How to Install a Plugin in WordPress?

Go to Plugins > Add New Plugin in wp‑admin, find your plugin, click Install Now, then Activate. To undo at any time, go to Plugins, Deactivate the plugin, then click Delete.

Before you start

• Log in to wp‑admin as an Administrator. On WordPress Multisite, only a Network Administrator can install plugins. Site Administrators can activate only those made available.
• Check compatibility. On the Add Plugins screen you will see “Requires WordPress” and “Requires PHP”. Since WordPress 6.5, dependencies are shown and must be installed before activation.
• Get plugins from the WordPress.org directory or a trusted vendor. Avoid unverified downloads.

Step 1: Install in wp‑admin

From the WordPress Plugin Directory

1. In wp‑admin, go to Plugins > Add New Plugin.
2. Search for the plugin by name. Click Install Now.
3. If WordPress shows dependency prompts, install or activate those first. Then click Activate.

Undo: go to Plugins > Installed Plugins, click Deactivate, then Delete.

Deleting is not the same as deactivating. It removes the plugin's files, and many plugins also remove their own settings and stored data when they are deleted, which you cannot get back from wp‑admin. If you might want the plugin again, deactivate it and leave it installed, or take a backup before you delete.

Note: if WordPress asks for FTP or SSH credentials, it cannot write to the filesystem. Install using WP‑CLI or manual upload below, or open a support ticket and we will help.

Upload a .zip you already have

1. Go to Plugins > Add New Plugin, click Upload Plugin, choose the plugin .zip, then click Install Now.
2. When the installer completes, click Activate.

Undo: go to Plugins, Deactivate, then Delete, with the warning above in mind.

If you see “The package could not be installed. No valid plugins were found.” you uploaded a file that does not contain a valid plugin folder. Download the correct plugin .zip and try again.

Step 2: Install with WP‑CLI

This step only applies if you have SSH access to the server, which means a VPS or hosting with shell access enabled. Standard cPanel shared hosting does not include SSH or WP‑CLI, so use Step 1 or Step 3 instead.

WP‑CLI runs the official command line installer. It validates requirements and can activate in one go.

1. SSH into your server and change to your site directory so wp sees wp-config.php.
2. Install and activate by slug or zip:

   wp plugin install contact-form-7 --activate

   You can pin a version or overwrite an existing copy:

   wp plugin install wordpress-seo --version=21.6 --force --activate

3. On Multisite, activate network‑wide only if you are sure:

   wp plugin activate akismet --network

Undo: deactivate and delete in wp‑admin as in Step 1.

Step 3: Install manually by uploading the plugin folder

1. Unzip the plugin on your computer. You should have a single top‑level plugin folder containing the plugin files.
2. Upload that folder to wp-content/plugins/ using SFTP or your cPanel File Manager on Hostworld shared hosting.
3. In wp‑admin, go to Plugins, find the plugin and click Activate.

Undo: in wp‑admin Deactivate, then remove the plugin's folder from wp-content/plugins/. Removing the folder deletes the plugin's files, so copy it somewhere safe first if you may want it back.

If it does not work

• “The uploaded file exceeds the upload_max_filesize directive in php.ini.” Increase PHP upload_max_filesize and post_max_size, or install via WP‑CLI or manual upload. If you need us to adjust limits on Hostworld cPanel hosting, open a support ticket.
• “No valid plugins were found.” You uploaded the wrong archive, such as a theme or a vendor's full package. Obtain the plugin‑only .zip, or extract it and upload the correct plugin folder into wp-content/plugins/ then activate in wp‑admin.
• Activation blocked or the site errors after activation. Check the plugin's “Requires WordPress”, “Requires PHP” and any listed dependencies. If a fatal error occurs, use WordPress Recovery Mode from the email WordPress sends to log in and deactivate the plugin, then resolve version or dependency issues before trying again.

What next

For the full picture, including why an install fails and how the different methods compare, see our WordPress guides. For command line installs and management on your own server, see our VPS guides. If you are stuck at any point or need us to check permissions, open a support ticket and we will take a look.