One of many strengths of WordPress is its extensibility. You possibly can run every thing from e-shops and reserving techniques to huge WordPress multisites from one occasion of WordPress.
One other is that it’s a database and sturdy PHP-based programming language, which implies that working a bunch of updates on a website is remarkably easy.
On this put up, I’m going to current three alternative ways to bulk replace WordPress.
A fast phrase of warning earlier than beginning to take a look at this: Issues like misaligned fields or plugin conflicts might end in unintended outcomes, so for those who’re doing any large-scale updates, you should definitely again up beforehand.
Additionally, for the content material updates, it’s value working a small check. Ten or so posts as a tester is an effective approach to begin, earlier than working it via the whole website.
1. How To Bulk Replace Content material On A WordPress Web site
Easy Modifications To Current Content material
If you wish to make easy adjustments to current content material, similar to bulk change the creator, standing, or taxonomies on plenty of items of content material, one factor you are able to do is use WordPress’ pre-existing bulk modifying part.
From the edit posts/pages web page, you possibly can tick particular person posts and pages and choose “Edit.”
From there, you possibly can set all posts’ classes, tags, statuses, and different data shortly and simply. As soon as achieved, click on the “Replace” button.
Screenshot from WordPress, August 2025Please notice: It will substitute all classes, however tags can be added. That is in all probability the commonest approach of modifying content material, which you in all probability already find out about!
Importing And Exporting Content material
Let’s say you wish to bulk add WordPress content material on a WordPress web site.
The commonest model is that you simply wish to import a set of weblog posts, or certainly, you could have an inventory of merchandise inside a spreadsheet that you simply wish to import right into a system like WooCommerce; it is dependent upon the place you’re importing from.
For those who’re combining a WordPress export and importing it into one other weblog, one of the best ways is to make use of the default WordPress Importer plugin.
For those who’re shifting content material between WordPress websites, use the default WordPress Importer. It reads WXR (.xml) export recordsdata and may optionally obtain and import file attachments.
In case you are utilizing WooCommerce, then the very best plan of action could be to make use of the default WooCommerce product importer.
It’s fairly sturdy and may take a normal CSV, XML file, or spreadsheet and import it. You possibly can map these fields to WooCommerce fields, which is a little more work.
Screenshot from WordPress, August 2025For WooCommerce merchandise, use the built-in Product CSV Importer/Exporter and map your columns to product fields.
Must you be importing content material from a non-standard supply (like a CSV or a feed), a fantastic plugin to make use of is WP All Import.
For non-standard sources (CSV, XML, Excel, Google Sheets), WP All Import can map fields to any put up kind and even run customized PHP throughout import. Add-ons cowl ACF, Yoast, and WooCommerce.
It’s a freemium plugin, with the premium model permitting integrations with ACF, Yoast & WooCommerce. To speak via the facility of WP All Import is a weblog put up in itself. Nevertheless, I can share a typical utilization.
Say you want to replace all weblog posts with new standardised title tags, you should use the companion plugin WP All Export to export all put up information.
Then, inside Excel or Google Sheets, you possibly can change particular person values, after which use WP All Import to import the weblog posts again in.
2. How To Deal with Bulk Plugin Updates On A WordPress Web site
After all, behind the scenes – and one of the vital widespread duties with WordPress blogs – is ensuring that plugins are all updated.
Protecting plugins updated is a vital process in conserving your website safe and working easily. Fortunately, for those who solely have one website, it’s very straightforward to do a bulk replace.
Log in to your WordPress website as an administrator, and underneath Dashboard, there’s a heading entitled “Updates.” Click on it to take you to the updates display screen.
Screenshot from WordPress, August 2025Scroll down a bit, and it is best to have a checklist of plugins in the direction of the underside that want an replace. Equally to the majority modifying, there can be a checkbox subsequent to every aspect.
Choose all checkboxes for the plugins you want to replace (and – in all actuality – you’d wish to ensure you choose all plugins).
Click on “Replace Plugins,” after which all plugins can be introduced updated!
Your website is unlikely to interrupt even with numerous backups. Nevertheless, within the extraordinarily unlikely occasion the location breaks after updating a bunch of plugins, there are methods to recuperate, which you’ll learn within the article “How Do You Resolve A Plugin Battle.” Go to the log recordsdata and deactivate the plugin through FTP.
Alternatively, listed here are a couple of different strategies to do bulk updates efficiently:
- Replace in small batches (e.g. cut up by performance, or by letter). Replace, reload key pages, then transfer on.
- Again up and check on staging earlier than manufacturing.
- For those who use a upkeep dashboard like ManageWP, run Protected Updates (it creates a restore level, runs the updates, visually compares pages, and rolls again if one thing seems to be incorrect).
- WordPress Command Line Interface (WP-CLI) enables you to preview or replace plugins individually:
- Preview:
wp plugin replace yoast-seo --dry-run - Replace one:
wp plugin replace yoast-seo - Replace all (use with care):
wp plugin replace --all
- Preview:
3. How To Deal with Bulk Plugin Updates On A number of WordPress Web sites
That’s all effective for one WordPress website. Nevertheless, in case you are managing a number of WordPress websites, then it may be a bit time-consuming to deal with plugin updates on a number of WordPress websites.
Fortunately, I coated this in a earlier article, “ handle a number of web sites on WordPress.”
In that article, I shared plenty of WordPress upkeep dashboard providers that exist, which is able to let you log in and replace a number of WordPress websites from one singular location.
Listed here are among the hottest:
Though every of those platforms has premium choices that change with price and options, additionally they provide plugin and theme updates without spending a dime.
I take advantage of ManageWP, so when you join your website to ManageWP, it is best to see a dashboard with the variety of plugin updates you could do unfold over plenty of websites. Merely click on “Replace All” to replace all plugins on all installations. Alternatively you possibly can tick the checkboxes and “Replace” to pick particular person plugins to put in.
Screenshot from WordPress, August 2025.You too can filter by websites and severity of updates inside ManageWP. There’s a premium choice to do a “protected” replace, which is able to let you run an replace, test the location, and roll again if something breaks.
There’s a wide selection of how to hold out bulk updates inside WordPress. There are additionally command-like instruments like WP CLI (talked about above) to construct scripts to run on websites. Nevertheless, that’s value an article in itself.
To bulk replace all plugins in WP CLI, you should use this command:
wp plugin replace --allIt will replace all plugins on a person website and you may increase that to a script to run on a number of websites.
WP CLI is so highly effective and actually needs to be used for businesses to handle a number of web sites shortly and simply.
Wrapping Up: Bulk Updates For A Clean-Working WordPress Web site
WordPress makes it easy to deal with bulk updates, whether or not you’re tweaking content material, importing merchandise, or conserving plugins in test.
Throughout the built-in instruments and accessible plugins, there’s an answer for nearly each state of affairs. The secret’s to check adjustments in small batches and at all times hold a backup helpful.
With just a little prep, it can save you hours of handbook work and hold your website (or websites) working easily and effectively.
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