After years of building WordPress websites, we’ve learned how important it is to have a local WordPress setup on your computer.
Having WordPress on your personal machine lets you experiment with new features without risking your live site, dive deep into WordPress development, and even build entire websites before they go live. It’s like having a private sandbox for all your WordPress projects.
If you’re a Windows user, there are numerous ways to set up WordPress locally. But we’ve narrowed it down to the two easiest methods. In this guide, we will show you how to easily install WordPress on a Windows computer, no matter which version you’re using.
Why You Should Install WordPress on Windows?
If you’re a Windows user, then installing WordPress locally on your computer offers several benefits.
A local WordPress installation creates a testing environment that doesn’t affect your live website. This setup, often called a local server or localhost, is your personal playground for WordPress.
WordPress developers regularly use local installations for their work. For instance, they may use it to experiment with new plugins or themes or test the site before updating to the Gutenberg block editor.
But it’s not just for the pros. If you’re new to WordPress, a local setup is perfect for learning. You can explore features, test themes and plugins, and experiment freely without worrying about breaking a live site.
It’s important to note that when you install WordPress locally on Windows, only you can see the site. If you want to create a public website, then you’ll need a domain name and web hosting.
Now, technically, you can install WordPress on Windows using XAMPP, and we’ve written a tutorial on it before.
That being said, we’ve found 2 even simpler ways than XAMPP for setting up a local WordPress environment, making them great for beginners or users who need to create a local site quickly. You can click the link below to jump ahead to any method you’re interested in:
Method 1: Install WordPress on Windows Using Studio (Quick and Simple)
For the first method, we will use Studio. It’s a local WordPress software made by Automattic, the company that manages and runs WordPress.com, which is a website builder based on the WordPress software.
We will talk about this method first because it’s much quicker and simpler to follow, making it perfect for complete beginners.
First, you need to open the Studio by WordPress.com website. Then, click on the ‘Download for Windows’ button.
Once you’ve done that, just open the downloaded file to start the installation.
A popup window will now appear, showing you that the application is being installed.
With that done, you can add your first site.
To do this, just enter your new local WordPress site name and click ‘Add site.’ You can name the site however you like so long as it helps you easily identify it.
You should now see your local WordPress site dashboard.
To access your WordPress dashboard and edit your website, just click the ‘Start’ button at the top right corner. This will make your local website accessible to you on your computer.
Once the ‘Start’ button changes to ‘Running,’ you can click on the ‘WP Admin’ link at the top left side of the page.
This will bring you to your local WordPress admin page.
And that’s pretty much it for the setup. Let’s explore the other settings that may be necessary as you build your local website.
As you can see in the ‘Overview’ tab, you can immediately access the WordPress full-site editor menu right from the Studio dashboard. You can also click ‘File explorer’ to open your WordPress website’s folders and files and click on ‘Terminal’ to manage your website using WP-CLI.
If you switch to the ‘Share’ tab, you can log in to your WordPress.com account, clone your local website, and upload it to WordPress.com’s servers. This will temporarily make the cloned site online, which is useful for sharing demo sites with your clients or team members.
At times, you may want to log in to your local website directly through your browser instead of using Studio. In that case, you need to know your wp-admin credentials.
To find them, you can switch to the ‘Settings’ tab and find your WordPress admin username, password, and login URL there.
Another neat feature of Studio is its built-in AI chatbot, which you can communicate with by clicking on the ‘Assistant’ button.
Here, you can ask Studio for help with tasks like updating all your plugins at once, updating your core WordPress version, or creating code for a custom block.
When you’re done working on your local site, just hover over the ‘Running’ button at the top right corner until it says ‘Stop.’
Then, click on the button to stop the website.
One downside of Studio is you cannot configure the WordPress environment to your liking. This means you need to use the PHP version, web server, and database that have been pre-selected for you.
This can be a drawback if you need to test your website or plugin with specific server configurations.
If you require more control over your local WordPress environment or need to match your local setup with a specific live server configuration, then you can check out the next method using Local WP.
Method 2: Install WordPress on Windows Using Local WP (More Customizable)
First, you need to download and install the Local WP software on your Windows computer. Simply go to the Local WP website and click the ‘Download for Free’ button.
After that, a popup window will appear where you’ll need to select your platform. Go ahead and choose ‘Windows’ from the dropdown menu.
Next, you can enter your details like first and last name, work email address, and phone number to download the software.
Upon entering the details, simply click the ‘Get it Now’ button.
