Useful wp-cli Examples for WordPress

WP-CLI (WordPress Command Line Interface) is a powerful tool that allows you to manage WordPress sites directly from the command line (shell / SSH), without the need to use the WordPress admin graphical interface. It is an essential tool for professional WordPress administrators who want efficient and fast management of their sites.

Why should I use WP-CLI?

WP-CLI offers significant advantages for administrators and developers, such as:

• Speed: Many tasks are completed much faster through the shell
• Automation: Enables process automation (e.g., through scripts), making your work easier for numerous repetitive tasks
• Bulk actions: Allows managing multiple sites simultaneously
• Reliability: Provides immediate error feedback during operations, which you can also utilize in your scripts if desired

What do I need to run WP-CLI?

On all our hosting plans with SSH, you’ll find WP-CLI pre-installed. To run WP-CLI, simply connect to your hosting via SSH, navigate to the directory where your WordPress is installed, and execute the wp command.

Example:

cd public_html/
wp --help

Useful WP-CLI Examples

Updating WordPress

wp core update

This command:

• Automatically checks for new WordPress versions
• Downloads and installs the latest available version on your site
• Keeps your site updated with the latest security updates

Recommended practice: Always backup before upgrading. You can check first for available updates with the wp core check-update command.

Installing and Activating a Theme

wp theme install twentytwentyfive

With this command:

• You download themes directly from the official WordPress repository. Here for example the theme named twentytwentyfive (the theme slug is sufficient)
• The theme is installed in the wp-content/themes/ folder

To activate the new theme in WordPress, simply run the following command:

wp theme activate twentytwentyfive

Note: You can install and activate the theme simultaneously with a single command:

wp theme install twentytwentyfive --activate

Installing and Activating a Plugin

wp plugin install wordpress-seo --activate

This command:

• Downloads the plugin from the WordPress repository (we use the plugin slug as an argument)
• Installs it in the wp-content/plugins/ folder
• Activates it with the --activate parameter

Examples:

# Installation without activation
wp plugin install contact-form-7

# Installing a specific version
wp plugin install wordpress-seo --version=21.0

Updating a Plugin

wp plugin update wordpress-seo

Updates the specific plugin to the latest available version.

Creating a New Post or Page

wp post create --post_type=post --post_title='The article title' --post_content='Article content here' --post_status=publish

Creates a new post with the parameters you define:

• --post_type: Content type (post, page, custom post type, etc.)
• --post_title: Post title
• --post_content: The article content
• --post_status: Publication status (publish, draft, pending)
• --post_author: Author ID in the system

Similarly, you can create a page as follows:

wp post create --post_type=page --post_title='About us' --post_status=publish

Deleting a Post

wp post delete 123

Permanently deletes the post with the specified ID.

Attention: The deletion is permanent. For safety, you can:

• Move to “Trash” first: wp post update 123 --post_status=trash
• Confirm the ID before deletion: wp post get 123

Additional Useful WP-CLI Examples

Below we present more examples. For safer use, you can create a backup before WP-CLI commands that will cause significant changes and/or use the --dry-run parameter for “preview” (dry-run doesn’t actually apply changes, but shows you what it would do).

Managing WordPress Plugins

# Deactivate plugin
wp plugin deactivate wordpress-seo

# Deactivate all plugins
wp plugin deactivate --all

# List all plugins
wp plugin list

# Delete plugin
wp plugin delete wordpress-seo

# Update all plugins
wp plugin update --all

# Update multiple plugins simultaneously
wp plugin update wordpress-seo contact-form-7

# Check available updates without installation
wp plugin list --update=available

Database Management

# Export database
wp db export backup.sql

# Import database
wp db import backup.sql

# Search and replace in database
wp search-replace 'old-domain.com' 'new-domain.com'

Flushing WordPress Cache

wp cache flush

User Management

# Update user password
wp user update demo_user --user_pass='MyNewP@ssw0rd123'

# List all users
wp user list

The commands presented are just a brief introduction to WP-CLI’s capabilities. The tool offers hundreds of commands for almost every aspect of WordPress management. With proper use, WP-CLI can save significant time every day and make managing multiple WordPress sites much more efficient.

Useful links

• Official Documentation: https://wp-cli.org/
• Complete command list: https://developer.wordpress.org/cli/commands/