3 Amazing Ways To Install WordPress Plugins You Should Know

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Here the topic is ways to install WordPress plugins you should know as a blogger.

Before I get into that, what are these WordPress plugins? Please refer to this 5 WordPress Plugins Hacks blog for more info on this subject.

We have thousands of WordPress plugins available in different categories. For SEO purposes, performance, image, social media, etc. These WordPress plugins help you to enhance the functionality of WordPress CMS software. In turn, helps you to increase blog quality and popularity even when you have no coding background.

Consider reading my blog about the best SEO plugins available for WordPress.

WordPress plugins are available in both free and paid versions based on the features you need.

How to Install WordPress plugins?

There are three ways to install WordPress plugins on your blogging site.

  1. Search for the plugin and install in the WordPress admin area
  2. Upload the plugin and install in the WordPress admin area
  3. Upload the plugin file via FTP and activate the same in the WordPress admin area

1 Search for the plugin and install in the WordPress admin area

Login to your WordPress admin area with a link like http://yourdomain.com/wp-login.php? Once you logged in, find the Plugins section in the left side menu and click on it. Here you can see three options as below.

  • Installed plugins
    • Where you can see all active and inactive plugins? This is the place you find all installed plugins including active and inactive plugins. On this page, you can perform activate, inactivate and update of any plugin which already installed.
  • Add New
    • This option will give you access to find and install new WordPress plugins.
  • Plugin Editor
    • On this page, you will find all the plugin related code where you can amend it.
Wordpress Plugin Admin area

Once you reach the Add New page, you will find many plugins and the most popular search tags people used.Search for your desired plugin and click install to install that particular plugin. Once installed, you can activate the same by clicking on the Activate button.

Wordpress Plugin install area

2 Upload the plugin and install in the WordPress admin area

You can also install a plugin you got from outside of WordPress. But that must be developed in such a manner to support your current WordPress version and also theme.

Wordpress Plugin install from file area

In that scenario, you can upload those WordPress plugin files and install the same. To do that, navigate to the Plugins section and go to Add New page.

Above the search plugin area, you will find the “Upload Plugin” button. If you click on that, you will get the option to upload your WordPress plugin file.

Chose the file and say Install Now which will start installing your chosen plugin.

That’s it right?

Of-course, but that is not all.

Once the plugin got installed successfully then the next important step is to activate it.

You can activate it from the same plugin section by navigating to the Installed Plugins section.

3: Upload the plugin file via FTP and activate the same in the WordPress admin area

If the first two options are not right for you or you are failing to install the same from the WordPress admin area then go for this option.

First, get the right plugin files from the plugin provider by confirming CMS compatibility details. Then go to file manager where you see all your website files.

You can use either FTP client or use your file manager option given in hosting cPanel section.

Go to plugins folder which would be under the wp-content folder path.

Here I have attached the image of the file manager screenshot from hostinger hosting cPanel for your reference.

Wordpress Plugin install from FTP area

Upload your plugin files (must be unzipped and upload if you got zip files from the provider) into this plugins folder.

Once this step is done, go back to your WordPress admin area to activate the same plugin.

By this time, hope you got how to install WordPress plugins and activate the same. But do you know how to delete inactive plugins? Or do we need to delete inactive plugins?

You have two options to delete any inactive plugins from your website.

But what does that mean? 

Is it mandatory to delete the inactivate plugin?No, it’s not.

It won’t harm if you keep any plugin in the inactivated state but if file size matters. If you keep inactive plugins, you still keep on getting update requests if any, bit annoying right?

And it may get hacked to inject any harmful code into your website with no info to you.

Hence you should delete any inactivated plugin in case you have no plans to install again soon.

What I mean here, you might have inactivated a plugin for some time/days to test it or other good reasons. In that case, you can still keep it in inactive status.

You can delete the plugin from the installed plugin page in the WordPress admin area.Or go to file manager and remove the concern plugin folder from the main plugins folder.

Where to search for plugins?

This is a very common query from most of the bloggers who either not familiar with this WordPress plugin matter or new to blogging.

There are three ways you can search for WordPress plugins.

  1. Go to WordPress.org and search for plugins
  2. Goto individual plugin sites and check
  3. Search in google for best available plugins

1: Go to WordPress.org and search for plugins

You can go to WordPress.org site and search for any WordPress plugins. Here you can find all featured, popular and beta version WordPress plugins. You can download the plugin files directly from here and install them onto your WordPress. Or you can go to the admin area in WordPress and search for the same plugin to install.

Wordpress Plugin site

2: Goto individual plugin sites and check

Few premium WordPress plugins won’t be available in WordPress.org site. And you may not be able to see few beta version plugins there. So, you need to go to the individual plugin developer site and get the plugin files to install.

3: Search in google for best available plugins

This is another ultimate option to search for the best WordPress plugins. You can also search for similar plugins to compare the features before deciding on which one to use.

As you got to know, there are many thousands of WordPress plugins available on the internet. And if you see a lot of competition in each category.

Every plugin will have a different set of feature lists than their rival in the same category. For example, if one plugin has the best feature but not user-friendly then others will deliver the best user-friendly interface with the same features.

So, how to choose the best WordPress plugins then?

  1. User rating
  2. Latest version update
  3. Compatibility with WordPress version
  4. Compatibility with theme
  5. Based on plugin screenshots attached
  6. Support information
  7. Latest plugin reviews

1: User ratings

This helps you to know how popular is and how may users rate it up & down. Based on this you can decide whether the plugin in question is advisable to install on your sire or not.

Wordpress Plugin reviews area

2: Latest version update

You can also see the latest version information of the same WordPress plugin in WordPress.org website before you decide to install the same. What is the current version and recently when the same got updated? This information is very much required as not actively updated plugin may hurt your website with compatibility issues.

Wordpress Plugin information

3: Compatibility with WordPress version

It is recommended to choose the plugin which supports your current WordPress version. Else it impacts your WordPress website with compatibility errors.

4: Compatibility with the theme

Not all WordPress plugins mentions this information on the plugins page in WordPress.org site. But it is also important information you need to know if possible that whether the theme you are using supports a new plugin in question or not.

5: Based on plugin screenshots attached

Many of the plugins will be there with few screenshots as well which will explain installation or setting pages. Sometimes with this information, you can see whether it is a suitable plugin for all your needs or not.

6: Support information

On the same page, you can also see the support tab or information of that plugin. By this, you will know what are all queries raised against that plugin and common queries/issues with that plugin. You can also see how quickly you can expect solution/answers to your query in case you own it.

7: Latest plugin reviews

Go to detail reviews page and see what are all very latest reviews provided. Are they in negative or positive and how quick they got answers from the plugin team?

Conclusion

I hope you got all the required information on how to install WordPress plugins and ways to choose the right plugins.

Can you comment here if you have any information on WordPress plugins that helps other fellow bloggers?

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