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To install WordPress, create a MySQL or MariaDB database, create a dedicated database user, grant that user access, place the connection values in wp-config.php, and then run the WordPress installer. Current WordPress guidance requires PHP 7.4 or newer, MySQL 5.7 or newer or MariaDB 10.3 or newer, and HTTPS. The procedure below covers shared hosting, control panels, direct SQL, and WP-CLI, including the permissions and connection errors that most often stop an installation.

Check the server before creating anything

Confirm the software versions and access you have before opening a database tool. WordPress Developer Resources lists PHP 7.4 or greater, MySQL 5.7 or greater or MariaDB 10.3 or greater, and HTTPS as the current baseline. The WordPress Before You Install guidance was last updated October 14, 2026. A host may offer a newer PHP or database release; the important point is that the server must meet or exceed those minimums.

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  • PHP: 7.4 or newer, enabled for the site that will run WordPress.
  • Database server: MySQL 5.7 or newer, or MariaDB 10.3 or newer.
  • HTTPS: available for the domain, with a working certificate before you publish the site.
  • Database access: a hosting panel, phpMyAdmin, the MySQL client, or another method supplied by the provider.
  • Credentials: permission to create a database and a user, or a host that will create both for you.

On shared hosting, the database name and user often have the hosting-account username automatically prepended, such as accountname_site. Record the exact name shown by the panel rather than assuming that the short name you requested is the name WordPress must use.

Choose the database-creation route

All routes produce the same four values for WordPress: a database name, database username, password, and database host. Choose the interface your provider supports.

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Hosting control panel Most shared-hosting installations Database and user creation through cPanel, Plesk, DirectAdmin, or a similar interface The provider may enforce account prefixes, host names, and permission choices.
phpMyAdmin Administrators who prefer a browser Database creation, user assignment, and SQL statements The account may not be allowed to create server-level users; use the host’s database-user page when necessary.
MySQL client Server administrators and scripted deployments Exact SQL, host value, grants, and repeatable automation You need database-server credentials and network or shell access.
WP-CLI Existing WordPress files on a shell account Database creation from values already loaded by wp-config.php It still requires a database-capable account and a correctly prepared configuration file.

A provider-managed database is convenient because the panel knows the correct server and account prefix. Self-managed SQL gives more control over the host and grants. For one site, use a separate database and user whenever the host permits it. If several sites must share one database, give each installation a unique table prefix and do not reuse credentials casually.

Create the database and its user

Using cPanel, Plesk, DirectAdmin, or another hosting panel

  1. Open the panel’s MySQL or MariaDB database section.
  2. Create a database. Copy the complete name, including any account prefix the panel adds.
  3. Create a new database user with a long, unique password. Do not reuse the hosting-account password.
  4. Assign the user to the database and enable the panel’s full-access option if it is the only available choice during installation.
  5. Save the database name, user name, password, and the database host displayed by the provider. The host is often localhost, but it can be a separate hostname.

Some panels create the user and database together; others require an explicit Add user to database step. Completing only the first two steps leaves WordPress with a valid database but no account that can open it.

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Using phpMyAdmin

  1. Sign in to phpMyAdmin through the hosting panel and choose Databases.
  2. Enter a database name and select a UTF-8 family collation. The WordPress database guide recommends the utf8 series and suggests utf8mb4_general_ci when an appropriate language-specific option is unavailable.
  3. Create the database. Use the panel’s database-user screen to create a dedicated user and grant it access to this database.
  4. Check the resulting privileges and copy the exact database and user names. A phpMyAdmin login name is not necessarily the same as the MySQL host value.

Do not change character settings later simply to silence a warning. Keep WordPress’s default DB_CHARSET and DB_COLLATE values unless you understand the effect on existing tables and multilingual data.

Using the MySQL client

After connecting to the server with an account allowed to create databases and users, run statements equivalent to these:

CREATE DATABASE databasename;
CREATE USER 'wordpressusername'@'hostname' IDENTIFIED BY 'strong-password';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON databasename.* TO 'wordpressusername'@'hostname';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;

Replace every placeholder with a real value. The hostname in both the CREATE USER and GRANT statements must match the host from which WordPress connects. localhost is common, but it is not universal; a managed database may require a provider-specific host name, an IP address, or another value. If the provider gives a port or socket, keep that information with the host value for the configuration step.

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The broad ALL PRIVILEGES grant is useful while an installer or migration is creating tables. It should not be treated as the permanent security policy for every site. After the installation is stable, review the least-privilege approach below.

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Put the connection details in wp-config.php

WordPress reads its base configuration and database connection information from wp-config.php. In the WordPress files, copy or rename wp-config-sample.php to wp-config.php, then edit the database constants.

define( 'DB_NAME', 'database_name_here' );
define( 'DB_USER', 'username_here' );
define( 'DB_PASSWORD', 'password_here' );
define( 'DB_HOST', 'localhost' );

Use the exact values supplied by the host or created in SQL:

Constant Value to enter Common mistake
DB_NAME The complete database name, including a hosting-account prefix when present Entering the unprefixed name that was requested in the panel
DB_USER The complete MySQL user name Using the panel login instead of the database user
DB_PASSWORD The password assigned to that database user Leaving a placeholder, adding an unintended space, or using the hosting password
DB_HOST The host supplied by the provider; often localhost Assuming every server uses localhost

DB_HOST can include a non-default port or a Unix socket path when the server requires one. Use the syntax documented by the host rather than guessing. A correct user and password still fail if WordPress is directed to the wrong server, port, or socket.

Leave DB_CHARSET and DB_COLLATE at their defaults unless you have a specific compatibility reason and understand the consequences. Keep wp-config.php outside public sharing workflows, and never paste its password into a support forum or commit it to a public repository.

