If you’ve created a custom filter in WordPress to skip the first post in the “podcast” category archive but are facing pagination problems, don’t worry – you’re not alone. The ‘offset’ parameter, although effective in limiting posts, can cause issues with pagination. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the process of fixing pagination problems associated with the ‘offset’ parameter.

Understanding the Issue

The initial code you’ve implemented works for displaying the desired number of posts and skipping the first one on the first page. However, when you navigate to subsequent pages, you may notice that the content remains the same as on the first page. This is because the ‘offset’ parameter interferes with WordPress’s default pagination functionality.

Solution: Using Two Hooks

To resolve this issue, we’ll leverage two WordPress hooks: pre_get_posts and found_posts. These hooks allow us to customize queries and ensure proper pagination handling.

Step 1: pre_get_posts Hook

The pre_get_posts hook enables us to tweak queries before they are executed. We need to apply the ‘offset’ only to the first page, allowing pagination to work smoothly on subsequent pages. Here’s an updated code snippet:

add_filter('pre_get_posts', 'custom_pagination_offset');

function custom_pagination_offset($query) {
if (is_category('podcast') && $query->is_main_query() && !$query->is_paged()) {
$query->set('posts_per_page', 4);
$query->set('offset', 1);
}
return $query;
}

In this code, we check if the query is the main query and not a paginated one. If so, we apply the ‘offset’ only to the first page.

Step 2: found_posts Hook

The found_posts hook allows us to correct WordPress’s query result count, ensuring that our ‘offset’ is considered for pages other than the first. Add the following code to your theme’s functions.php file:

add_filter('found_posts', 'adjust_offset_pagination');

function adjust_offset_pagination($found_posts, $query) {
if (is_category('podcast') && $query->is_main_query() && $query->is_paged()) {
return $found_posts - 1; // Adjusting the total post count for pagination
}
return $found_posts;
}

With this code, we subtract 1 from the total post count when on paginated pages, compensating for the ‘offset’ applied on the first page.

Further Reading

For a more in-depth understanding of custom queries using offset and pagination in WordPress, refer to the WordPress Documentation.

By following these steps and understanding the intricacies of the ‘offset’ parameter, you can ensure that your custom WordPress queries work seamlessly with pagination.