Check Your WordPress Version
Have you ever wanted to know what version of WordPress you or another website is running? It can be done in a variety of ways!
If you have access to your admin login or site files, it’s easiest to find your WordPress version, but even if you don’t, there are workarounds.
Try one of these simple techniques to figure out what version of WordPress you’re running so you can upgrade, debug a problem, or just find out what version of WordPress someone else is using.
It usually only takes a few minutes and a little effort to discover this vital information!
Contents Table of Contents
Why is it important to know what version of WordPress you’re using?
Check the Admin Area as a method.
Access the version.php file through the frontend of your website. Using WP-CLI as a file method
Do you prefer to see the video version of How to Remove Version Information From Your WordPress Site?
Why is it important to know what version of WordPress you’re using?
You might be asking why you should care about the WordPress version you’re using. Why should you be concerned about something so insignificant?
It’s very critical to keep your website up to date at all times. In 2019, 49% of hacked WordPress sites were running on an old version. Exploits are commonly used by hackers to enter websites. Exploits are flaws that are quickly patched and only work if you forget to update your website. Keeping WordPress up to date is the greatest way to avoid being hacked.
Updates to WordPress’ security
There are incompatibilities to be concerned about as well. Some plugins will not work with the most recent version of WordPress, while others will break if your version is outdated. Plugins may rely on features and functions that are added and removed when WordPress upgrades.
When installing a plugin, make sure your site’s core version is up to date to ensure that everything runs well.
If something goes wrong with your site and it stops loading, displays an odd error, or throws the white screen of death, identifying the problem may involve knowing what version you were using, something you probably don’t know off the top of your head.
Finally, there may be times when you need to know what WordPress version another person is using. For example, if you’re dealing with a client, you might want to check to see if their website is up to date so you can assist them in resolving this security issue as soon as possible.
These issues are less of a concern now that WordPress auto-updates, but it’s still a good idea to check if you haven’t done so in a while.
Have you ever wondered what WordPress version you or another website is running? These are the simplest methods… even if you don’t have an admin account.
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1. Approach: Check the Admin Area
If you have access to your website’s backend, this is the simplest and most accurate way to figure out what version of WordPress you’re using.
Several locations in the admin dashboard will show you the current installed version or inform you if your site is out of date.
Step 1: Right Lower Corner
You can find the version number on any page in the backend while you’re logged into WordPress. You should be able to see it in the bottom right corner. If you still can’t find it, try heading to the dashboard’s main page.
There are plenty of other sources to check what version of WordPress you’re running if you can’t locate it.
Step 2: Box “At a Glance”
You should be directed to the admin dashboard’s Home page as soon as you log in, where you’ll see the “At a Glance” box, which displays information like posts, pages, comments, and the currently installed theme. At the bottom, you’ll also see your WordPress version listed.
Dashboard to check WordPress version number
In the WordPress dashboard, look for the version number.
You may have removed it (or downloaded a plugin that does), installed a custom admin theme, or are using a very old version of WordPress if you don’t see the “At a Glance” box.
Step 3: Go to the “Updates” screen.
You may also go to Dashboard > Updates, which will either prompt you to upgrade if you’re running an earlier version of WordPress or tell you that you already have the most recent version installed.
The drawback is that if you have an outdated version loaded, it will not tell you what version you have. It simply asks you to update.
screen for updating wordpress
Step 4: “About WordPress” on the WordPress update screen The “About WordPress” screen can be accessed by hovering your mouse over the WordPress logo in the top left corner and selecting the first menu option. Even if you haven’t upgraded to the most recent version of WordPress, the version number and information about the change will be prominently displayed at the top.
Version of WordPress to check: Concerning the WordPress screen
Concerning the WordPress screen
That’s all the ways to locate the WordPress version number in the dashboard, but it’s also worth mentioning that if you haven’t done so before, you’ll notice a nag at the top of every backend screen encouraging you to do so.
If all you care about is staying current, search for that notification or go to Dashboard > Updates to see if there are any new versions available.
2. Method: Through Your Website’s Frontend
What if you can’t get into your admin area and need version information for troubleshooting, or if you want to know what WordPress version another WordPress website is operating on? The version number may be found in the source code of a website and on specific secret pages.
Because many webmasters take steps to keep this information secret, this won’t work on all sites; it’ll only work on those that haven’t changed the default settings. You may need to use a different strategy if you’ve already taken security measures to protect yourself.
Page Source (Step 1)
To begin, go to any page on the site you’re checking (although the homepage is best), then right-click and select “View page source” or “View Source” from your browser’s menu. It will open a new tab with the HTML and CSS for the page. To use the search tool, use ctrl+F.
You have a few alternatives from here. Normally, the “generator” tag will explicitly state the version of WordPress the site is running, although some newer themes may block this.
Instead, look under the “link rel=’stylesheet'” sections for “?ver=”. A line ending in “?ver=x.x.x” should appear. The figures refer to the WordPress version.
Source code for the WordPress version
Because themes and plugins might store their version information here as well, this method isn’t always reliable. Check to see if you’re searching in the correct section of the code.
Step 2: Read the Readme on the Website
Adding “/readme.html” to the end of the web address is another option that only works on earlier WordPress versions. This will prominently display the presently installed version, but it will only function on websites that are already out of date.
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The page will still load and display the regular information if the website is new enough, but the version number will be missing.
html readme for wordpress
Step 3: Access the RSS feed The last and most dependable option is to use the WordPress Readme HTML. Simply append /feed to the end of the URL of the site. To bring up page search, press ctrl+F and enter in “generator.” Near the top of the page, you’ll discover it.
