{"id":16705,"date":"2026-10-26T10:29:49","date_gmt":"2026-10-26T10:29:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.24x7wpsupport.com\/blog\/?p=16705"},"modified":"2026-10-26T10:33:24","modified_gmt":"2026-10-26T10:33:24","slug":"the-content-vs-get-the-content-wordpress-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.24x7wpsupport.com\/blog\/the-content-vs-get-the-content-wordpress-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"the_content vs get_the_content in WordPress: The 2026 Difference Explained"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]<\/p>\n

Introduction<\/h2>\n

Two WordPress tags look almost the same. One is called the_content<\/code>. The other is called get_the_content<\/code>. They sound like twins. They are not.<\/p>\n

Pick the wrong one and your post body shows up as raw text. Paragraph breaks vanish. Shortcodes print as plain words. Blocks turn into odd HTML comments. It looks broken, and the cause is hard to spot.<\/p>\n

This guide explains the difference in plain language. You will learn what each tag does, what it leaves out, and which one to reach for in 2026. You will also learn how to get the best of both.<\/p>\n

What the First Tag Does<\/h2>\n

The tag named the_content<\/code> is the one most themes use. It prints the post body straight onto the page. You do not store the result. You do not echo it yourself. It just appears.<\/p>\n

It does more than print, though. Before anything reaches the screen, WordPress runs the content through a list of filters. Those filters do the real work. They turn line breaks into paragraphs. They run your shortcodes. They render blocks into finished HTML. They tidy up quotes and dashes.<\/p>\n

That is why a normal post looks right on the front end. The raw text in the database is not what you see. What you see is the filtered version.<\/p>\n

You will find this tag inside the loop in almost every theme. It sits in the single post template and the page template. Our guide to the WordPress loop<\/a> shows where the loop lives and how it works.<\/p>\n

Think of it as the finished product. It is the post body, dressed and ready for visitors.<\/p>\n

What the Second Tag Does<\/h2>\n

The tag named get_the_content<\/code> does not print anything. It hands the content back to you as a string. You decide what happens next.<\/p>\n

It also skips the filter list. That is the part people miss. The string you get back is close to raw. Paragraph tags are not added. Shortcodes are still written out as square brackets. Block markup still carries its HTML comments.<\/p>\n

If you echo that string straight to the page, it will look wrong. Not broken, exactly. Just plain and unformatted.<\/p>\n

So why does it exist? Because sometimes you need the text, not the display. You might want to count the words. You might want to search for a phrase. You might want to trim it to a short summary. All of that needs a string, not output.<\/p>\n

Since WordPress 5.2 the tag also accepts a post object. That means you can fetch content for a post other than the current one. Before 5.2 it only worked inside the loop.<\/p>\n

The Core Difference: Print Versus Return<\/h2>\n

Here is the shortest way to remember it. One tag prints. The other returns.<\/p>\n

Tags that start with the_<\/code> echo their value. Tags that start with get_the_<\/code> give it back to you. This pattern runs through all of WordPress. You will see it with the title, the excerpt, the permalink and the author.<\/p>\n

Once you know the pattern, the names stop being confusing. The “get” prefix always means “hand it to me.”<\/p>\n

This naming rule is worth memorising. It saves you from guessing at every new tag you meet. If a tag name starts with get, assign it to a variable. If it does not, expect it to print it for you.<\/p>\n

There is a second difference, and it matters more. The printing tag applies filters. The returning tag does not.<\/p>\n

In fact, the printing tag calls the returning tag first. It fetches the raw string. Then it runs the filters. Then it echoes the result. So one is built on top of the other.<\/p>\n

That is the whole relationship. One is raw material. The other is the finished page.<\/p>\n

Filters: The Part That Trips People Up<\/h2>\n

Filters are small functions that change content before it is shown. WordPress and your plugins register them. You rarely see them work. You only notice when they are missing.<\/p>\n

Here is what the content filters handle for you.<\/p>\n

Paragraphs.<\/strong> Writers press Enter. The database stores a line break. A filter turns those breaks into real paragraph tags. Without it, your post becomes one long wall of text.<\/p>\n

Blocks.<\/strong> Posts made in the block editor are stored as HTML with comment markers around each block. A filter reads those markers and renders each block properly. Skip the filter and readers see the markers.<\/p>\n

Shortcodes.<\/strong> A shortcode is a short tag in square brackets that WordPress swaps for real output. A filter does the swapping. Without it, the brackets print as text. Our full guide to shortcodes in WordPress<\/a> covers how they are built.<\/p>\n

Typography.<\/strong> Filters convert straight quotes to curly ones and fix dashes. Small touches, but they make text look professional.<\/p>\n

Plugin additions.<\/strong> Many plugins hook into this filter to add things after your post body. Share buttons and related post lists are common examples. Use the returning tag alone and those additions disappear.<\/p>\n

If you want to see which filters are attached on your site, you can inspect the filter list. Our introduction to WordPress hooks<\/a> explains what a filter is and how one gets attached.<\/p>\n

When to Use the Printing Tag<\/h2>\n

Use the printing tag any time you are showing a full post or page to a visitor. That covers most of theme development.<\/p>\n

