Title: Custom database tables
Author: WordPress VIP Documentation
Published: December 29, 2025

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 1. [Databases](https://docs.wpvip.com/databases/)
 2. Custom database tables

#  Custom database tables

If necessary, custom tables can be added to [a VIP Platform environment’s database](https://docs.wpvip.com/databases/).

When adding a custom database table, use caution and follow best practices:

 * To prevent unexpected issues, all tables should begin with the `$wpdb->prefix`
   table prefix.

 * Use `[dbDelta](https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/dbdelta/)`
   as part of an upgrade routine to add/update the table.
 * Do a thorough analysis of the schema and indexes and validate against the queries
   being run to ensure they match up.
 * Add caching to queries where it makes sense.

Last updated: December 29, 2025