The Plugin File Editor is a tool on WordPress for viewing and directly editing the code of plugins installed on your site. This tool is for users with programming knowledge. If you’re new to coding, we recommend using the alternatives listed below instead to avoid accidentally breaking your site.
This feature is available on plugin-enabled sites with our WordPress.com Personal, Premium, Business, and Commerce plans. If your site has one of these plans, make sure to activate it. For sites on the free plan, upgrade your plan to access this feature.
In this guide
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Ask our AI assistantYou can customize your site without using the Plugin File Editor. Here are some safer alternatives:
- To add functionality via code, use the Code Snippets plugin to add small pieces of PHP code on top of existing functionality safely.
- For significant changes to plugin files, use SFTP to upload and manage files.
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Editing plugins directly may introduce incompatibilities that break your site, and your changes may be lost in future updates. If you have to make direct edits to this plugin, test your changes on a staging site first.
To access the plugin file editor:
- Visit your site’s dashboard.
- Check under either Plugins or Tools.
- Click on “Plugin File Editor”.
- In the upper right corner, choose the plugin you wish to edit from the dropdown and click the Select button.
- On the right, click on the specific file of that plugin you wish to edit.
- After making a change, click the “Update File” button at the bottom to save your changes.
Some plugins, like Jetpack and Akismet, are automatically managed on your site and cannot be edited in the Plugin File Editor.