After that, the software will be automatically downloaded into your computer. Otherwise, you can click on the ‘click here’ link to start the download.
Once the file is downloaded, go ahead and launch the setup wizard.
Now, you’ll need to select whether you’d like to install the software for all users or only for you.
Once you’ve selected an option, click the ‘Next’ button.
In the next step, you can select the ‘Destination Folder’ where the software will be installed.
Simply click the ‘Browse’ button to set the path and then click the ‘Install’ button.
The Local WP software will now install on your Windows computer.
Once it’s done, you can check the ‘Run Local’ checkbox and click the ‘Finish’ button in the setup wizard.
The software will now launch on your Windows device.
The next step is to add a new local website. To do that, simply click the plus ‘+’ button at the bottom.
After that, you can create a site in the Local software.
Select the ‘Create a new site’ option and click the ‘Continue’ button. There are also options to create the site from a blueprint or an existing website file, but we’ll go with the first option for the sake of demonstration.
Next, you can enter a name for your local website, like ‘My WordPress Website.’
There are also advanced options where you can enter the local site domain and local site path. By default, the domain will use your website title but separated with dashes.
Once you’re done, simply click the ‘Continue’ button.
After that, you will need to choose an environment for your local website.
You can use the ‘Preferred’ environment where the software will automatically select the PHP version, web server, and MySQL version. On the other hand, you can also select ‘Custom’ and enter the environment details.
Local WP offers the latest PHP versions. As for the web server, you can choose between Nginx or Apache. You can also select between MySQL or MariaDB for the databases.
Do note that some PHP, web server, and database versions require downloading some dependencies for them to work properly.
Next, you can enter a WordPress username and password for your local website. Plus, there’s also an option to choose a WordPress email address where you’ll receive all the email notifications.
Other than that, there is an advanced option where the software will ask whether you have a WordPress multisite network. If not, just click ‘No.’
After entering these details, simply click the ‘Add Site’ button.
The software will now install WordPress and set up your website.
To launch the local website, go ahead and click on the ‘Start site’ button at the top right corner.
Next, click on the ‘WP Admin’ button, and you’ll see the WordPress admin login page.
Simply enter the username and password you entered earlier when setting up the local website, and then click the ‘Log In’ button.
You can now edit your local website on your Windows computer.
When you’re done, don’t forget to stop the website from the Local WP software by clicking the ‘Stop site’ button.
Pro Tip: If you want to skip the login process, you can enable a one-click admin login in Local WP.
To do this, just go back to the Local WP dashboard and toggle the ‘One-click admin’ button until it says ‘On.’ Then, in the dropdown menu, select the admin user that can use this one-click login feature.
Alternative: Use WordPress Playground to Test Themes, Plugins, and More
WordPress Playground is an innovative tool that lets you experiment with WordPress directly in your web browser. It’s a virtual sandbox where you can try new WordPress themes, plugins, and features without affecting any real website.
WordPress Playground differs from a local WordPress environment in several key ways.
First, it doesn’t require installation on your computer and resets after each use, unlike permanent local setups. You can access it from any device with a browser, while local installations are tied to one computer.
While WordPress Playground is ideal for quick tests and learning, a local WordPress environment on your Windows computer offers more flexibility for long-term development projects.
For a detailed walkthrough, check out our guide on how to use WordPress Playground in your browser.
I’ve Installed WordPress on My Windows Computer, What Now?
Now that you have WordPress on your computer, here are some things you can do:
- Learn basic WordPress tips and tricks to use your site better.
- Try different WordPress themes to see how your site can look.
- Install and test must-have WordPress plugins to add new features to your site.
- Learn how to fix common WordPress errors on your own.
- Try different drag-and-drop page builders to make your site look nice.
- Learn how to reset the WordPress admin password on localhost to recover access to your site.
- Set up automated workflows to make managing your site easier.
- Learn about WordPress security to keep your site safe from hackers.
- Move your local WordPress site to a live server when you’re ready to share it with everyone.
We hope this article helped you learn how to install WordPress locally on a Windows computer. You may also want to see our article on how to install WordPress locally on a Mac computer and our ultimate guide to creating a WordPress staging site.
If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.
Pulkit
Thank you so much for this tutorial, it will surely help me a lot
Dubba Ramesh
Very nice tutorial.
its very use full to me..
thank you very much…..
Pradeep
Thank you very much. I was facing trouble earlier doing it and here detailed yet simple steps lead me to finish it. Great work keep doing it.
alex
hi
i do it like u.
but when i fiill everu thing and wana to go to next page to finish set uo the page is wite and dosnt show any thing !!!
i can see the admin page : 127.0.0.1/wp-login.php but the username and password dosnt work !!
what do i do ??
thx
Yvonne
Need help please….
