WordPress is a powerful, user-friendly platform for building websites – but it‘s not a set-it-and-forget-it solution. Like a car or a house, a WordPress site requires regular maintenance to keep it running smoothly, securely, and at peak performance.
While this may sound daunting, the good news is that you don‘t need to be a tech expert to handle essential WordPress maintenance. By staying on top of a few key tasks and using some helpful tools, you can avoid common issues like security vulnerabilities, broken links, sluggish load times, and outdated content.
Think of website maintenance like brushing your teeth – it‘s not glamorous, but neglecting it can lead to big problems down the road. A hacked site, frustrated visitors, and poor search rankings are the digital equivalent of painful cavities.
On the flip side, a well-maintained WordPress site will run faster, rank higher, and provide a better experience to your audience. Plus, you‘ll have greater peace of mind knowing you‘re protected against threats.
Ready to get your site in tip-top shape? Let‘s dive into the 10 most important WordPress maintenance tasks and how to complete them.
1. Keep your WordPress core, themes & plugins updated
One of the most crucial maintenance tasks is keeping your WordPress software up-to-date. This includes the core WordPress installation as well as any themes and plugins you‘ve installed.
Why is updating so important? Each new version of WordPress contains fixes for security vulnerabilities that hackers could otherwise exploit to gain access to your site. Updates also often include new features, performance improvements, and compatibility fixes.
The same goes for themes and plugins. Developers regularly release updates to patch security holes, fix bugs, and maintain compatibility with the latest version of WordPress. Failing to update leaves holes in your site‘s security.
Whenever there‘s a new update available for your WordPress version, theme or plugins, you‘ll see a notification in your WordPress dashboard. To update, simply click the "Update Now" link. Be sure to backup your site before updating in case anything goes wrong.
I recommend checking for updates at least once a month. You can also enable auto-updates for greater convenience and security, especially for minor releases. Some managed WordPress hosts will handle core updates for you.
2. Remove unused themes & plugins
Over time, you‘ve probably accumulated some plugins and themes that you tried out but no longer use. While it‘s tempting to let them sit in case you want them later, unused plugins and themes can actually cause issues.
Unused themes and plugins, especially older ones, can contain security vulnerabilities that put your site at risk even if they‘re deactivated. They also take up space and can slow down your site.
That‘s why it‘s smart to delete any plugins or themes you‘re no longer using. You can always reinstall them later if needed.
Before removing a theme or plugin, make sure it‘s not needed by checking that:
- You didn‘t accidentally deactivate a plugin or theme you actually use
- The plugin isn‘t required by another active plugin in order to function
- Deactivating the theme won‘t break your site‘s appearance
Once you‘ve confirmed the theme or plugin is no longer needed, you can delete it by clicking the "Delete" link under the theme/plugin name in your WordPress dashboard.
I suggest auditing your themes and plugins annually and removing any unused ones. If a plugin or theme hasn‘t been updated by the developer in over a year, that‘s another sign it may be worth replacing for security reasons.
3. Keep on top of comment moderation & spam prevention
If you allow comments on your WordPress site, keeping up with comment moderation is a key maintenance task for both community engagement and security.
Responding to legitimate comments and questions from your readers shows that you value their input and want to interact with your audience. Prompt replies can spark further discussion and make your site feel more lively and engaged.
On the flip side, ignoring comments for weeks or letting spam overrun your discussions makes your site look abandoned and reflects poorly on your brand. A commenting section filled with unanswered questions and spam doesn‘t exactly invite further participation.
While the WordPress comment system includes some built-in tools for preventing spam, you‘ll still need to regularly check the comments on your posts and pages for any spam that got through or legitimate comments awaiting moderation. If you‘re overrun with spam, consider using an anti-spam plugin like Akismet.
I recommend moderating comments at least a few times a week, or daily if you receive a high volume. Make it part of your routine to scan for any comments needing a response or approval.
4. Find & fix broken links
Links are an essential part of any website, but they don‘t last forever. Sooner or later you‘ll likely end up with some broken links, meaning links that no longer work because the destination page has moved or been deleted.
Broken links are frustrating for visitors and make your site look sloppy and dated. They can also hurt your search engine optimization (SEO) by wasting "link juice" and potentially even being seen as a sign of a neglected, low-quality site.
That‘s why it‘s important to periodically check your WordPress site for broken links and correct any you find. You can use a free online tool like Broken Link Checker to crawl your site and get a report of any broken links. Some plugins will also scan your site and notify you of broken links.
When you find a broken link, you have a few options for fixing it:
- Update the link to point to the new URL if the page has moved
- Replace the link with a different resource on the same topic
- Remove the link entirely if it‘s not important to your content
- Redirect the old URL to a relevant new page using a 301 redirect (for links to your own content)
How often you should check for broken links depends on the size of your site. For small sites, quarterly or even yearly link audits may suffice. Larger sites with frequently changing content should scan for broken links monthly or even weekly.
5. Optimize your WordPress database
Every WordPress site relies on a database to store content, user information, settings, and more. Over time, that database accumulates clutter like spam comments, post revisions, and transients that can slow down your site.
Optimizing your WordPress database clears out that unnecessary data and reorganizes the remaining data for faster queries. This can give a noticeable boost to your site‘s speed and performance.
