Chykalophia Docs

Learn how to update WordPress plugins safely, including what to do before you update and how to recover if something goes wrong.

Keeping plugins updated is one of the most important things you can do for your site's security and stability. But updating without preparation can occasionally cause problems. This guide walks you through doing it safely.

Quick summary

Before updating: take a backup. Then go to Dashboard → Updates, tick the plugins to update, and click Update Plugins — or update them one at a time from Plugins → Installed Plugins. If something breaks, restore the backup or deactivate the updated plugin.

What you'll need

Administrator access to your WordPress site
An up-to-date backup of your site (covered below)

On a managed care plan?

If Chykalophia manages your site, we handle plugin updates as part of your care plan — usually tested on a staging site first. You may not need to do this yourself. Check with us if you're unsure.

Step 1: Take a backup first

Never update plugins on a live site without a backup. If an update causes a problem, a backup lets you restore everything to how it was.

If your host (Flywheel, WP Engine, Kinsta) provides automatic daily backups, make sure one is recent. You can also trigger a manual backup through your hosting dashboard or backup plugin. See How WordPress backups work for full details.

Step 2: Check what needs updating

Go to Dashboard → Updates in your WordPress sidebar. This page shows all available updates — for WordPress core, plugins, and themes — in one place.

Review the list. You'll see each plugin's name, the version you have, and the version it's updating to. For critical plugins (your page builder, your store, your SEO plugin), it's worth a quick search to see if other users have reported problems with the new version.

Step 3: Update the plugins

On the Dashboard → Updates page, scroll to the Plugins section. Check the box next to "Select All" and click Update Plugins. WordPress updates them in sequence.

This is fine for minor version updates (e.g. 2.3.1 → 2.3.2). For large version jumps (e.g. 2.x → 3.x), updating one at a time is safer.

Good practice

After updating, visit your site's homepage, a key content page, and (if you have one) your store or booking page. A quick visual check takes a minute or two and catches obvious problems right away.

What to do if something breaks

Don't panic. Problems after plugin updates are fixable.

Identify which plugin caused the issue. If you updated one at a time, you'll know immediately. If you updated all at once, you'll need to deactivate plugins one by one until the site looks right.

Deactivate the problem plugin. Go to Plugins → Installed Plugins, find the plugin, and click Deactivate. This turns the plugin off straight away, without deleting it or its settings.

Check if the site is back to normal. If yes, the plugin update was the cause.

Contact us or the plugin developer. Report the issue. In the meantime, the plugin will stay deactivated until a fix is available.

If the site is completely broken and you can't access the dashboard, see Fixing the "white screen" error — or contact us and we'll restore from backup.

How often should you update?

We recommend updating plugins at least once a month. Security-related updates should be applied as soon as possible. If you're on our care plan, we monitor for critical updates and apply them promptly.

Common questions

What's the difference between a minor and major update?

Many plugins number their versions like 2.3.1. By common convention, the last number (2.3.1) is a minor patch — usually safe to update without worry. The middle number (2.3.1) adds new features. The first number (2.3.1) is a major release that often includes bigger changes and is more likely to need testing. WordPress doesn't require developers to follow this pattern, so check the plugin's changelog when in doubt.

Should I update the WordPress version at the same time?

It's safer to separate them. Update WordPress core and plugins at different times so you can easily identify what caused any issue. See WordPress updates explained for guidance on updating WordPress core.

A plugin says 'Untested with your version of WordPress' — is that a problem?

It means the plugin developer hasn't marked the plugin as tested with your version of WordPress (on the Updates screen, the same thing shows as "Not tested" next to "Compatibility with WordPress"). It doesn't necessarily mean the plugin is broken. But if the plugin is important to your site, check the plugin's reviews or support forum for reports before updating WordPress core.

Can I turn on automatic plugin updates?

Yes. On the Plugins page, each plugin has an "Enable auto-updates" link. By default, WordPress emails you when plugins update automatically, and since WordPress 6.6 it rolls back a plugin auto-update that crashes the site. This is convenient but still carries some risk — an auto-update can change how your pages look or behave without anyone noticing. We generally recommend keeping auto-updates off for major plugins and handling updates manually (or letting us do it).

Need a hand?

If you're stuck, email support@chykalophia.com and we'll help. Include your website address and a screenshot if you can.

How to update plugins safely