How to Update WordPress: Step by Step Guide

Once your is up and running, you need to do a regular to keep it running.

This is why updating your WordPress site is crucial. Ignoring the update message that appears in the control panel can lead to compatibility issues, malfunctions, or even a complete site crash.

Fixing such problems is difficult, so it is better to take preventative measures beforehand.

Fortunately, there are four ways to update WordPress safely, which we will introduce to you in this article.

Apart from WordPress core update, we will cover how to update themes, plugins and database. In this way, your website will be free from any malware or other cyber attacks.

Why update WordPress to the latest version

As with any other software, an update will ensure that WordPress users can improve their sites with new features, improvements, and bug fixes.

If you don’t update your WordPress, the site will perform less efficiently and visitors won’t want to explore it. As a result, the website will have less traffic, which is not desirable in the long run.

Also, there are other advantages of upgrading:

• better security. Older versions of WordPress are more likely to have security vulnerabilities. Implement security updates to prevent hackers from stealing sensitive data.
• Speed. Installing a new version of WordPress can speed up the site. As a result, it will be more responsive across different browsers and devices, encouraging visitors to stay longer and potentially come back in the future.
• Compatibility. The new version of WordPress will make your site compatible with plugins and themes. In this way, you will not have problems installing other features that extend the functionality of your site.
• functionality. WordPress updates come with new or improved features. There will be more options and tools to scale your site.

Before upgrade

Before upgrading to the latest version of WordPress, it is essential to prepare for any potential bugs.

Remember that these updates will affect your site’s files and database.

Here’s a quick checklist to review before updating a WordPress site:

• Read the update notice. Find out what the latest update includes in the WordPress changelog. They can be new features or security patches.
• Check the support forums. See what others are saying about the latest version of WordPress and if it contains bugs or glitches. Decide if you need to update now or wait a while. As a general rule, prioritize security updates.
• . Backups prevent permanent data loss and serve as a backup plan if an error occurs while modifying or updating the website. Make sure you can restore your site.
• Turn off caching. Sometimes caching plugins do not recognize if a WordPress installation is taking place, which can make the process difficult. Clear WordPress cache and disable caching plugins first.
• Disable other plugins. Some WordPress updates are not compatible with certain plugins. This may cause the website to be inaccessible. Disable plugins and extensions to install the update.

How to Update WordPress: 4 Easy Methods

If this is your first time updating WordPress core, don’t worry. We’ll show you how to update a WordPress site safely using four different methods, both automatically and manually.

1. Update WordPress via Admin Panel

This is one of the easiest ways to update your site to the latest version of WordPress. With a single click, you can perform the manual update and the installation process will only take a few minutes.

All you have to do is log into your WordPress admin panel. Then, check if there is a new version of WordPress on the top page.

click on please update now to start updating the website. The page will open updateswhere you will have to press the button again Update now.

For minor updates, the final message will appear along with the plugin and theme update options.

Instead, for major updates you’ll see a splash screen with a detailed summary of what’s been updated.

Now you can update all your themes and plugins to make sure they are compatible with the latest version of WordPress.

professional tip

You can also download the latest version of the WordPress update from the hPanel. Once you have access to your account, simply go to Board under the section wordpress.

Scroll down and you will see the option Install the latest version of WordPress. Click on the button To update to start the update process.

2. Update WordPress manually via FTP

Another way to update WordPress securely, if you can’t do it through the WordPress dashboard, is via FTP.

You can use an FTP client like or the File Manager from the control panel of your hosting. For this method, you need access to your WordPress root directory.

You will need to replace the old WordPress core files –wp-includes Y wp-admin– for the new ones. To update your WordPress website using FileZilla, follow these steps:

1. Download and unzip the ZIP file.
2. Access the extracted folder and delete the file wp-config-sample.php and the folder wp-content so as not to lose any important data.
3. or your preferred FTP client.
4. Search the directories wp-includes Y wp-admin on the right side of the panel (Wemoto Site) and right-click Erase to remove them.
5. In the Local Site -the left part of the panel- select the new folders wp-includes Y wp-adminthen choose upload.
6. Upload the rest of the unzipped WordPress files from your computer to the web hosting directory. Overwrite the old WordPress files by uploading the new ones to the server. When the confirmation message appears Destination file already existsselect the options Always use this action Y Apply only to the current queue.
7. When all the files are uploaded, go to yoursite.com/wp-admin/upgrade.php/ to check if you have successfully performed WordPress updates via FTP for your website.

Don’t rush to replace everything within the WordPress root directory. You can easily break your site if you do something wrong, so follow the tutorial carefully.

3. Update WordPress via WP-CLI

If you are reading this section of the tutorial, you probably already have your WordPress root directory in the folder public_html.

When everything is set up, perform the following steps to safely update your WordPress site to the latest version:

1. Once you have access to your SSH account, use the command CD to change to the WordPress root directory using the following line:
   cd public_html
   To list the contents of your directory, type the command ls or write cd ~ to change your directory to home.
2. Enter the following command to check if the latest version of WordPress is ready to be updated:
   wp core check update
3. If there is a new version of WordPress available, you will see a message similar to:
   +———+————-+————————- ————————————–+ | version | update_type | package_url | +———+————-+————————- ————————————–+ | #.#.# | minor | https://downloads.wordpress.org/release/wordpress-#.#.#.zip | | #.#.# | major | https://downloads.wordpress.org/release/wordpress-#.#.#.zip | +———+————-+————————- ————————————–+
4. If no updates are available, you’ll see this message instead:
   Success: WordPress updated successfully.
5. To start the update, run the following line:
   wp core update
6. Wait for the process to complete and your WordPress website will update automatically.

Now that you know how to update core files via WP-CLI, it’s time to update your database. Run the following commands to update WordPress plugins and themes:

wp core update-db wp theme update –all p plugin update –all

When the program finishes the update process, run the above commands again to confirm that everything has been updated successfully. It should look like this:

4. Update WordPress automatically

WordPress will by default update your site whenever there are minor updates, such as maintenance and stability updates.

Depending on your hosting provider, you can enable automatic updates for major updates. Updating your WordPress website involves a lot of technicalities, but with this method, you can do it automatically like .

You can also enable automatic updates by adding a line of code to the file wp-config.php. Follow the next steps:

1. Log in to hPanel and go to file manager in the section Records.
2. Once you are in the folder public_htmlscroll down and select the file wp-config.php.
3. Press the button Edit found in the top menu.
4. Add or change the following line:
   define(‘WP_AUTO_UPDATE_CORE’, true);
5. Lastly, click on Save. This is how you safely update WordPress to the latest version.

How to Update WordPress Themes and Plugins

After updating the core WordPress files, don’t forget to update the theme and plugins as well. If you don’t, technical and operational errors can affect the functionality of your website.
It is important that you check all plugins and themes regularly, so you know which ones require an immediate update. If you update them late, it will be more difficult to synchronize the functions of your website, which increases the risk of possible crashes.

Before upgrading, please test and check that the upgraded version does not cause any issues on your website.

To update plugins and themes, click Desktop -> Updates. This will take you to the update screen. Here you will find all the plugins and themes that already have a newer version.

Brand Select all to update them all at once or do it one by one by selecting the specific plugins and themes you want to update. However, be careful when you choose to update all plugins at once, as it will use up a lot of your plan’s resources and could slow down your website.

Although the process involves the same steps, you will need to update your plugins separately from your themes. Make sure to update your caching plugin first to avoid complications.

Once you’re done, open a live preview of your site to see if the updates were successful.

In some cases, you may…