The Lazy Developer’s Guide to Automatic WordPress Plugin Updates

Why Keeping Your WordPress Plugins Updated Automatically Matters

Knowing how to enable auto update plugins in WordPress can save you hours of manual work and protect your site from security threats. Here is the quickest way to do it:

Quick Answer: How to Enable Auto-Updates for WordPress Plugins

1. Log in to your WordPress dashboard.
2. Go to Plugins > Installed Plugins.
3. Find the plugin you want to auto-update.
4. Click “Enable auto-updates” in the Automatic Updates column.
5. Repeat for each plugin, or use Bulk Actions to enable auto-updates for multiple plugins at once.

That’s it. WordPress will check for updates twice per day and install them automatically.

Every WordPress plugin you run on your site is a potential entry point for hackers if it’s left outdated. A single unpatched vulnerability can expose your customers’ data, take your store offline, or get your site blacklisted by Google. Manual updates help, but they require you to log in, check, and click through every time a developer pushes a new release — and popular plugins can update almost weekly.

WordPress introduced native auto-update controls for plugins back in version 5.5, making this much easier for everyday site owners to manage without touching a line of code.

I’m Kevin Gallagher, founder of wpOncall, and after building and maintaining over 2,500 WordPress websites across fifteen-plus years, I’ve seen how automating plugin updates can be the difference between a site that runs smoothly and one that gets compromised overnight. In this guide, I’ll walk you through exactly how to enable auto update plugins in WordPress using every available method, so you can choose the approach that fits your comfort level and site setup.

How to enable auto update plugins in wordpress terms at a glance:

• how to stop auto update plugins in wordpress
• how to stop wordpress plugin update emails
• how to revert plugin update in wordpress

Understanding WordPress Background Updates and Their Importance

To properly manage your site, we need to look at how the entire WordPress update ecosystem is designed. WordPress handles several types of background updates automatically, but plugins require a bit of extra attention.

What are WordPress Plugins and Why Do They Need Updates?

WordPress plugins are essentially PHP scripts that extend the core functionality of your website. Because they are written by thousands of different third-party developers, their code quality, compatibility, and security standards can vary wildly.

Developers regularly release updates for three primary reasons:

1. Security Patches: Over 90% of WordPress vulnerabilities are linked to third-party plugins. When a security researcher finds a bug, the developer patches it and releases an update. If you do not update, your site remains vulnerable.
2. Feature Enhancements: Developers add new features, improve user interfaces, and optimize performance.
3. Compatibility: WordPress core updates frequently. Plugins must be updated to remain compatible with the latest PHP versions and core WordPress releases.

For a deeper dive into how updates keep your site operational, read our guide on Plugin Updates WordPress.

The Different Types of WordPress Updates

WordPress categorizes its updates into four distinct branches:

• WordPress Core Updates: These are divided into major releases (e.g., WordPress 6.7 to 6.8) and minor releases (e.g., WordPress 6.7.1 to 6.7.2). Minor releases focus purely on security and maintenance and are enabled automatically by default on almost all sites. Starting in WordPress 5.6, new installations actually default to enabling both major and minor core updates automatically.
• Plugin Updates: These modify your active and inactive plugins. They must be enabled manually or via code.
• Theme Updates: Similar to plugins, themes can be updated automatically on a per-theme basis from the Appearance dashboard.
• Translation Files: WordPress automatically updates translation files in the background by default whenever a new translation becomes available.

To understand how these background systems interact, you can read the official WordPress documentation on Plugin and themes auto-updates.

How Automatic Background Updates Work Under the Hood

WordPress relies on a system called WP-Cron to perform scheduled tasks, including checking for updates. By default, WordPress runs a background check twice per day (every 12 hours) to see if any new versions of your enabled themes or plugins are available.

When a visitor loads a page on your site, WordPress checks if any scheduled tasks are due. If a check is due, WP-Cron triggers an HTTP request to check the WordPress.org API for updates. If an update is found and auto-updates are enabled for that specific item, WordPress will download the package, put your site into temporary maintenance mode, install the update, and bring your site back online. This entire process usually takes less than three seconds per plugin.

However, on low-traffic sites, WP-Cron may not run reliably because it depends on visitor traffic to trigger tasks. Conversely, on extremely high-traffic sites, constant WP-Cron checks can cause unnecessary server load. In both cases, setting up a real system cron job via your hosting control panel (cPanel or custom dashboard) is highly recommended to ensure updates run exactly when scheduled without relying on page visits.