I’ve downloaded wamp and did some set up (followed other instructions on youtube), it is now “online” but when I tried to access phpMyAdmin, it says “#1045 – access denied for user ‘root’@’localhost’, can anyone give me some advice, please?
Thank you so much!!!
sarvesh maurya
I have install wamp server and my wordpress also works very well,
But,
When i going to install any theme or plugin to my wordpress it doesn’t install properly and showing error message in table form which is not understandable for me…………
solve this problem please…….
it is very important……
REPLY FAST PLEASE….
WPBeginner Support
What error message do you see?
Admin
Skippy McGregor
If you’re having issues with this, run WAMP as an administrator (right click from start menu > run as administrator). The icon in the notification area needs to be green.
John
Thank you, I am using Sitegorund servers, but it was very nice to learn how to work offline!
Marcia
Three years ago, I spent days of my life trying to get WordPress running on my computer. I managed to make it work, but the process was very, very painful.
This time around, I followed your concise, clear and excellent instructions. The result: quick and pain-free success. Thank you !!!
WPBeginner Support
Thanks for the feedback. Glad you found this helpful.
Admin
Wayne
Hi there, Worked great. I did find that I was getting a 404 when trying to view the site localhost/mysite/ but when I tried in Chrome Incognito it worked fine. Also, it appears that the configuration file is now created automatically while using WordPress 4.4.1.
Thanks for the tutorial.
Andrew
I’ve installed wordpress into the www folder, Apache is running but when I try with localhost/worpress/ we get a 404 error, how can we fix this?
Tunde
Thank you very much for this tutorial. It works perfectly.
René Rijlart
Helpfulllllll
Chris
I hate this open source garbage. I can never get it to work. I follow the freaking examples perfectly, and I get all kinds of errors and stuff doesn’t work… WordPress and WAMP is freaking CRAP!!!
Peter
Funny comment … Just followed the instructions, downloaded WordPress, and reached the Dashboard. Everything worked smoothly and quickly — five minutes at most. And I am 80 years old — by rights I should be the one to have been lost …
samar
thanks
it’s helpful
Ryan
Sorry, I need a wp-config-sample.php file to work from. Please re-upload this file to your WordPress installation.
How can I resolve this. I have edited and renamed the wp-config.php file but things cant just work for me. Its been two days now. I cant make progress
WPBeginner Support
Download a fresh copy of WordPress to your computer. Unzip the file and then go to WordPress folder. Inside the folder you will find wp-config-sample.php file. You can now upload this file to your website using an FTP client.
Admin
Chris
Hi guys, I also had an issue with the getting a 404 error and permission error. I misinterpreted the text so in case anyone else has done the same let me paraphrase the following paragraph:
“Download a copy of WordPress from WordPress.org. Extract the zip file and copy the wordpress folder. Go to C:\wamp\www and paste wordpress folder there. You can rename the wordpress folder to anything you want for example mysite, wpbeginner, etc”
1) After installing WAMP, in the windows GUI navigate to ‘C:/wamp/www’
2) The drop the extracted WordPress folder (not just the loose files).
I was doing it wrong; I was dropping the loose files from inside WordPress into the www folder and changing the name. It seems this is incorrect.
Enjoy!!
Chris
I installed WAMPServer, clicked on phpMyAdmin, then in the browser I got:
Server Error in ‘/’ Application.
Access is denied.
Description: An error occurred while accessing the resources required to serve this request. The server may not be configured for access to the requested URL.
Error message 401.2.: Unauthorized: Logon failed due to server configuration. Verify that you have permission to view this directory or page based on the credentials you supplied and the authentication methods enabled on the Web server. Contact the Web server’s administrator for additional assistance.
Version Information: Microsoft .NET Framework Version:4.0.30319; ASP.NET Version:4.0.30319.34274
tomi
Hello
When I run http://localhost/mysite/ I get a 404 error. I have no idea how to fix it and could use some help:)
Screenshoted issue: http://prntscr.com/9ft5z6
Thanks in advance!
WPBeginner Support
Make sure apache is running on your computer. If you are using Wamp or Xamp then you can see apache status in your taskbar.
Admin
Sohail Nawaz
thankyou very much.
Soph Desharnais
Great tutorial. No issues and was set up in less than 10 minutes. Thank you.
