What is the Criteria for “Unattached” Media?

  • Unknown's avatar
    wringmaster · Member ·

    When searching media there is an “Unattached” selection in the drop down menu. What determines what media is “Unattached?” Certainly some media that is included in my posts is considered by this qualifier to be “Unattached.” So does anybody know what the actual criteria is? It appears to me to be pretty random.

    The blog I need help with is: (visible only to logged in users)

  • Unknown's avatar
    josefhtest · Member ·

    Hi @wringmaster

    Great question! The “Unattached” label in the WordPress Media Library can definitely be a bit confusing.
    Here is some insight on this:

    • “Attached” media refers to files (images, PDFs, etc.) that were originally uploaded directly while editing a specific post or page — not just added later via the block editor or reused from the Media Library.
    • “Unattached” media, then, are files that:
      • Were uploaded directly to the Media Library.
      • Were added to a post using the Image block or similar, but not at the time of that post’s creation.
      • Have been deleted from the original post they were attached to.
      • Or were uploaded through reusable blocks or custom fields that don’t form a direct attachment.

    So yes — a media file can appear in your content and still show as “Unattached.” It’s not about visibility in posts, but about the original upload context.

    Let me know if that helps.

  • Unknown's avatar
    wringmaster · Member ·

    Thanks for the reply josefhtest. I’m not sure what practical value this “unattached” feature has. I thought that all the media in my posts fell under the category of “attached.” It seems as if at some point in 2022 I did meet the attached criteria.

    Unfortunately for roughly the first two years I wasn’t following the “attached” criteria in some way I still do not fully understand.and now all those links are broken.

    I’ve grudgingly begun the tedious task of relinking that media. Fortunately I am fairly well organized.

    If I might make a request it would be for WordPress to has a “Used Media” filter so that we might be able to cull out media that isn’t actually used in posts. That might be more use to us then this cryptic “unattached” filter

  • Unknown's avatar
    annadesk39 · Member ·

    Hi @wringmaster,

    Thanks for circling back.

    I also want to acknowledge the broken links issue you mentioned earlier. That kind of setback is definitely frustrating, especially when it affects content you’ve put so much work into over the years.

    In case it’s helpful, this guide shows how to filter for unattached media and manually connect files back to specific posts or pages:

    Edit Media in the Library

    The whole “attached” vs. “unattached” status mostly depends on whether the file was uploaded while editing a specific post. But, it’s possible to restore those connections manually after the fact, and the guide walks through each step.

    Your feedback about wanting a “Used Media” filter instead of the current “Unattached” system makes a lot of sense from a practical workflow perspective. It’s a thoughtful suggestion.

    I hope this helps. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or run into anything else!

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