The Pros and Cons of Automating Your Plugin Updates

While automating your maintenance routine sounds like a developer’s dream, it is not without risks. Let’s weigh the benefits against the potential hazards to help you make an informed decision for your specific website setup.

The Benefits of Auto-Updates

• Constant Security Protection: The moment a patch is released, your site receives it within 12 hours, minimizing the window of opportunity for hackers. This is critical because automated bots often scan the web for newly disclosed vulnerabilities within hours of a patch release.
• Massive Time Savings: You do not have to log in to dozens of client sites every week just to click “Update.” This frees up valuable time to focus on content creation, marketing, or business growth.
• Better Performance: Your site automatically benefits from the latest performance optimizations, database indexing improvements, and bug fixes that developers release.
• Reduced Technical Debt: Keeping plugins updated incrementally prevents you from falling multiple versions behind, which makes future updates much more complex and prone to breaking.

The Risks of Auto-Updates

• Compatibility Conflicts: A plugin update might conflict with your active theme or another plugin, resulting in the dreaded “White Screen of Death” (WSD) or breaking critical site functionality like contact forms or checkout pages.
• Simultaneous Update Failures: If multiple heavy plugins try to auto-update at the exact same moment, it can exhaust your server’s memory limits, leaving your site stuck in maintenance mode.
• Lack of Pre-Update Testing: You lose the opportunity to review changelogs or test the updates on a staging site before they go live on your production environment. This is particularly risky for complex sites with custom integrations.
• Silent Failures: Sometimes an update doesn’t crash the site completely but breaks a specific feature (like a slider or a tracking script). If you aren’t actively monitoring the site, you might not notice the issue for days or weeks.

We have compiled a comparison table to help you decide which approach fits your workflow:

For a comprehensive breakdown of automated maintenance strategies, check out our resource on WordPress Update Automation.

How to Enable Auto Update Plugins in WordPress: The Dashboard Method

The easiest way to configure this feature is directly through your WordPress admin area. This method requires no coding knowledge and allows you to choose exactly which plugins you trust to update on their own.

Step 1: Navigate to Your Plugins Screen

Log in to your WordPress admin dashboard. In the left-hand sidebar, hover over Plugins and click on Installed Plugins. This will bring up the complete list of all plugins currently installed on your site, whether they are active or inactive.

Step 2: Enable Auto-Updates for Individual Plugins

Scroll through your list of plugins. On the far right side of the table, you will see a column titled Automatic Updates.

To enable auto-updates for a specific plugin, simply click the link that says “Enable auto-updates”. Once clicked, the text will change to “Disable auto-updates,” and a small sub-text will display when the next scheduled update check will run. This is ideal for lightweight, highly stable plugins like Akismet or classic editors where the risk of a breaking change is extremely low.

Step 3: Bulk Enable Auto-Updates

If you have dozens of plugins and do not want to click them one by one, you can use bulk actions:

1. Check the box at the top left of the plugins table to select all plugins, or check the individual boxes next to the plugins you want to automate.
2. Click the Bulk Actions dropdown menu at the top or bottom of the screen.
3. Select Enable Auto-updates.
4. Click Apply.

Troubleshooting Missing Auto-Update Links

If you do not see the “Automatic Updates” column or the links are missing, it is highly likely that your hosting provider has disabled this feature globally, or you have a constant defined in your wp-config.php file that restricts file modifications. Look for the following line of code in your configuration file:

define( 'DISALLOW_FILE_MODS', true );

If this constant is set to true, WordPress will hide all update and installation options from the dashboard. You will need to change this to false or contact your host to regain control over your updates.

To learn more about managing your plugins from the dashboard, read the official Manage Plugins guide. For a quick video demonstration of this process, you can watch How To Enable Auto Update Plugins In WordPress (FAST Method).

Advanced Methods: Code and Plugin Solutions

For developers managing multiple sites, clicking buttons in the dashboard is still too manual. Fortunately, WordPress provides robust code filters and configuration constants to manage updates globally.

How to Enable Auto Update Plugins in WordPress Using Code

By using custom PHP filters, you can bypass the database settings entirely and force auto-updates for all plugins across your entire site. This ensures that even if a user accidentally disables auto-updates in the dashboard, the code will override their action.