Tasneem
Hi
Thank you sooo much for this awesome tut, I also have the followup one bookmarked for moving localhost site to live. I am now all set up with my test site on my local server. No more building websites with a maintenance plugin needed!
My question is, do I have to create a new database and new wordpress site for every new site I build, or can I just clean out and reuse this same test_db and localhost/testsite that I created if I don’t need it anymore? what do you guys do?
WPBeginner Support
It is better to create a new test site for any new project.
Admin
Nadia
Hello, thank you for that great tutorial! It works almost perfectly for me. The only problem I have is that I am not allowed to upload images by grad and drop in the media library. I’ve got javascript error “Uncaught TypeError: Cannot read property ‘appendChild’ of null – load-scripts.php:22”
That said it’s not a problem of the upload itself because I am able to upload images via “Media” > “Add New”.
Is it only my problem? I’ll be really grateful for any assistance with it. Thanks!
WPBeginner Support
Please try deactivating all plugins and then adding an image using drag and drop. If this resolves your issue, then one of the plugins installed on your site is conflicting with WordPress core.
Admin
Nadia
Thank you for the prompt reply! NO plugins at all, fresh wp 4.3.1 installation
Nadia
I resolved this by installing XAMPP instead of Wampserver. I had issues with XAMPP as well, and learned to run it as administrator in my Windows 8. It fixed the issues and maybe there was the similar one with the Wampserver.
Anwar Manha
Hi
I tried the exact step but thrown by the below error, could you please advise
( ! ) Warning: require(C:\wamp\www\test1/wp-includes/load.php): failed to open stream: No such file or directory in C:\wamp\www\test\wp-settings.php on line 21
Call Stack
Daniel
Hi, i have made a website using the WAMP-server.
When try to acess the website from my phone to check the responsivness, all i get is the the text from the website. No styling or pictures are shown.
Is there any type of settings that i have to enable?
John van Rems
Maybe I’m stupid but after installing the Wampserver I try to open phpMyAdmin to setup a database but instate of getting a page like the example the browserpage is empty… Logic I guess because Apage doesn’t run so I can’t see php pages on a local machine.
I try to run it on Windows 10 Can you tell me what’s wrong?
John
John van Rems
Problem solved by correcting te Windows 10 Internetport to 8080
Now to find out how to connect the php db to my wordpress
tsega
hi
Nice post. I find it helpful but i wonder how can i use my own them. Can you give as your expertise on that ?
Keith in Winchester
A full day of headbanging and I was just about to give up when I found this invaluable site. Could not have been made easier. Follow the well laid out instructions and you will find it a breeze. Great work and Many Thanks.
Medha
Thank you so much, this really helped!
John
Hi,
I followed all the instructions up to the point where i go through my web browser to localhost/mysite. I get the error “wp-seetings.php is missing” however the link you provided to create a configuration file is empty. How do i create “wp-settings.php”?
Thanks
Ahsan
Thanks guys, it was surely a great help!
sandeep
thank you so much. very good tutorial.
Mike
This is a real beauty! Thanks so much. I know HTML, CSS, JavaScript, PHP, a very little MySQL — no genius at some of it, but I know what I’m doing. But an organization I’m involved with may wind up using WordPress and I’ve never liked these WYSIWYGs. Since I do want to learn the stuff, though, I wanted to give it a swing on localhost rather than messing up my own GoDaddy- and Netfirms-hosted domains.
Just follow your directions and this installs beautifully. One question, though. Is there any particular book you’d recommend? I was particularly looking at the Dummies All-in-One and the Missing Manuals books. Is one better than the other? Or do you recommend a third alternative? I don’t want to buy a whole library full of this stuff for a technology I may never use that much except for helping this organization with upkeep.
WPBeginner Support
Check out WordPress Books section on our website.
Admin
Liana
after I click on the phpadmin all I get is a blank page with nothing on it :/
raydy
Hi There, Thanks for the tutorial
however, i encounter with this problem for localhost/mysite/
Not Found
The requested URL /mysite/ was not found on this server.
Apache/2.4.9 (Win32) PHP/5.5.12 Server at localhost Port 80
Alok
Hi,
I am also facing the same problem…Did you get the solution? Can you please help.
Regards,
Alok
Mike
Thumbs up mate,
Great guide…it was very helpful!
Julian
Please help. This is what I get:
“Not Found
The requested URL /mysite/ was not found on this server.
