WooCommerce 10.4 was released on December 10, 2025, two weeks later than its original slot so it would not land during Black Friday and Cyber Monday. The Interactivity API version of the Mini Cart becomes the default, REST API requests get faster, HPOS order caching becomes a standard option and the Featured Product and Featured Category blocks are rebuilt around inner blocks.
The release lists 340 commits from 69 contributors and includes database updates. WooCommerce 10.4 raises the minimum WordPress version to 6.8, while PHP 7.4 remains the minimum PHP version. WooCommerce 10.4.1 and 10.4.2 followed on December 12, 2025.
The Interactivity API Mini Cart is now standard
The Mini Cart built on the WordPress Interactivity API is enabled by default in WooCommerce 10.4. It replaces the React based Mini Cart, which is still available for now but is planned for deprecation in a future release. WooCommerce cites smaller JavaScript bundles and better integration with WordPress interactivity patterns, and it asks extension developers who customize the Mini Cart to test against the new version.
Mini Cart customizations. Headers on many stores carry a customized Mini Cart, so this is where we look first. On staging we add, update and remove items from the header cart, test with any extension that hooks into the cart drawer, and confirm that free shipping notices, upsells and translated labels still appear before the client's store moves to 10.4.
Lazy loaded analytics namespaces speed up REST requests
The wc-admin and wc-analytics REST API namespaces now load only when a request needs them. WooCommerce says these controllers previously added more than 100ms to every REST API request and that stores can expect time to first byte improvements of 30 to 60ms on requests that do not touch those namespaces. Headless storefronts, mobile apps and third party integrations benefit most.
Headless and app connected stores. For stores that feed a mobile app or an external system through the REST API, faster responses are welcome, but an integration that relied on those classes being loaded could fail. We run each client's API integrations against a staging copy on 10.4, watch the logs for missing class errors and measure response times before and after.
HPOS datastore caching becomes a standard option
High Performance Order Storage (HPOS) datastore caching has moved out of experimental status. It is not switched on by default in 10.4, but WooCommerce now presents it as a standard feature that can reduce database load on stores with high order volumes. WooCommerce says it plans to enable it by default in a future release.
Turning on order caching. We only enable HPOS caching on stores that already run HPOS cleanly and have a persistent object cache in place. We switch it on in staging first, then work through order edits, refunds, status changes and any extension that writes order data, checking that each change appears immediately in the admin and in customer emails.
Featured blocks, checkout typography and accessibility in 10.4
- Featured Product and Featured Category blocks now use inner blocks instead of toggles, with new Category Title and Category Description blocks
- Cart and Checkout blocks get tighter font sizes and refined spacing across form fields, payment methods, summaries and buttons
- Product Collection carousels get larger focus areas, clearer navigation labels and buttons that stay visible on mobile and when zoomed
- Email templates use proper row headers and mark layout tables as presentation for assistive technology, part of ongoing WCAG 2.2 work
Rebuilt Featured blocks. Switching Featured blocks to inner blocks changes their markup, so we open every page that uses them on staging and check spacing, overlays and button styles against the live site. If a theme's CSS targeted the old structure, we update it before the release goes live.
API, rate limiting and agentic commerce changes in 10.4
- A new Customers v4 endpoint supports sorting by name, email, registration date, order count and total spend
- Store API checkout rate limiting now counts only POST requests, so switching payment methods no longer uses up a shopper's limit
- A GET endpoint returns individual shipping zone methods by instance ID
- Experimental Agentic Commerce checkout session routes and webhooks were added
- Pagination in the Variation and Product endpoints no longer returns duplicate results
Mini Cart caching and WordPress 6.9 fixes in 10.4.2
WooCommerce 10.4.1 was rolled into 10.4.2, released on December 12, 2025. It stops browsers from caching Store API cart responses that left the Interactivity API Mini Cart showing stale contents, reverts an HPOS sync on read optimization that triggered unnecessary order saves and affected plugins such as Jetpack Sync, removes PHP notices on fresh installs, fixes a MailPoet form conflict in block themes and fixes a Product Editor crash on WordPress 6.9.
Cart accuracy after updating. A Mini Cart that shows the wrong items costs sales, so we confirm stores land on 10.4.2 rather than stopping at 10.4.0. We also clear page and edge caches after the update and test the cart in a private browser window to make sure no stale responses remain.
WooCommerce 10.4 FAQ
Does WooCommerce 10.4 need a newer version of WordPress?
Yes. WooCommerce 10.4 requires WordPress 6.8 or newer. The PHP minimum stays at 7.4.
Is HPOS caching switched on automatically?
No. It is a standard feature in 10.4 but must be enabled by the store.
Can I keep the old Mini Cart?
The React based Mini Cart is still available in 10.4, but WooCommerce plans to deprecate it in a future release.
Moving a store to WooCommerce 10.4 and WordPress 6.8 or newer? Our support and maintenance plans cover the staging tests, extension checks and cache clearing a release like this needs. Have a question about your Mini Cart or HPOS setup? Contact us.
