How Do PHP Updates by Your Web Host Impact WordPress Sites?

Have you received a notice from your hosting provider about upgrading to a new version of PHP and are wondering what it means for your website?

WordPress is written in the PHP programming language. It is a server-side language, which means it runs on your web hosting server to dynamically generate WordPress pages.

In this article, we will explain how PHP updates by your web host impact your WordPress sites. We will also discuss the things you can do to avoid any conflicts or downtime on your website.

WordPress and PHP Updates

WordPress is developed using an open-source programming language called PHP. At the time of writing this article, WordPress requires at least PHP version 7.4 or greater. The current stable version available for PHP is 8.3.

Most shared hosting providers currently offer PHP version 7.4 or greater, and you can update or downgrade it from your hosting control panel. 

You can see which PHP version your website is using by going to the Tools » Site Health page and switching to the ‘Info’ tab.

Next, you need to scroll down a little and click to expand the ‘Server’ tab.

This section shows server information including the PHP version used by your server.

Note: If this section is showing anything below PHP 7.4, then you need to update your PHP version.

Why Don’t Hosting Providers Use the Latest Version of PHP by Default? 

Web hosts often avoid using the newest stable versions of PHP because these versions can occasionally cause compatibility issues with PHP applications such as WordPress.

However, they also don’t want to stay far behind. Currently, PHP 7.4.+ is the minimum required version, and PHP 8.0+ is generally recommended. 

A PHP update initiated by your web host is supposed to go smoothly, but it can also go terribly wrong. It all depends on your web host and how they configure their servers.

This is why we recommend choosing top-tier WordPress hosting, as it ensures that highly skilled engineers are maintaining those servers.

Bluehost, Hostinger, and SiteGround are the most popular, reliable web hosting services that support PHP versions 7.4 or higher to meet the minimum WordPress requirements.

Choosing an unreliable web host for your WordPress site can cause unexpected downtime during or after the update, and there is pretty much nothing you can do about it except switch to a better host.

Things You Need to Do When Your Host Updates PHP

Your web host is probably already hosting thousands of WordPress sites. They will take every precaution they can to make sure that everything goes smoothly and customers don’t feel any glitches in the service.

The notice you have received allows you to be informed about the update and keep a lookout to see if anything goes wrong.

Although it is unlikely that this update will break things, it is always good to be prepared and ready. 

Following are a few things you can do to prepare for the update. 

1. Make a Complete WordPress Backup

First of all, we always recommend our users regularly back up WordPress sites. If you do not have an automatic backup solution already, then see our list of the best WordPress backup plugins to choose one. 

We recommend Duplicator. It allows you to easily create scheduled backups and safely store them on popular cloud services like Dropbox, Google Drive, and more.

There’s also a free version of Duplicator you can use to get started.

You can also manually back up the WordPress database and download all your website files using FTP. 

2. Install WordPress Updates

After backups, the next thing you need to do is to make sure that you are running the latest version of WordPress. Also, make sure to update your plugins and themes.

To do so, simply go to the Updates screen and install any updates available.

WordPress itself and most popular WordPress plugins will not be affected by PHP updates. However, some plugins may stop working.

If a plugin on your site has stopped working due to a PHP update, then you need to contact the plugin author for support or find an alternative.

What to Do if a PHP Update Breaks Your WordPress Site

There is very little chance that a PHP update will break your WordPress site. However, with the abundance of free and paid plugins, a single line of poor code can result in any of the common WordPress errors.

The first thing you need to do is make sure that it is not a plugin or theme causing this error. To do that, you can deactivate all your WordPress plugins and switch to a default WordPress theme.

If this doesn’t resolve your issue, we suggest contacting your web host’s support team. They are likely already aware of the problem and can provide the necessary assistance.

If your web host is unable to help you out, then try to install a fresh copy of WordPress and then restore your WordPress site from backup.

If none of this helps, then perhaps it is time to change your WordPress hosting.

We hope that this guide helped you understand how PHP updates by your web host impact your WordPress site. You may also want to see our WordPress site health guide or see our tutorial on keeping your WordPress site secure.

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