A year goes by fast in PHP land. Security timelines shift, WordPress keeps iterating, and suddenly that comfortable version you deployed on is the one holding things up. Here is how we’ll be handling the next wave of PHP transitions and, more importantly, what it means for development schedules, budget planning, and site performance.
Introducing PHP 8.4 for WordPress 6.7 and higher
PHP 8.4, the newest version of PHP, is available to Pagely customers. You’ll need to ensure your site is running WordPress 6.7 or newer. (Some WordPress plugins may not yet fully support PHP 8.4; remember that you can switch your app’s PHP version at any time through Atomic.)
PHP 8.1 heads to extended-support-only status in November
PHP 8.1 will be end-of-life at Pagely in November 2025, but we’ve partnered with Zend to offer extended support for PHP 8.1 when needed.
Over the next few days, Pagely will perform automated pre-testing of customer apps using PHP 8.1. Be sure you have the appropriate contacts set up for alerts in Atomic so that you have as much time as possible to prepare. For a quick guide to adjusting your account contacts for maintenance alerts, see: https://support.pagely.com/hc/en-us/articles/360058630471-Configuring-Account-Activity-Alerts
In early November 2025, we will switch customers’ apps either to PHP 8.2, or to PHP 8.1-zend, as needed. While our automated pre-tests can catch many issues, it is possible that when we switch your live site, undiscovered issues will surface. If we spot any such issues, we’ll add the Zend extended-support add-on to your account and switch the app back to 8.1. As this is related to the end-of-life of the software, this change applies to apps where “Do not automatically upgrade my PHP version” is set.
While our pre-scanning will detect many issues, every site is unique, and we cannot anticipate all possible errors. We encourage all customers to review their applications, and to switch them manually to a newer version of PHP in advance of this maintenance window. We recommend you test on a non-production copy of your site; for details on creating a staging site, review https://support.pagely.com/hc/en-us/articles/115001622571-Creating-a-Staging-Environment .
PHP “stable” switching to PHP 8.2
As part of the above, in early November, apps set to use the “stable” version of PHP will be upgraded from 8.1, to 8.2.
In early 2026, “latest” will switch from PHP 8.2 to 8.3; and “upcoming” will switch from PHP 8.3 to 8.4. We will reach out to customers with apps on those newer versions/tags closer to that cutover.
Lower Zend pricing
The Zend extended-support add-on is now only $25 per month. (Existing customers will have this rate adjusted automatically.) This makes it even easier to stay on PHP 8.1 if needed — Zend will provide extended support for PHP 8.1 until December 2027.
Action plan for site owners and agencies
- Update WordPress Core to 6.7 once released. Earlier adoption makes 8.4 possible.
- Review the October Atomic alert. If the report shows a fail, schedule remediation or accept the automatic shift to 8.1-zend.
- Remove deprecated PHP functions during the regular sprint cycle to avoid last-minute scrambles.
- Budget for Zend only while you genuinely need it, then request removal through Support.
- Confirm staging and production both track the same tag to avoid surprises.
