The short answer: WP-CLI is WordPress on the command line. Instead of opening the dashboard and clicking, you type wp plugin update --all and it is done. On our hosting servers the wp command is already installed for accounts with SSH access: you do not need to install anything.
We checked on the server: the command exists and is the WP-CLI that ships with the WordPress tool in cPanel (version 2.12.0 when we measured it). You need an account with SSH or the cPanel Terminal. Not every account has command-line access: it depends on the account. How to log in is in SSH access.
Before the first command
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Take a backup. These commands change files and the database. What to copy is in what to back up before updating. A quick database copy is wp db export copy.sql.
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Go to the site folder, the one containing wp-config.php. From any other folder, say where it is with --path=/path/to/site.
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Confirm with two commands: wp core version prints the WordPress version and wp --info shows, among other things, the PHP the command will use.
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The PHP may not be the one your site uses. WP-CLI uses the account’s command-line PHP. To use another one, call it on purpose, for example /opt/alt/php82/usr/bin/php /usr/local/bin/wp --version. The case is explained in the SSH PHP version.
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The commands you will use most
| To do this |
Command |
Note |
| See whether a new WordPress version exists |
wp core check-update |
Only shows. Changes nothing. |
| Update WordPress |
wp core update |
Back up first. See Updating WordPress. |
| Check whether WordPress files were altered |
wp core verify-checksums |
Compares them with the official files. Useful after a security problem. |
| List plugins, showing the ones with an update |
wp plugin list --update=available |
Without the option it lists all of them. |
| Update every plugin |
wp plugin update --all |
If a plugin breaks the site, the next command helps. |
| Deactivate a plugin without the dashboard |
wp plugin deactivate plugin-name |
The name is the “name” column of wp plugin list. See Disabling plugins. |
| Swap an address across the whole database |
wp search-replace 'https://old' 'https://new' --dry-run |
With --dry-run it only shows what would change. Repeat without it to apply. See Moving WordPress to a new domain. |
| Rebuild the permanent links |
wp rewrite flush |
When pages return 404 after a change. |
| Run overdue scheduled tasks |
wp cron event run --due-now |
See Swapping WP-Cron for a real cron job. |
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Never type a password on the command line. Whatever you type stays in the shell history. To reset a user’s password use the WordPress recovery e-mail or the WordPress dashboard.
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Look before you act: --dry-run wherever it exists, and wp plugin list --update=available before wp plugin update --all. If you prefer a screen, the WordPress tool in cPanel does the same: The WordPress tool in cPanel.
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WP-CLI is third-party software and the commands are yours. If one goes wrong, the way back is restoring the backup. How far our support goes is in How far our support goes.
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A command returned an error you do not understand? Open a ticket with the command and the full reply.
Open a support ticket
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