', 'high' );
} );

function render_callback( $post_or_order ) {
    $order = ( $post_or_order instanceof WP_Post )
        ? wc_get_order( $post_or_order->ID )
        : $post_or_order;
    // Use $order exclusively below this point
}

Query Orders (HPOS-enhanced)

// Basic query (works on both backends)
$orders = wc_get_orders( array(
    'status'    => 'processing',
    'limit'     => 50,
    'orderby'   => 'date',
    'order'     => 'DESC',
) );

// HPOS-enhanced: meta_query
$orders = wc_get_orders( array(
    'meta_query' => array(
        array( 'key' => 'color', 'compare' => 'EXISTS' ),
        array( 'key' => 'size', 'value' => 'small', 'compare' => 'LIKE' ),
    ),
) );

// HPOS-enhanced: field_query
$orders = wc_get_orders( array(
    'field_query' => array(
        'relation' => 'OR',
        array( 'field' => 'total', 'value' => '5.0', 'compare' => '<' ),
        array( 'field' => 'shipping_total', 'value' => '5.0', 'compare' => '<' ),
    ),
) );

// HPOS-enhanced: date_query
$orders = wc_get_orders( array(
    'date_query' => array(
        array( 'column' => 'date_paid_gmt', 'after' => '1 month ago' ),
    ),
) );

See references/querying-apis.md for full query type documentation with advanced examples.

Synchronization Model

When HPOS is enabled with compatibility mode, data is kept in sync between the new tables (authoritative) and legacy posts tables (backup).

Setting	Authoritative	Backup	Behavior
HPOS on, sync on	wp_wc_orders	wp_posts	Dual writes, immediate sync
HPOS on, sync off	wp_wc_orders	None (placeholders only)	Full performance, no fallback
Posts on, sync on	wp_posts	wp_wc_orders	Legacy mode with async backfill
Posts on, sync off	wp_posts	None	Classic WooCommerce behavior

Key option: woocommerce_custom_orders_table_enabled (true = HPOS active). Sync option: woocommerce_custom_orders_table_data_sync_enabled.

Placeholder records: When HPOS is authoritative and sync is disabled, creating an order inserts a post with type shop_order_placehold to reserve the ID. This ensures post.ID == order.id invariant.

Conflict resolution (sync on read): Compares timestamps. If CPT update_time < HPOS update_time, assumes failed CPT write and overwrites CPT. If timestamps match, assumes direct CPT write and syncs to HPOS.

CLI Tools (wp wc hpos)

Command	Purpose
wp wc hpos status	Overview of HPOS settings and sync state
wp wc hpos enable [--with-sync]	Enable HPOS (optionally with compatibility mode)
wp wc hpos disable	Disable HPOS (must sync pending orders first)
wp wc hpos sync	Migrate/sync orders between datastores
wp wc hpos count_unmigrated	Count orders pending sync
wp wc hpos verify_data [--re-migrate]	Verify consistency between datastores
wp wc hpos diff <order_id>	Show differences for a specific order
wp wc hpos backfill <id> --from=<posts|hpos> --to=<posts|hpos>	Copy order data between stores
wp wc hpos cleanup <id|range|all> [--force]	Remove legacy data after migration

See references/cli-tools.md for full command documentation with examples.

Migration Checklist (Critical Path)

For large stores, follow the 3-phase approach documented in references/migration-guide.md:

1. Phase 1 -- Local testing: Enable HPOS locally, test all checkout flows with every payment method, test refunds, test subscriptions, test with sync on and off.
2. Phase 2 -- Staging: Copy production DB, run wp wc hpos sync, benchmark migration time, verify with wp wc hpos verify_data --verbose, audit third-party systems accessing DB directly.
3. Phase 3 -- Production: Enable sync with posts authoritative -> run CLI sync -> switch HPOS authoritative -> disable read sync via filter -> after 1 week stable, disable write sync.

Common Pitfalls

1. Never use get_post() / update_post_meta() for orders -- these bypass HPOS and write to wrong tables. Always use wc_get_order() and $order->update_meta_data().
2. Always call $order->save() after metadata changes -- but minimize calls (batch changes first). save() is expensive.
3. Direct SQL on wp_posts for orders will break -- use wc_get_orders() or WC_Order_Query. If you must write SQL, check OrderUtil::custom_orders_table_usage_is_enabled() and query the correct table.
4. Plugin compatibility declaration is mandatory -- WooCommerce will block HPOS activation if any active plugin has not declared compatibility.
5. Don't disable sync prematurely in production -- keep sync enabled until confident all flows work, then disable read sync first (via filter), then write sync after 1 week.

Audit Your Code

Search your codebase with these regex patterns to find code that needs HPOS migration:

Direct DB/post access:

wpdb|get_post|get_post_field|get_post_status|get_post_type|get_posts|get_post_meta|update_post_meta|add_post_meta|delete_post_meta|wp_insert_post|wp_update_post|wp_delete_post|wp_trash_post|shop_order

Admin screen functions:

post_updated_messages|do_meta_boxes|enter_title_here|edit_form_before_permalink|manage_shop_order_posts_columns|manage_shop_order_posts_custom_column

Most matches will be false positives. Check each for order-related usage.

Programmatic Synchronization

$synchronizer = wc_get_container()->get(
    Automattic\WooCommerce\Internal\DataStores\Orders\DataSynchronizer::class
);
$order_ids = $synchronizer->get_next_batch_to_process( $batch_size );
if ( count( $order_ids ) ) {
    $synchronizer->process_batch( $order_ids );
}

Disable Read Sync (production optimization)

add_filter( 'woocommerce_hpos_enable_sync_on_read', '__return_false' );

Apply this filter 6+ hours after switching HPOS to authoritative. It reduces overhead while maintaining write sync for safety.

References Guide

Need	File
Full database table schemas and column definitions	references/database-schema.md
Complete CLI command reference with examples	references/cli-tools.md
Advanced order querying (meta_query, field_query, date_query)	references/querying-apis.md
Step-by-step migration guide for large stores	references/migration-guide.md
Plugin compatibility patterns and code migration recipes	references/plugin-compatibility.md