WordPress Help

Install an older version of WordPress

Follow these steps if you want to install a previous version of WordPress. You may need to have an older version of WordPress to maintain theme/plugin compatibility, or for other reasons. To follow the steps below, you can use any FTP app you like, but here we describe installing WordPress with FileZilla.

Note: Because older versions of WordPress may be less secure, we recommend these steps only if there's no other way to maintain your theme/plugin compatibility.

  1. Download the .zip from the WordPress Release Archive.
  2. Connect to your hosting with FTP.
  3. Navigate to the folder where you want to install WordPress. This folder is called the WordPress root directory.
  4. Upload the .zip file.
  5. Unzip the file. (cPanel / Plesk)

    Note: If you don't have a way to unzip the file on your hosting account, you'll need to unzip the file on your local computer and then upload the unzipped wordpress folder.

  6. In FileZilla, open the wordpress folder and select all files and folders by pressing Ctrl + A for Windows or command + A for Mac.
  7. Drag and drop the selected content to the WordPress root directory (the red box shown in this screenshot).
    ALTEXT
  8. Create a MySQL database and user. (cPanel / Plesk) You need the database information when installing WordPress manually.
  9. From your browser, navigate to your domain.
  10. Select your preferred language, and select Continue.
  11. Make a note of the required database details, and then select Let's Go. By default, the database prefix is set to wp_.

    Note: You can find your database hostname if you do not know it.

  12. Enter the details for the MySQL database you created earlier, then select Submit.
  13. Select Run the installation.
  14. Complete the form by entering the following information:
    • Site Title is your WordPress site's title.
    • Username is used to access the WordPress Dashboard.
    • Password is used to access the WordPress Dashboard along with the Username.
    • Your email is where you receive any notifications you configure for your site.
  15. Select Install WordPress. You should see Success! confirmation message with your username.
  16. Select Log In. You can now sign in to your website with credentials set up in step 13.

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