Enabling Auto-Updates for All Plugins via Filter

To enable automatic updates for every single plugin on your site, add the following filter to your theme’s functions.php file, or preferably, to a must-use (mu-plugin) file:

add_filter( 'auto_update_plugin', '__return_true' );

Using a must-use plugin is highly recommended because it cannot be accidentally deactivated when you change your WordPress theme. To do this, navigate to /wp-content/mu-plugins/ (create the folder if it doesn’t exist) and create a file named wp-oncall-autoupdates.php with the following code:

<?php
/*
  Plugin Name: wpOncall Auto Update Enabler
  Description: Force-enables automatic updates for all plugins.
  Version: 1.0
  Author: wpOncall
*/

add_filter( 'auto_update_plugin', '__return_true' );

Fine-Tuning Auto-Updates via Filters

If you want to enable auto-updates for specific plugins only while using code, you can write a custom function that checks the plugin’s main file path. This gives you the ultimate control, allowing you to automate simple plugins while keeping complex ones manual:

function wponcall_selective_auto_updates( $update, $item ) {
 // Array of plugin slugs you want to auto-update
 $allowed_plugins = array(
 'contact-form-7/wp-contact-form-7.php',
 'wp-super-cache/wp-cache.php'
 );

 if ( in_array( $item->plugin, $allowed_plugins ) ) {
 return true; 
 }

 return $update; 
}
add_filter( 'auto_update_plugin', 'wponcall_selective_auto_updates', 10, 2 );

For more advanced coding techniques and filter configurations, check out our WordPress Plugin PHP Guide. You can also read more about core configuration files in this detailed guide on How to Enable Auto Updates on Your WordPress Site (Core, Plugins ….

How to Enable Auto Update Plugins in WordPress with a Plugin

If you want granular control over your updates but prefer a visual interface, several high-quality plugins can help you manage this.

Easy Updates Manager

Easy Updates Manager is one of the most popular choices for handling updates. It allows you to configure core, plugin, theme, and translation updates from a single, centralized dashboard. You can set global rules or customize settings for individual plugins, and it even logs every update attempt so you can track down issues. It also features integration with logs and backup plugins to ensure safety.

Advanced Automatic Updates

For those who want a lightweight option, Advanced Automatic Updates provides simple checkboxes to enable or disable auto-updates for core major releases, core minor releases, plugins, and themes. It is a set-it-and-forget-it solution that doesn’t bloat your database.

Managing Notifications

One major downside of enabling auto-updates is the sheer volume of notification emails WordPress sends out every time a plugin updates. If you manage multiple sites, your inbox can quickly become overwhelmed. To manage these alerts, you can use a plugin like WP Updates Notifier to customize your email alerts or disable them completely, keeping your inbox clean while still maintaining a secure site.

For a deeper dive into managing updates using third-party software, read WordPress Automatic Updates: How to Enable & Manage in 2026.

Best Practices Before Automating and How to Handle Failures

Before you toggle those auto-update switches, we need to talk about safety nets. Automating updates without a backup and recovery plan is a recipe for downtime. Following these industry best practices will ensure your site remains online even when an update goes wrong.

1. Always Have a Reliable Backup System

Never enable automatic updates without having an automated daily backup solution in place. Your backup system should store copies of your site on an external cloud server (like Amazon S3, Google Drive, or Dropbox) rather than your local hosting server. If an update breaks your site at 3:00 AM, you need to be able to restore a working version with a single click. Look for backup solutions that offer automatic pre-update backups, which take a snapshot of your database and files immediately before any update is applied.

2. Set Up a Staging Environment

For mission-critical websites, updates should always be tested on a copy of your site first. Many managed hosts offer staging environments where you can safely test updates before pushing them to your live server. If you run an e-commerce store, a staging site is non-negotiable. It allows you to run automated tests on your checkout flow to ensure that a plugin update hasn’t broken your payment gateway.

3. Verify Your Site Health

Go to Tools > Site Health in your WordPress dashboard. Ensure that your WP-Cron system is functioning correctly. If your server’s cron jobs are blocked, automatic updates will fail to run. Site Health will also alert you to any outdated PHP versions or database issues that could cause updates to fail or crash your server.