Single post templates.<\/strong> The single template displays one post in full. The printing tag belongs there. It gives readers the formatted body with every plugin addition intact.<\/p>\n

Page templates.<\/strong> Pages work the same way. Content built in the editor needs the filters to render correctly.<\/p>\n

Custom templates for your own post types.<\/strong> If you built a custom post type and gave it a template, use the printing tag inside the loop. Our overview of WordPress custom post types<\/a> explains how those templates are matched.<\/p>\n

Anywhere a plugin expects to add output.<\/strong> If a plugin adds a rating box or a signup form below posts, it almost certainly hooks the content filter. The printing tag is what triggers it.<\/p>\n

The rule is simple. If a human is going to read the whole post, print it.<\/p>\n

When to Use the Returning Tag<\/h2>\n

Use the returning tag when you need the text for a calculation, not for display.<\/p>\n

Counting words.<\/strong> Reading time features need a word count. Fetch the string, count the words, divide by a reading speed. You never show the string itself.<\/p>\n

Building a custom excerpt.<\/strong> You may want a summary of your own length, trimmed at a sentence. Fetch the string, strip the tags, and cut it. Our guide to customising WordPress excerpts<\/a> covers the no-code route as well.<\/p>\n

Searching inside content.<\/strong> You might need to know whether a post mentions a certain phrase. Fetch the string and search it.<\/p>\n

Sending content somewhere else.<\/strong> A feed, an export file, or a custom endpoint may need plain text. Our explainer on the WordPress REST API<\/a> covers the endpoint side of this.<\/p>\n

Working with another post.<\/strong> Because the tag accepts a post object, you can pull content for a related post without changing the main query. That is handy for a related posts box.<\/p>\n

In all of these cases, nobody reads the raw string. That is why skipping the filters is safe.<\/p>\n

How to Get Filtered Content as a String<\/h2>\n

Sometimes you need both. You want the finished, filtered HTML, but you want it in a variable rather than on the screen.<\/p>\n

There is a standard way to do this. Fetch the raw string with the returning tag. Then pass that string through the content filter yourself. WordPress gives you a function for applying a filter by name. The result is the same HTML the printing tag would have produced.<\/p>\n

This is the right approach for a custom layout. You might be building a card with the body inside a wrapper. You need the HTML before you place it.<\/p>\n

Two cautions are worth knowing. First, applying the filter is not free. It runs every attached function, including plugin ones. Do not call it in a long loop over hundreds of posts.<\/p>\n

Second, never apply the content filter from inside a function that is itself attached to the content filter. That creates a loop that feeds itself. Your page will slow to a crawl or fail outright.<\/p>\n

Where you put this code matters too. Custom functions belong in a child theme or a small site plugin. Our comparison of the theme functions file and a custom plugin<\/a> explains the trade-off. Our guide to child themes<\/a> shows how to set one up safely.<\/p>\n

Before you edit any theme file, take a full backup or work on a staging copy first. Our walkthrough on setting up a staging site<\/a> and our guide to backing up and restoring WordPress<\/a> both cover this. Testing a content change on a live site is how small edits turn into long evenings.<\/p>\n

Common Mistakes and How to Spot Them<\/h2>\n

Most problems with these two tags look the same from the front end. Here is how to tell them apart.<\/p>\n

Your post is one long block of text.<\/strong> Paragraph breaks are gone. This is the classic sign that you used the returning tag and echoed it. The paragraph filter never ran.<\/p>\n

Square brackets appear in the post.<\/strong> You can see the shortcode name in plain text. Same cause. The shortcode filter never ran.<\/p>\n

Strange HTML comments show up.<\/strong> You see markers naming each block. That is unrendered block markup. The block filter never ran.<\/p>\n

Plugin boxes have vanished.<\/strong> Share buttons or related posts no longer appear under your content. They were attached to the filter you skipped.<\/p>\n

The page echoes a number instead of text.<\/strong> This happens when a function returns something unexpected and you print it directly. Check what your function actually hands back.<\/p>\n

Nothing prints at all.<\/strong> Check that you are inside the loop. Both tags rely on the current post being set. Outside the loop, there is no current post to read.<\/p>\n

Putting It All Together<\/h2>\n

The difference comes down to two things. One tag prints, the other returns. One applies the content filters, the other does not.<\/p>\n

Use the printing tag when a visitor is reading a full post or page. It gives you paragraphs, blocks, shortcodes and every plugin addition, with no extra work.<\/p>\n

Use the returning tag when you need the text as data. Word counts, custom summaries, searches and exports all fit here.<\/p>\n

When you need filtered HTML in a variable, fetch the raw string and apply the content filter yourself. Just keep it out of tight loops, and never call it from inside a content filter.<\/p>\n

Get this right and a whole class of odd theme bugs disappears. Posts stop looking half-finished. Plugin output comes back. Your templates behave the way you expected.<\/p>\n

Theme and template work can still get messy, especially on an older site with a long plugin list. If a template is not behaving and you would rather not dig through it yourself, our team can take a look. Visit 24×7 WP Support<\/a> and tell us what the page is doing. We work on WordPress theme development, custom code and maintenance every day, and we are happy to help.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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