How Often Do You Update WordPress Plugins & Themes?

We offer to teach most of our website clients using WordPress to update its plugins and themes themselves. It’s typically not a difficult chore, but it is yet another recurring task on a manager’s or entrepreneur’s to-do list. For that reason, we’re hardly surprised when someone asks, “Can you handle it for us?

logo: WordPress updates - how often to apply or install updates to WordPress plugins and theme

WordPress is one of the most-used, most-convenient ways to deploy websites. Its code base is also huge, and updates are common to fix new issues, add features, and keep things secure. This is normal for a system of its size, scope, and public accessibility.

Such updates are released as needed and as they become available, not on a particular schedule. That means a manager or developer must monitor each website regularly for pending updates.

Also see: How to Apply WordPress Updates.

Answer: how often should you apply the updates?

If WordPress updates were only for adding features, one could justify not updating a site that doesn’t need those features. But it’s also about website reliability, squashing bugs, and improving security. Therefore, most updates should be applied as soon as conveniently possible.

graphic: high performance web hosting for WordPress websites.
Clients of External Design benefit from the option of the “Hands-Off Pro” plan, gold-standard managed WordPress hosting that includes routine updates to system software.

Our practice at External Design: a web manager or developer logs into our WordPress sites regularly to apply routine updates. But we also stay informed and, when industry news tells of a specific issue or vulnerability of concern, we update themes and plugins much more often.

About all those WordPress updates… how often do you apply them?

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How Often Do You Update WordPress Plugins & Themes?
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How Often Do You Update WordPress Plugins & Themes?
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WordPress security and feature updates are issued as needed, not on a schedule. Someone must monitor each website for pending updates. We show clients how to apply them, on request, but it's a recurring task many prefer to delegate. How often? Log in at least weekly even for non-urgent updates, and apply urgent ones ASAP.
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External Design
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