Managing scheduled tasks with WP-CLI

WordPress uses a system called WP-Cron to run scheduled background tasks: sending emails, checking for updates, clearing old data, and anything else that needs to happen on a schedule. By default, these tasks run when someone visits your site. WP-CLI lets you list pending tasks, see when they are due, and run them immediately without waiting for a visitor.

A note about Web60 server cron

Web60 runs WP-Cron on a server-level schedule so tasks fire reliably even on low-traffic sites. This is better than relying on visitor-triggered cron. You do not need to configure this. It is already set up for you.

Command reference

Command	What it does
wp cron event list	Lists all scheduled WP-Cron events with their hook name, next run time, and recurrence
wp cron event run <hook>	Runs a specific cron event immediately by its hook name
wp cron event run --due-now	Runs all events that are currently due
wp cron event delete <hook>	Removes a scheduled event permanently
wp cron schedule list	Lists all registered cron schedules (hourly, daily, etc.) and their intervals
wp cron test	Tests whether WP-Cron is working correctly on your site

Running a specific event immediately

Sometimes you want to trigger a scheduled task right now instead of waiting for it to run on its own. For example, you might want to manually trigger a backup plugin's scheduled task during testing.

1. List all scheduled events to find the hook name:

wp cron event list

2. Find the event you want to run and note its hook name from the first column.

3. Run the event immediately:

wp cron event run <hook>

The event will execute straight away and you will see a confirmation message.

Need help?

If you have questions about scheduled tasks, visit our support page or email hello@smarthost.ie.