Apache/2.4.9 (Win64) PHP/5.5.12 Server at localhost Port 80”
I took my wordpress folder and dropped it in the wamp folder, C:\wamp\www. I renamed my wordpress folder to: “mysite”. I then went to Chrome and searched: “localhost/mysite/”. And I get:
“Not Found
The requested URL /mysite/ was not found on this server.
Apache/2.4.9 (Win64) PHP/5.5.12 Server at localhost Port 80.”
Kyle
Burnt out. Seriously. Help.
No manner of step by step instruction is working and I’m pulling out my hair. What am I missing?
“Download a copy of WordPress from WordPress.org. Extract the zip file and copy the wordpress folder. Go to C:\wamp\www and paste wordpress folder there. You can rename the wordpress folder to anything you want for example mysite, wpbeginner, etc. For the sake of this tutorial, we renamed our wordpress directory to mysite. Now open a web browser and go to:
http://localhost/mysite/”
C:\wamp\www ???
First off, there is no folder titled “www,” so maybe you’re implying the website name take that place? I don’t really know.
Still, I tested all methods. I tried creating a folder called ‘www,’ I tried simply C:\mamp\sitename, But when I type in the “localhost/sitename” absolutely nothing happens.
I have experience doing website redesigns and all I want to do is clone this site to my local host and I am baffled at how I’ve spent 2 whole days just trying to get WordPress isn’t even installed on my local host.
Thank you in advance.
Composed under duress.
Captain
Hello Kyle, sorry for your sad experience.
You said you don’t see a folder called “www” on C:\wamp.
Can you check to confirm that you have wampserver installed on your computer?
Also, it could be it’s installed but not on the C drive.
Do get back when you confirm; cos the tutorial was quite straight and worked really well for me.
aman
After installing WAMP server and clicking on phpmyadmin there is an error that says Access Denied and no other option is displayed. Please Help me
DutchLuck
Great tutorial, sweet and simple!!! Thanks!!!
Karthikeyan
Good Example.Its working fine for me.
Thank you all..
Janvi
hi
i m not getting create configuration file option
WPBeginner Support
Your WordPress folder may already have a wp-config.php file. This file may not have correct information for your WordPress database settings. Please see our guide on editing wp-config.php file in WordPress.
Admin
Samantha T
Sooooooooooooooooooooo… I uninstalled everything and reinstalled. Now I have an orange light on the Wamp, and when I open phpMyAdmin, I get “Access denied”: MySQL said: Documentation
#1045 – Access denied for user ‘root’@’localhost’ (using password: NO)
phpMyAdmin tried to connect to the MySQL server, and the server rejected the connection. You should check the host, username and password in your configuration and make sure that they correspond to the information given by the administrator of the MySQL server.
*sigh*
Joe
OK, how do you do that?
odion
After installation of wordpress in my computer, I did not receive a success message but a blank white page and am not able to login into the wp-admin.
odion ikhidero
Pls I got. The following errors after installation
Sansun
I already have MySQL server running in my local 3306 port, how do I install WAMP in my case?
Aamir
Thanks for the help.
I have been taking help from your immensely helpful site. It is a great service that you guys are providing.
Jim14409
Hi,
)
Thanks for your site and all the help you offer. I installed WAMP and everything went perfectly until I reached the part where you said:
“WordPress will inform you that it can not find a wp-config.php file.”
Well WP never said that :0 but sent me directly to a Directory of “JimSite” with links there to Parent Directory and a link to WordPress. Finally clicked the WordPress link and now it seems we are heading to the config-php setup. (I’ll holler back if the trail dead-ends
Thought you might want to amend your guide with a note about this possibility for some users so as to save them the confusion and frustration I’ve had the past half hour. Might have something to do with my using Vista64, I’m not sure.
Thanks again and for your nice email when I signed up.
Jim
Markus
Thanks for this nice tutorial. Its really helpful, and works like a charme to set up.
The skype addition about the port issue with wamp helped me also – sometimes wamp just wouldn’t work and I didn’t know why. (I’m using skype just once in a while..)
I’ve got another question though: How to move a live website to localhost for development.
I’m not really sure how to go about it. Copy everything (including db) and change the settings in the config file of wordpress. or install wordpress and then migrate the database somehow, and add the other special content…
WPBeginner Support
See how to move a live WordPress site to local server.
Admin
Samuel
Thanks
But I have an issue. After installation, I got a prompt “The program can’t start because MSVCR110.dll is missing from your computer, Try reinstalling the program to fix the problem”
What do I do?
Dev Enthusiast
Hi Samuel,
The error that you received can be fixed by downloading and installing the following from Microsoft:
Visual C++ Redistributable
Give that a try!