Before optimizing your database, always make a complete backup in case something goes wrong. You can then use a database optimization plugin like WP-Optimize or WP-DBManager to clean things up in just a few clicks.
I recommend optimizing your WordPress database at least 2-4 times per year for most sites. High-traffic sites or those with very large databases may benefit from more frequent optimization.
6. Clean up your media library
Media files like images, videos and PDFs are important elements of most WordPress sites. But if you‘ve been running your site for a while, there‘s a good chance your media library has accumulated some clutter in the form of unused files.
Removing unused media files frees up storage space on your server and can even slightly speed up backups and other maintenance tasks. It also makes it easier to find the files you actually need.
You can find unused media files in your WordPress dashboard under Media → Library. Delete any files you don‘t need or are no longer in use on your site. Use the list mode and sorting options to track down media files not attached to any posts or pages.
When deleting media files, double-check that you won‘t be leaving any broken images or links behind. You may want to search your site for the file name to ensure it‘s truly not in use. And as always, backup your site before bulk deleting anything.
I suggest spending a few minutes cleaning up your media library every month so it doesn‘t get out of hand. You can also use this time to upload higher quality images, add missing alt text, and replace generic file names with more descriptive ones to give your SEO a boost.
7. Audit & update old content
To keep your WordPress site fresh, relevant and optimized for search engines, it‘s smart to periodically revisit and update your old content. Updating content keeps it accurate, extends its lifespan, and can even give you an SEO boost.
When auditing old blog posts and pages, consider:
- Fixing any outdated information, broken links, or typos
- Adding new relevant keywords and optimizing titles/meta descriptions for search
- Interlinking to newer related posts you‘ve published since the original
- Refreshing images or replacing stock photos with original visuals
- Expanding or improving the content to be more comprehensive and valuable
- Promoting updated posts on social media to attract new readers
How often you need to update old content depends on your topic and niche. News-based or cutting-edge topics may need refreshing every few months, while evergreen content can stay relevant for a year or more.
I recommend updating your most important content at least annually and auditing all old posts every 2-3 years. Use your analytics data to prioritize updates to high-traffic posts and those that have declined in search rankings.
8. Schedule regular site backups
Backing up your WordPress site isn‘t glamorous, but it‘s one of the most important maintenance tasks you can do. Having recent backups ensures you can restore things to normal if your site ever gets hacked, infected with malware, or crashes due to coding errors.
You should backup your entire WordPress site, including your database and all files, before making any major changes like updating WordPress or installing a new plugin. But it‘s also smart to run regular backups on a schedule for extra protection.
Most web hosting providers offer some form of backup service, but you can also use backup plugins like UpdraftPlus or VaultPress. Store copies of backups both on and off-site for the best protection.
I recommend keeping daily backups for at least the past 7 days, with additional weekly and monthly backups. Automate your backup schedule as much as possible so you never forget.
9. Monitor site uptime & performance
To keep your WordPress site running smoothly, it‘s important to keep an eye on uptime and performance. Uptime monitoring alerts you if your site ever goes down, while performance monitoring tracks key metrics like page load time.
There are many tools available for monitoring WordPress sites, ranging from simple free uptime monitors to advanced performance tracking suites. Some popular options include:
- Uptime Robot for basic uptime monitoring and alerts
- Pingdom for more advanced uptime and performance monitoring
- New Relic for detailed performance insights and troubleshooting
- Google Search Console for monitoring site errors and search performance
The level of monitoring you need depends on the importance of your site. Business-critical sites may warrant 24/7 monitoring, while small personal blogs can usually get by with daily or weekly checks.
At a minimum, I recommend setting up uptime monitoring to alert you of any downtime and checking your site‘s speed and performance monthly. Use performance data to find and fix issues like slow pages, faulty plugins, or bloated code before they impact visitors.
10. Stay on top of SEO
Finally, maintaining your WordPress site‘s search engine optimization (SEO) is an ongoing task that pays off in the form of higher visibility and more organic traffic.
While SEO is a complex topic, some key WordPress maintenance tasks that impact SEO include:
- Keeping your content updated and relevant to target keywords
- Optimizing titles, headings, meta descriptions and images for target keywords
- Ensuring your site is mobile-friendly and loads quickly
- Interlinking related pages and posts
- Earning high-quality backlinks from other reputable sites
- Checking for and fixing crawl errors or broken links
- Creating an XML sitemap and submitting it to search engines
I recommend using an SEO plugin like Yoast SEO or RankMath to help optimize your WordPress site and get actionable tips and insights. Aim to spend a few hours on SEO each month for the best results.
Make WordPress maintenance a habit
Keeping your WordPress site well-maintained is an ongoing process, not a one-time task. By regularly tending to updates, security, performance, and optimization, you‘ll keep your site running smoothly and position yourself for long-term success.
If WordPress maintenance feels overwhelming, remember that you don‘t have to do everything at once. Start by picking a few key tasks like updates and backups, then gradually build your maintenance routine over time.
Use a calendar or scheduling tool to stay organized and break maintenance tasks down into digestible chunks. Consider delegating some tasks to team members or an experienced WordPress professional if you need extra help.
The time and effort you invest in WordPress maintenance will more than pay off in the form of a faster, more secure site that delights visitors and supports your goals. So don‘t neglect this essential part of being a WordPress site owner – your site will thank you!
