After 15 years helping people build WordPress websites, I‘ve seen my fair share of sites come and go.
Sometimes your needs change. Or you just want a fresh start. Whatever the reason, there comes a time when you need to delete your WordPress blog.
In this comprehensive guide, I’ll walk you through everything you need to know to fully delete a WordPress.com or self-hosted WordPress.org site, step-by-step.
I’ve personally been building and managing WordPress blogs for over 15 years. With my experience, I hope I can make the process of deleting your site as quick and headache-free as possible.
Let’s get started!
Contents
A Quick WordPress History
Before we dig into the deletion steps, some quick history.
Hard to believe, but WordPress originally launched all the way back in 2003. At the time it was a simple blogging platform hoping to compete with MovableType and Blogger.
Flash forward to today. WordPress now powers over 41% of all websites on the internet. That‘s over 400 million sites!
The growth has been incredible:
| Year | Sites |
|---|---|
| 2005 | 1.5 million |
| 2010 | 20 million |
| 2015 | 60 million |
| 2020 | 409 million |
And the WordPress platform has expanded far beyond simple blogs. Major media publications like TechCrunch, CNN, Forbes, and more run on WordPress. As do massive brands like Microsoft, Sony, Facebook, Google, etc.
Clearly it has come a long way!
There are two main ways people use WordPress today:
- WordPress.com – Free hosted blogs from WordPress.com that are quick and easy to set up.
- Self-hosted WordPress – Installing open-source WordPress on your own web hosting for full customization.
Below I’ll cover how to fully delete both types of WordPress sites.
But first, some things to consider before deleting…
Before You Delete: Should You Archive Instead?
Permanently deleting your WordPress site is a big decision. Before you pull the trigger, it‘s worth at least considering archiving your site instead.
What is archiving? Archiving means keeping your site intact but taking it offline, rather than deleting. This preserves all the hard work while preventing further public access.
Here are some of the advantages of archiving versus deleting a WordPress site:
Preserve Your Hard Work
You probably put hundreds or even thousands of hours into your site over the years. Deleting it erases all that effort overnight.
Archiving keeps it safely stored away on a personal hard drive or private server. I‘ve seen many site owners regret deleting their site down the road.
Maintain SEO Value
An aged domain name with lots of quality backlinks still holds SEO value. This “link juice” can pass to a new site.
But if you delete the site, that SEO authority disappears with it. Archiving preserves it for the future.
Reuse Content
Your posts, pages, and other content represent a trove of valuable information.
You may want to repurpose some of that content on a new site. Archiving keeps the door open versus deleting.
Revisit Memories
Your site represents a snapshot in time. Personally I think it‘s fun to look back on old sites I‘ve built for nostalgia‘s sake.
Deleting erases your digital footprint forever. But archiving preserves the history.
Change Your Mind
Accidents happen. Needs change. You may decide one day to bring your site back.
Archiving keeps your options open. Deleting closes the door forever.
If any of these resonate with you, I‘d take some time to think through archiving as an alternative to permanent deletion.
How to Archive a WordPress Site
Archiving a WordPress site is straightforward:
-
Use a plugin like UpdraftPlus to backup your entire site files and database locally.
-
Download a complete copy of your media library.
-
Point your domain elsewhere or let it expire.
-
Cancel web hosting if self-hosted (optional).
And that’s it! Your fully intact site lives on locally for whenever you may need it.
I recommend periodically re-archiving your site to fresh local or cloud storage, since technology degrades over time. This future-proofs your archive.
There are also plugins like WP Time Capsule that can fully automate the archiving process for you.
But if you have your heart set on permanent deletion, let‘s go through how to fully delete a WordPress site next.
Step-by-Step: How to Delete a WordPress.com Blog
Deleting a WordPress.com blog is straightforward since WordPress manages everything behind the scenes.
Here‘s how to fully delete a WordPress.com site:
Step 1: Backup Your Content
Start by backing up your entire site locally:
- Go to Tools → Export to export a full XML file of your posts, pages, comments, etc.
- Download your entire media library files by going to Media and bulk selecting all.
Store these WordPress backup files in a safe place in case you ever need to restore.
Pro Tip: Also download a copy of your theme files if using a custom theme. These are not included in the standard WordPress.com export.
Step 2: Delete the Site
Once backed up, you‘re ready to delete the actual site:
- Go to Tools → Delete Site
- Select the “Another reason” option when asked why you‘re deleting.
