How to Update WordPress Manually and Automatically

Updating WordPress is a little like changing the oil in your car: nobody throws a parade for it, but skipping it can lead to an expensive and deeply annoying surprise later. WordPress core, themes, and plugins are regularly updated to improve security, fix bugs, support newer PHP versions, and add useful features. The goal is not to update everything with the reckless confidence of a toddler holding a marker. The goal is to keep your site current without turning your homepage into a digital haunted house.

This guide explains how to update WordPress manually and automatically, when each method makes sense, how to prepare safely, and what to do when an update decides to become dramatic. Whether you manage a personal blog, a company website, or a WooCommerce store with more moving pieces than a Swiss watch, a good update routine can save time, protect your data, and reduce unpleasant surprises.

Why Updating WordPress Matters

A WordPress website is made of several connected parts: WordPress core, plugins, themes, your database, media files, server settings, and occasionally a custom code snippet written three years ago by someone who has since vanished into the wilderness. Updating only one part while ignoring the others can create compatibility problems.

Regular updates help you:

• Patch known security vulnerabilities.
• Fix bugs and improve stability.
• Maintain compatibility with newer PHP and database versions.
• Improve performance, editing tools, and accessibility features.
• Keep plugins, themes, and third-party services working together.

That does not mean every update should be installed the second it appears. A small security patch is usually low risk. A major WordPress release, page-builder update, payment gateway update, or theme overhaul deserves more care. Your site should not be used as a live science experiment unless your business model involves surprise explosions.

Before You Update WordPress: Build Your Safety Net

The most important step in any WordPress update is not clicking “Update Now.” It is preparing for the tiny chance that “Update Now” becomes “Why Is My Website White?”

Create a Complete Backup

Create a full backup before updating WordPress core, a major plugin, a theme, or any eCommerce-related extension. A complete backup should include:

• Your WordPress files, including themes, plugins, uploads, and configuration files.
• Your database, which stores posts, pages, users, settings, orders, comments, and other important information.
• A copy stored somewhere separate from your hosting account, such as cloud storage or a local computer.

Many managed WordPress hosts provide automatic daily backups and one-click restore tools. That is helpful, but it is still smart to make a fresh manual backup before a major change. A backup from yesterday may not include today’s new product orders, contact form leads, or brilliant blog post draft about your cat’s emotional support responsibilities.

Use a Staging Site for Important Websites

A staging site is a private copy of your live website where you can test updates before they affect real visitors. It is especially valuable for online stores, membership sites, learning platforms, large publications, and sites built with custom themes or page builders.

On staging, update WordPress core, plugins, and themes. Then check your homepage, navigation, forms, search, contact pages, login process, checkout flow, mobile layout, and any important integrations. If everything works, repeat the update process on the live site.

Think of staging as a rehearsal dinner for your website. It is much better to discover that a plugin dislikes the new version of WordPress before your customers discover it while trying to buy something.

Review Compatibility First

Before updating, review the changelog for critical plugins and your active theme. Pay extra attention to plugins that handle payments, memberships, bookings, SEO, caching, security, translations, forms, and page building.

If a plugin has not been updated in a long time, has poor support, or is no longer compatible with your current WordPress version, do not blindly automate it. An outdated plugin can become the loose floorboard in an otherwise sturdy house.

How to Update WordPress Automatically

Automatic updates are ideal when you want WordPress to handle routine maintenance without requiring you to log in every week and play website janitor. They can reduce the time your site spends running outdated software, especially for security and maintenance releases.

Use the WordPress Dashboard for One-Click Updates

The easiest way to update WordPress manually from the dashboard is through the built-in update screen:

1. Log in to your WordPress admin area.
2. Go to Dashboard > Updates.
3. Review available updates for WordPress core, plugins, themes, and translations.
4. Create a backup before proceeding.
5. Click Update Now for WordPress core or select the plugins and themes you want to update.

During the update, WordPress may briefly place the site in maintenance mode. This is normal. For most small websites, the process takes only a few moments.

Enable Automatic Plugin Updates

WordPress allows you to enable automatic updates for individual plugins. This is usually safer than enabling automatic updates for every plugin on your site.

1. Go to Plugins > Installed Plugins.
2. Find the plugin you want to manage.
3. Click Enable auto-updates.

You can also use bulk actions to enable automatic updates for multiple plugins. A sensible strategy is to automate updates for trusted, actively maintained plugins that are not directly tied to checkout, memberships, custom workflows, or mission-critical functionality.

For example, a simple image optimization plugin or spam protection plugin may be a good candidate for automatic updates. A custom booking plugin, advanced page builder, or payment processor should usually be tested first.

