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In this quick and simple tutorial, I am going to show you how to install a plugin in WordPress.
Chances are if you’ve just started a self-hosted WordPress blog with this Bluehost tutorial, you’re trying to figure out how to install a plugin in your WordPress dashboard.
If you’re new to blogging or creating your own self-hosted website, and not sure what a plugin is, you can think of WordPress plugins as apps. They allow you to add new features and improve the functionality of your blog.
The beauty of these WordPress plugins is you don’t need to learn how to code something in order to get a feature you want on your blog.
This will make creating and launching your blog easier! Think of how you use apps on your smartphone. 😊
And there’s no need to panic because it’s really simple to add or remove plugins in WordPress.
Now, before you start, please note that you cannot install plugins if you are using a free or personal account on WordPress.com (this is different from the WordPress.org powered by Bluehost that I talk about all the time).
I only bring this point up because I get many readers who ask me how to make money with a blog, and my top recommendation is to start a self-hosted (not a free) blog if you want to start monetizing.
Now that this is clear, let’s walk through the steps on how to install a WordPress plugin on your website.
How To Install A Plugin in WordPress
Follow these steps below to install any WordPress Plugin.
Step 1: Go to your WordPress dashboard
Log onto your WordPress as usual. Go to “Plugins” >> “Add New” from your Dashboard menu as per the screenshot below.
Step 2: Search for your plugin
Type in the name of the plugin you’re looking for into the “Search plugins…” bar.
Step 3: Install the WordPress plugin
Click on the “Install Now” button of the plugin you want to download.
Step 4: Activate your plugin in WordPress
Click on the “Activate” button to activate the plugin.
Step 5: Play Around With Your Settings
You are done installing and activating the plugin!
Depending on your plugin, some require you to do nothing, but if you want to dabble with the settings, you can do that too.
You can do this by clicking on “Settings” and customize it to what you want.
Whenever you need to go back to any of your plugin’s settings, simply go to “Plugins” >> “Installed Plugins” of your WordPress dashboard to do this.
Deactivating or Deleting a Plugin
Whenever you don’t want your plugin to be active, just simply log into your WordPress dashboard and go back to “Plugins” >> “Installed Plugins” of the menu.
You can go through the list of all your installed plugins and decide which ones you want to deactivate temporarily.
If you want to delete your plugin, simply click on “Delete” and your plugin will be removed.
I hope you found this quick WordPress plugin tutorial easy and helpful! 🙂
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