4. How to Handle Failed Updates (Rollback Methods)

If an automatic update causes a crash or visual bug on your site, you need to act quickly to minimize downtime. Here are the two primary recovery methods:

• Using WP Rollback: If your admin dashboard is still accessible, install the free WP Rollback plugin. It adds a “Rollback” link next to every plugin on your Plugins screen, allowing you to easily downgrade to a previous, stable version with a single click. This is the fastest way to restore functionality while you investigate the bug.
• Manual FTP/SFTP Rollback: If your site has a fatal error and you cannot access the dashboard (the “White Screen of Death”), you must bypass the dashboard entirely. Log in to your server via FTP or your hosting control panel’s File Manager. Navigate to /wp-content/plugins/, find the folder of the broken plugin, and rename it (e.g., append -broken to the end of the folder name). This will safely force WordPress to deactivate the plugin, allowing you to log back into your dashboard and troubleshoot the issue.

For step-by-step instructions on recovering from an update error, read WordPress Plugin Update Gone Wrong: Here’s How to Roll It Back and our guide on Mastering WordPress Plugin Rollbacks: Revert Updates with Ease 2.

When to Avoid Auto-Updates and How to Disable Them

Not all plugins are good candidates for automation. We highly recommend disabling auto-updates for the following types of plugins:

• E-commerce Plugins: Major updates to plugins like WooCommerce can disrupt checkout flows, tax calculations, or payment gateways, directly impacting your revenue. These should always be updated manually during low-traffic hours.
• Page Builders: Heavy page builders (like Elementor, Divi, or Beaver Builder) make deep changes to your database and theme layouts. These should always be updated manually and tested immediately to ensure your design remains intact.
• Custom Code Integrations: Any plugin that has been heavily customized or relies on specific API integrations should be updated with care to prevent custom code overrides.

If you ever need to stop updates completely, you can read our detailed tutorial on How to Stop Auto Update Plugins in WordPress. For additional perspective, check out How to Enable Automatic Plugin Updates in WordPress + How to Disable.

Frequently Asked Questions About WordPress Auto-Updates

How often does WordPress check for plugin updates?

WordPress checks for plugin and theme updates twice per day (every 12 hours) using the WP-Cron system. If an update is available and auto-updates are enabled, the update process will initiate during one of these scheduled checks. If your site has no visitors for a long period, the check will run the moment the next visitor lands on your site.

Why are auto-updates not showing up for some of my plugins?

If you do not see the “Enable auto-updates” link next to a plugin, there are a few possible reasons:

1. Outdated WordPress Version: Your site must be running WordPress 5.5 or higher to use native auto-updates. If you are running an older version, we highly recommend upgrading for security reasons.
2. Hosting Restrictions: Some managed WordPress hosts disable core auto-update features to manage updates through their own custom platforms and testing pipelines.
3. Unsupported Plugins: Custom-built or premium plugins that do not connect to the official WordPress.org repository may not support native auto-updates. These plugins require manual license activation or custom update scripts provided by the developer. This developer-facing issue is discussed in detail in the WordPress Trac Ticket #50280.

Can I manually update a plugin if auto-updates are enabled?

Yes. Enabling auto-updates does not lock you out of manual management. You can still manually update any plugin at any time from the Plugins screen, or by uploading a new zip file. This is useful if a critical security patch is released and you do not want to wait up to 12 hours for the automatic check to run. To learn how to perform these updates cleanly, read our tutorial on How to Manually Update a WordPress Plugin the Right Way.

Will auto-updates break my custom CSS or theme modifications?

No, plugin auto-updates only modify the files within that specific plugin’s folder inside /wp-content/plugins/. They will not affect your theme’s files, custom CSS added via the Customizer, or child themes. However, if a plugin provides a feature that your theme relies on, a compatibility issue between the new plugin version and your theme could cause visual layout issues.

If you are planning to migrate your site to a new server before configuring your update routine, you may also find our guide on choosing a WordPress Plugin to Migrate Site to New Hosting Service helpful. For general version tracking, refer to our guide on WordPress Plugin Version Management.

Conclusion

Automating your WordPress plugin updates is one of the most effective ways to keep your website secure, fast, and stable in 2026. While the set-it-and-forget-it nature of auto-updates is incredibly convenient, it does require a robust safety net of daily backups, staging environments, and monitoring to prevent unexpected compatibility issues from taking your site offline.

If you don’t have the time to manage backups, test updates on staging, or troubleshoot plugin conflicts, we are here to help. At wpOncall, based in Santa Rosa, CA, we specialize in comprehensive WordPress website security and support. We provide daily updates, secure off-site backups, and unlimited support to keep your site running flawlessly.

Let us handle the technical heavy lifting while you focus on growing your business. Reach out to us today to explore our WordPress Maintenance and Support Services.