If you’ve ever managed a WordPress website, you’ve seen the notifications: “A new version of WordPress is available.”
Keeping your site updated is one of the most important maintenance habits for security, speed, and unlocking new features. But what exactly happens when you click that “Update Now” button?
In this post, we’ll break down what WordPress updates are, the difference between major and minor releases, and the best practices for keeping your site running on the latest, safest stable version.
TL;DR: WordPress updates replace or modify the core software, and sometimes require related database updates. The safest process is to back up your site, test the update in staging, update during a low-traffic window, verify key user flows, and monitor logs, uptime, performance, and search-critical pages after deployment.
WordPress updates explained
WordPress updates do not arrive on one fixed schedule. The WordPress project ships scheduled major releases, short-cycle maintenance releases, and urgent security releases when needed. These releases come in two main flavors:
Major releases (e.g., 6.8, 6.9, 7.0) introduce new features like a revamped block editor or sitewide design tools, admin experience improvements, developer APIs, accessibility enhancements, and performance updates. Minor releases (e.g., 7.0.1, 6.9.4, 6.8.3) focus on
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