Enable Automatic Theme Updates Carefully

Theme updates can improve security and compatibility, but they may also affect design settings, template files, or custom code. Go to Appearance > Themes, open the theme details, and choose Enable auto-updates if the option is available.

Be cautious if you have modified a theme directly. Updating the parent theme can overwrite those changes. The safer approach is to use a child theme for custom CSS, template edits, and functions. A child theme is less glamorous than a neon sign, but it protects your work when updates arrive.

Configure Automatic Core Updates

WordPress can automatically install certain maintenance and security updates in the background. Depending on your WordPress version, hosting environment, and configuration, you may be able to choose whether the site automatically installs only minor releases or all core releases.

For advanced users, WordPress core update behavior can also be managed through the wp-config.php file. Add these constants above the line that says “That’s all, stop editing!”

The setting above allows minor WordPress core updates, which is generally the default behavior for many installations.

This enables all core updates, including major releases. It can be useful for simple sites with reliable themes and plugins, but it is not always the best choice for complex websites.

This disables WordPress core auto-updates. Use it only when you have a reliable manual maintenance process. Turning off automatic updates without a schedule is basically putting a “Do Not Disturb” sign on your security maintenance.

When Automatic Updates Make Sense

Automatic updates are often a good fit for:

• Personal blogs with a lightweight theme and a few reputable plugins.
• Small business websites with stable functionality.
• Sites that have automatic backups and easy restore options.
• Plugins with strong maintenance histories and low risk of breaking customer-facing features.
• Security-focused plugins that release frequent patches.

Automatic updates are less suitable for:

• WooCommerce stores processing daily orders.
• Membership sites with subscriptions or protected content.
• Sites with extensive custom code.
• Websites using complicated page-builder layouts.
• Multisite networks and enterprise websites with strict approval workflows.

How to Update WordPress Manually

Manual WordPress updates give you more control. They are useful when the dashboard update fails, your hosting setup blocks automatic updates, your site uses version control, or you need to update WordPress in a carefully managed environment.

Manual updating should be done patiently. This is not the moment to update core files while answering customer emails, watching a game, and microwaving leftovers.

Method 1: Update Through the WordPress Dashboard

A dashboard update is technically manual because you choose when to start it, but WordPress performs the file replacement for you. This is the preferred method for most website owners.

1. Create and verify a complete backup.
2. Check plugin and theme compatibility.
3. Go to Dashboard > Updates.
4. Install WordPress core updates first if needed.
5. Update plugins and themes in small groups or one at a time for important sites.
6. Visit your website and test key pages after each major update.

Updating one plugin at a time may feel slower, but it makes troubleshooting far easier. When ten plugins are updated at once and something breaks, you have created a mystery novel. When one plugin is updated and something breaks, you have created a clue.

Method 2: Update WordPress Files Manually with FTP or File Manager

Use this method when WordPress cannot update itself through the dashboard or when you need to replace damaged core files. You will need FTP, SFTP, SSH, or your host’s file manager.

1. Create a complete backup of files and database.
2. Download the latest WordPress package from the official WordPress website.
3. Extract the ZIP file on your computer.
4. Connect to your server using SFTP, FTP, SSH, or file manager.
5. Delete the old wp-admin and wp-includes folders from the server.
6. Upload the new wp-admin and wp-includes folders.
7. Upload the new root WordPress files, replacing existing core files when prompted.
8. Do not overwrite wp-config.php, .htaccess, or your entire wp-content folder.
9. Log in to /wp-admin/ and complete the database update if WordPress requests it.
10. Go to Settings > Permalinks and click Save Changes to refresh rewrite rules.

Your wp-content directory contains uploads, plugins, themes, and custom files. Replacing it carelessly is like replacing every drawer in your kitchen because one cabinet hinge squeaks.

Method 3: Update WordPress with WP-CLI

WP-CLI is a command-line tool for managing WordPress. It is especially useful for developers, agencies, server administrators, and anyone managing multiple WordPress sites.

From your WordPress installation directory, you can check for available updates:

To update WordPress core:

To run database updates after the core update:

You can also verify WordPress core file integrity:

WP-CLI is powerful, but it is not a magic wand. Use it only when you understand your server environment, permissions, backups, and deployment process. A command typed confidently in the wrong directory can become a memorable learning experience.

A Smart WordPress Update Order

The order of updates can reduce compatibility issues. For a major maintenance session, use this general sequence:

1. Create and verify a backup.
2. Clone the live site to staging if possible.
3. Update WordPress core on staging.
4. Update the active theme and critical plugins.
5. Update remaining plugins one at a time or in small groups.
6. Test forms, search, login, checkout, emails, mobile pages, and performance.
7. Repeat the process on the live website.
8. Monitor error logs, update notifications, and visitor reports afterward.