“generator>https://wordpress.org/?v=x.x.x/generator>” will be displayed here. And there you have it: your version number!
wordpress version of rss feed
Feeds via RSS Access the version.php file in WordPress version 3.
Directly accessing version php within your site’s files is the most dependable and accurate technique to check your WordPress version. To do so, your website must be live with a web hosting account so that you may obtain your FTP login credentials or access the internal files via cPanel.
Step 1: Download and install FileZilla.
You’ll need to download an FTP client to get started. These programs allow you to access the files on your website and even add new ones. Because it’s fully free and relatively simple to use, FileZilla is by far the most popular option. It’s also compatible with Windows, Linux, and Mac computers.
Connect to Your Website in Step 2
The next step is to use FTP to connect to your website. When you start FileZilla, you should see a screen asking for the host, username, password, and port.
Put your website’s domain in the Host box, followed by “sftp:/” (like the “http://” you use to access to websites through your browser). If you’re having trouble, try using “ftps:/” or just your domain name. You’ll need to use “sftp:/” if you’re using Kinsta servers.
login to filezilla
Login screen for FileZilla
All of the information you’ll need from your web host is the login, password, and port. Most hosts maintain information somewhere in their dashboard, so try going in on their website or contacting them and requesting your FTP credentials.
Kinsta users can examine under the Sites/Info part of the MyKinsta dashboard.
MyKinsta login credentials
Once you’ve gathered all of your information, enter it and click Quickconnect. Your site’s files and directories should show in the sections below in a few moments.
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Step three. Take a look at the version.php file.
Look for the wp-includes folder once you’ve added it to your website. To see the files and folders inside, click it.
version.php is the file you’re looking for. Double-click it when you locate it to open it. You don’t want to change anything; you’re only looking for a specific line of code.
Version php version.php file ftp access
The variable $wp-version can be found in that code. Press ctrl+F to search the file for that line, or scroll down until you see it. “$wp-version = ‘x.x.x;” will appear once you’ve found it. The number on the right represents your WordPress version.
After that, you can disconnect from FileZilla and close the connection.
Use the File Manager in cPanel as an alternative.
The most popular file manager used by web providers is cPanel, and using it to access your site is usually easier than using FTP.
This solution will not work at Kinsta because we utilize our own file manager, MyKinsta. If you’re hosting with someone else, they’re almost certainly using cPanel.
Logging into your web hosting account will normally lead you to cPanel. Because each host is unique, you can find more information in their documentation. You’ll also need your cPanel login details, which you can normally find by going to your host’s website and logging in.
Look for File Manager in cPanel once you’ve logged in. You’ll now see a structure of your site’s files and directories. Look for the file wp-includes/ and double-click it to open it. After that, go to version.php and look for the $wp version option. You can identify what version you’re running by the number next to it.
4. WP-CLI (WordPress Command Line Interface)
The WordPress command-line interface is a developer tool that allows you to run commands on your WordPress site remotely, similar to how command prompt software works on your computer. You don’t even need a web browser to use WP-CLI.
Installing WP-CLI can be challenging, especially as Windows PCs are only supported to a limited extent. Fortunately, several web hosting, including Kinsta, provide it by default.
The first step is to connect to your web server via SSH, or Secure Shell, a technique that allows you to perform instructions on your website remotely and securely. Here’s a step-by-step guide on getting started using SSH.
wp cli kinsta wp cli kinsta wp cli k
WP Command Line Interface (CLI)
To browse to the right directory, use the “cd html” command once you’ve connected to your server via SSH. Then type “wp core version” into the command prompt. The version information should be output from the command line. That’s all there is to it.
For new users, this strategy is not recommended, especially if you have other options. It’s the next best choice for obtaining your WordPress version number if you can’t connect to your site via FTP, log in to the admin, or access the site’s frontend files for whatever reason.
How Do I Remove Version Information From My WordPress Site?
You might be concerned after seeing how simple it is to obtain this critical information. One of the first things a hacker will do before attempting to penetrate your site is check what WordPress version you’re using – most exploits only work on outdated versions of WordPress, so they’ll hunt for easy targets where their tactics would work.
It’s impossible to completely hide your version from someone who is determined enough, as there are downloadable programs with more advanced detecting methods available. However, by shielding this information from hackers seeking for simple targets, you can dissuade them.
While this is a minor security risk at most — especially if your site is usually up to date — it is still not a risk worth taking. It’s a good idea to keep this information as secure as possible.
It only takes a few lines of code added to one of your theme files to remove the tags without having to install a plugin. To edit the functions.php file, go to Appearance > Theme Editor and double-click it. There’s no need to utilize FTP.
php editor functions
WordPress’s functions.php editor
Try the Meta Generator and Version Info Remover plugin if you want a simple solution that can be implemented in a matter of minutes. While manually adding code saves you from having to install yet another plugin, there are a few additional advantages.
Yoast, Slider Revolution, and WPML are just a few of the plugins that disclose your WordPress version in the source code. This plugin prevents this and ensures the security of your data.
Remember that masking your WordPress version, sometimes known as “security via obscurity,” is only a minor barrier for hackers. There are various things to consider while making a website secure, one of which is selecting a secure host with active and passive security measures.
These are 4 sure ways to learn what version of WordPress a site is running, whether you’re looking to see whether your site is due for an upgrade or debugging an issue.
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There are various ways to find out what WordPress version another website is running, whether you’re looking to see if your site is overdue for an upgrade, debugging a WordPress issue, or simply curious.
Logging into your admin and checking one of the sites we listed is the best and most reliable approach to find the version of your own WordPress site. You can find the version if you have FTP access or a host that supports WP-CLI.
Alternatively, whether you own the site or not, checking the source code or RSS feed may be faster.
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