diff --git a/load.php b/load.php
index a83daf0..785dbff 100644
--- a/load.php
+++ b/load.php
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@
 
 define( 'SQLITE_MAIN_FILE', __FILE__ );
 
+require_once __DIR__ . '/php-polyfills.php';
 require_once __DIR__ . '/admin-page.php';
 require_once __DIR__ . '/activate.php';
 require_once __DIR__ . '/deactivate.php';
diff --git a/php-polyfills.php b/php-polyfills.php
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..89d6d1a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/php-polyfills.php
@@ -0,0 +1,54 @@
+<?php
+/**
+ * Polyfills for php 7 & 8 functions
+ *
+ * @package wp-sqlite-integration
+ */
+
+if ( ! function_exists( 'str_starts_with' ) ) {
+	/**
+	 * Check if a string starts with a specific substring.
+	 *
+	 * @param string $haystack The string to search in.
+	 * @param string $needle The string to search for.
+	 *
+	 * @see https://www.php.net/manual/en/function.str-starts-with
+	 *
+	 * @return bool
+	 */
+	function str_starts_with( string $haystack, string $needle ) {
+		return empty( $needle ) || 0 === strpos( $haystack, $needle );
+	}
+}
+
+if ( ! function_exists( 'str_contains' ) ) {
+	/**
+	 * Check if a string contains a specific substring.
+	 *
+	 * @param string $haystack The string to search in.
+	 * @param string $needle The string to search for.
+	 *
+	 * @see https://www.php.net/manual/en/function.str-contains
+	 *
+	 * @return bool
+	 */
+	function str_contains( string $haystack, string $needle ) {
+		return empty( $needle ) || false !== strpos( $haystack, $needle );
+	}
+}
+
+if ( ! function_exists( 'str_ends_with' ) ) {
+	/**
+	 * Check if a string ends with a specific substring.
+	 *
+	 * @param string $haystack The string to search in.
+	 * @param string $needle The string to search for.
+	 *
+	 * @see https://www.php.net/manual/en/function.str-ends-with
+	 *
+	 * @return bool
+	 */
+	function str_ends_with( string $haystack, string $needle ) {
+		return empty( $needle ) || substr( $haystack, -strlen( $needle ) === $needle );
+	}
+}
diff --git a/tests/bootstrap.php b/tests/bootstrap.php
index 4aa4045..252eb72 100644
--- a/tests/bootstrap.php
+++ b/tests/bootstrap.php
@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ function apply_filters( $tag, $value, ...$args ) {
 }
 
 /**
- * Polyfills for php 8 functions
+ * Polyfills for php 7 & 8 functions
  */
 
 if ( ! function_exists( 'str_starts_with' ) ) {