For smaller routine updates, you may update a trusted plugin first, clear your cache, check the site, and continue. The important part is having a repeatable process rather than relying on memory and caffeine.

What to Check After Updating WordPress

An update is not finished when the progress bar disappears. It is finished when the site works.

Run a Post-Update Checklist

• Open the homepage in a private browser window.
• Check a few blog posts, category pages, and search results.
• Test contact forms and newsletter sign-up forms.
• Test account login, password reset, and user registration.
• For stores, test cart, checkout, payment, shipping, and confirmation emails.
• Review mobile pages and major browser layouts.
• Clear site cache, CDN cache, and browser cache if needed.
• Check for PHP errors, broken images, styling problems, or plugin notices.

If something breaks, do not panic-update five more plugins in response. First identify the likely cause. Disable the most recently updated plugin, switch temporarily to a default WordPress theme if necessary, check error logs, and restore a backup when the fastest safe recovery is more important than detective work.

Common WordPress Update Problems and Fixes

Stuck in Maintenance Mode

If your site displays a message saying it is temporarily unavailable for scheduled maintenance long after the update should have finished, the update may have been interrupted. Check your WordPress root folder for a file named .maintenance. Remove it carefully, then reload the website.

White Screen or Critical Error

A blank page or critical error often points to a plugin, theme, PHP version, memory limit, or custom code conflict. Enable debugging in a safe environment, check your error logs, and deactivate recently updated plugins one by one. If you cannot access the dashboard, rename the suspected plugin folder through SFTP or file manager to deactivate it temporarily.

Layout Problems After a Theme Update

Theme updates may affect CSS, templates, widget areas, block patterns, or page-builder settings. Clear all caches first. Then compare the live site with your staging backup. If custom edits were made directly to the parent theme, move those changes into a child theme before future updates.

Plugin Update Fails

Failed plugin updates can be caused by low disk space, incorrect file permissions, server timeouts, expired premium licenses, blocked external requests, or a hosting firewall rule. Check the WordPress Site Health screen, confirm that the server can reach WordPress update servers, and ask your host for help if permissions or server limits are involved.

Practical Experience: What Usually Works Best in the Real World

WordPress maintenance looks simple in theory: see update, click update, admire your responsible adulthood. In practice, the right approach depends on how much your website has to lose.

A personal blog with a standard theme and a handful of trusted plugins can usually use automatic core maintenance updates and selected plugin auto-updates. The owner should still review update emails and visit the website occasionally. Automatic updates reduce the chance that a small site quietly falls behind, but they do not replace attention entirely. A site can be technically updated and still have a broken contact form that nobody notices for six weeks.

Small business sites benefit from a hybrid model. Let WordPress handle routine security and maintenance releases, but schedule a regular weekly or biweekly maintenance window for larger updates. Before the maintenance window, create a backup. Update plugins in small groups. Check the homepage, services pages, forms, map, phone links, and mobile layout. This process takes less time than repairing a broken website after a customer points it out in a one-star review.

Online stores require more discipline. A WooCommerce update can affect inventory, taxes, subscriptions, shipping rules, payment gateways, email templates, and checkout behavior. For these sites, staging is not optional decoration. Test the update on a copy of the live store, including a test purchase, discount code, tax calculation, shipping selection, and confirmation email. Then update the live store during a lower-traffic period. Make a fresh backup immediately before the update because restoring a very old backup can erase recent orders and customer records.

Custom-built websites should treat updates as a deployment process rather than a button-clicking exercise. Developers should keep custom code in a child theme, a site-specific plugin, or version-controlled files. Direct edits to WordPress core, plugins, or parent themes are fragile because the next update can overwrite them without apology. The software is not being rude; it is simply doing its job.

One recurring lesson is that fewer plugins usually make updates easier. Every plugin adds functionality, but it also adds another compatibility relationship. Before enabling auto-updates, remove inactive plugins, replace abandoned tools, and ask whether each installed feature still earns its place. A plugin used once in 2022 to create a snowflake animation probably does not deserve permanent residency on a business website.

Another lesson is that backup quality matters more than backup quantity. A backup you cannot locate, download, or restore is not a safety net. It is a motivational poster. Test a restore process at least once in a staging environment so you know exactly what happens when things go sideways.

Finally, watch update notifications. Successful auto-update emails are reassuring, but failed-update emails are the ones that deserve quick attention. Set up a dedicated mailbox folder or alert rule for WordPress maintenance messages. The best update strategy is not fully manual or fully automatic. It is deliberate: automate the predictable tasks, test the risky changes, keep dependable backups, and verify that visitors can still do the things that make your website valuable.