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Upload WordPress and run the installer

  1. Upload the WordPress files to the domain’s document root, or to the subdirectory where the site will live.
  2. Make sure the edited file is named exactly wp-config.php and is in the WordPress root directory.
  3. Open https://example.com/wp-admin/install.php. For a subdirectory, use the corresponding path, such as https://example.com/blog/wp-admin/install.php.
  4. Complete the site-title, administrator-account, password, and email fields shown by the installer.
  5. Sign in and confirm that the dashboard loads, a test post can be saved, and media can be uploaded.

If wp-config.php is absent, WordPress can display a setup form that asks for the database details and attempts to create the file. This requires the web server to have permission to write the WordPress directory. Creating the file yourself is usually clearer and avoids granting temporary write access to the application directory.

Use least privilege after the site works

WordPress hardening guidance distinguishes normal operation from schema-changing work. For posting, uploading media, receiving comments, creating users, and installing plugins, the database account needs data read and write privileges: SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE, and DELETE. Those permissions let WordPress work with existing tables without giving the web application unrestricted control over the database structure.

Some plugins and major WordPress updates need temporary schema privileges, such as permission to alter or create tables. A safer operating pattern is:

  1. Keep the day-to-day account limited to the normal data privileges where your host supports that arrangement.
  2. Before a planned plugin installation or major update, take the provider’s documented route to grant the required schema permissions temporarily.
  3. Run the update while monitoring for errors.
  4. Remove the extra privileges and verify that ordinary publishing, comments, users, and media still work.

Some shared-hosting panels expose only an all-privileges assignment. In that case, record what the panel grants and ask the provider whether a separate restricted user or temporary elevation is available.

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Create the database with WP-CLI

When WordPress files and a configuration file already exist on a shell account, WP-CLI can execute the database creation statement. The wp db create command reads DB_HOST, DB_NAME, DB_USER, and DB_PASSWORD from wp-config.php.

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$ wp db create
Success: Database created.

Run the command from the WordPress directory, or provide the appropriate path option used by your WP-CLI installation. It will not overcome a provider’s restriction on database creation, a wrong host, or a user that lacks permission to issue CREATE DATABASE; those conditions must be corrected with the host first.

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Troubleshoot a database connection error

When the installer reports that it cannot establish a database connection, check the values and the server in a fixed order. WordPress’s installation guidance specifically recommends verifying all four configuration values, confirming that the user can access the selected database, and checking that the database server is running.

1. Recheck every value character by character

  • Compare DB_NAME with the complete name shown in the panel, including prefixes.
  • Compare DB_USER with the user assigned to that database.
  • Reset the database user’s password if you are unsure, then enter the new value without extra spaces.
  • Confirm that DB_HOST is the provider’s host, not automatically localhost.

A typo in any one constant produces the same broad connection failure as a stopped server, so do not infer the cause from the wording alone.

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2. Confirm the grant and host combination

In MySQL, a user is identified by both its name and its host. A grant for 'wordpressusername'@'localhost' does not automatically authorize the same user connecting from another host value. Check that the account was created for the host WordPress actually uses and that the grant names the intended database, not a similarly named database with a different prefix.

3. Check the port or Unix socket

If the provider documents a non-default port or socket, include it in DB_HOST using the provider’s required format. Leaving the value as localhost can make the client try a local socket when the database is remote, while using a remote host can make it use TCP instead. The correct choice depends on the hosting environment.

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4. Verify that the database service is running

On a server you administer, check the MySQL or MariaDB service status and its error log. On shared hosting, ask the provider to confirm service availability. Do not repeatedly change passwords while the service itself is stopped; credentials cannot succeed until the server accepts connections.

5. Resolve a missing or unwritable configuration file

If WordPress repeatedly asks for database details, check the filename, location, and file permissions. It must be wp-config.php in the WordPress installation directory, not only wp-config-sample.php. If WordPress cannot create the file, create it from the sample and upload it with the corrected values.

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6. Check table and encoding symptoms after connection succeeds

A successful connection followed by missing-table errors usually means the installer did not complete or the installation points at the wrong database. Confirm that the selected database contains the WordPress tables and that the configured table prefix matches the installation. Character problems should be addressed through the database’s UTF-8-family collation and WordPress’s charset settings, not by randomly changing collations on an active site.

Shared databases, prefixes, and multiple installations

A separate database per site makes permissions and recovery easier, but some providers limit the number of databases. If installations share one database, assign each a distinct table prefix in the configuration and ensure that every user has access only to the database required by the hosting plan. Never point two independent sites at the same prefix: they can overwrite each other’s tables.

For a single-site installation, the default prefix is acceptable when the database user and credentials are dedicated. A non-default prefix can reduce accidental collisions in a shared database, but it is not a replacement for a strong password or correct grants.

Final verification checklist

  • The server meets PHP 7.4+, MySQL 5.7+ or MariaDB 10.3+, and HTTPS requirements.
  • The database name and user include any provider-required prefixes.
  • The dedicated user is assigned to the database and uses a unique password.
  • DB_NAME, DB_USER, DB_PASSWORD, and DB_HOST match the provider’s values exactly.
  • Any required port or Unix socket is represented in DB_HOST.
  • DB_CHARSET and DB_COLLATE remain at their defaults unless a deliberate compatibility decision was made.
  • The installer URL uses HTTPS and the correct subdirectory path.
  • Normal publishing, media uploads, comments, user creation, and plugin operation work after installation.
  • Extra schema privileges are removed after updates when the hosting arrangement allows least-privilege management.

The dependable pattern is simple: create the database, create and grant a dedicated user, copy the exact connection values into wp-config.php, and run /wp-admin/install.php. Most failures come from an omitted account prefix, a mismatched user-host grant, or a database host, port, or socket that differs from the value assumed in the configuration.

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