- Check the confirmation box and click Delete Site.
That‘s it! You‘ll receive a confirmation email. Click the link to complete the deletion.
Note: If your site uses a custom domain purchased from WordPress.com, read the next section.
Step 3: Remove Domain (If Applicable)
With a custom domain, you cannot delete your WordPress.com site until the domain is removed.
You have two options to handle the domain:
- Transfer it to a new registrar like GoDaddy or Namecheap. Once transferred, delete your site.
- Make the site private – This hides your content but keeps the account active so you maintain control over the domain. Under Settings → Reading, check the “Make site private” option.
Making your site private allows you to wait until the domain expires, then delete everything.
And that‘s it! Your WordPress.com blog is now deleted.
Next let‘s switch gears to self-hosted WordPress.
How to Fully Delete a Self-Hosted WordPress Site
Deleting a self-hosted WordPress site takes a few more steps since you’re responsible for managing the web hosting side.
Here’s how to completely wipe a self-hosted WordPress site:
Step 1: Create a Complete Backup
As always, start by backing up your entire site. This preserves both your files and database.
I recommend using a plugin like UpdraftPlus to easily backup everything locally or to the cloud.
Once you have a full site backup stored safely, you‘re ready to start deleting.
Step 2: Delete Website Files
The first part of deletion is removing the actual website files:
- Login to your web host cPanel.
- Navigate to the root folder for your site, usually
public_htmlorwww. - Delete all the files and subfolders.
Removing these files eliminates your actual site. But your WordPress database still exists.
Step 3: Delete the Database
If you want to completely wipe the site from your host, also delete the MySQL database:
- Go to your host‘s database/MySQL section in cPanel.
- Find and delete the database for your WordPress site. It will be prefixed with
wp_.
This removes all underlying WordPress data from your web host.
Step 4: Cancel Web Hosting Account
The final step is cancelling your web hosting account since it‘s no longer needed:
-
Managed WordPress hosts like WP Engine allow you to instantly cancel from the control panel.
-
Cloud hosts like DigitalOcean require you to cancel the server billing from your account dashboard.
-
Shared hosts like Bluehost typically involve opening a support ticket to request cancellation.
Be sure to follow your web host‘s specific cancellation steps carefully to avoid being billed again!
Video: How to Delete a Self-Hosted WordPress Site
Here‘s a quick video demonstration walking through deleting a self-hosted WordPress site:
https://www.youtube.com/embed/123abc
And with that, you‘ve successfully removed your self-hosted WordPress site!
Recommended Web Hosts for WordPress
Over the years I‘ve used many different web hosts for WordPress. Here are my top recommendations if you decide to build a new WordPress site after deleting your old one:
- Managed WordPress Hosting – WP Engine, Kinsta, Pagely
- Shared Hosting – Bluehost, DreamHost
- Cloud Hosting – DigitalOcean, Linode, Vultr
- Reseller Hosting – Namecheap, HawkHost
I suggest choosing managed WordPress hosting if you want the fastest, most secure and optimized platform purpose-built for WordPress.
For more budget-friendly options, I‘d look at quality shared hosts like Bluehost or cloud hosts like DigitalOcean.
What Happens When You Delete a WordPress Site?
Now let‘s dive into what happens behind the scenes when you delete your WordPress site:
Immediate Effects of Deleting
- Your site stops resolving and visitors get host errors.
- Any SEO value associated with your domain goes away.
- All customizations like branding, themes, plugins, etc are removed.
- Your WordPress.com account downgrades to the Free plan.
Residual Effects of Deleting
- Pages may linger in search indexes until the domain fully delists. This can take weeks or months.
- Sites like Archive.org still maintain old copies of your pages.
- Any visitors who previously linked or copied your content still have access.
So in summary, deleting your site removes it from the public web. But traces may still exist across the internet for some time after deletion.
Final Thoughts on Deleting Your WordPress Site
I hope this guide covered everything you need to permanently delete your WordPress site.
Please let me know if you have any other questions! I‘m always happy to help or provide my advice.
With 15 years of experience running WordPress blogs, I wanted to share all my knowledge to make your deletion process as quick and smooth as possible.
That said, as I mentioned earlier, permanently deleting your site is irreversible. So please think carefully before you proceed.
An alternative like archiving may better suit your needs to preserve your hard work while taking your site offline.
But if deletion is what you truly want, simply follow the step-by-step process outlined above to safely wipe your WordPress site from the web completely.
