WP Manifestindependent plugin directory
manifest / admin / postcleaner

PostCleaner

Bulk delete WordPress posts & featured images by category. Multi-category selection, preview, batch processing with progress bar.

by Yemen TV Media · github.com/alahdal262/postcleaner · website

★ 0stars

Install

Download source zip No release zip yet

This is the repository archive. It installs, but the folder name will carry the branch suffix and updates will not flow.

Install straight from GitHub with WP-CLI:

wp plugin install https://github.com/alahdal262/postcleaner/archive/refs/heads/main.zip
No built-in updater. New versions won't appear under Dashboard → Updates. Install new releases yourself, or let Git Updater track the repository.
Readme github.com/alahdal262/postcleaner ↗

PostCleaner Banner

Bulk delete WordPress posts and their featured images by category. Multi-category selection, preview before delete, batch processing with progress bar and stop button.

Built for news sites and content-heavy WordPress installations where you need to clean up thousands of posts at once without crashing your server.

Features

  • Multi-Category Selection — Pick one or many categories at once with search and select all/none
  • Preview Before Delete — See every post (with thumbnail, title, category, date, status) before confirming
  • Batch Processing — Deletes 5 posts per request to avoid server WAF/timeout blocks
  • Progress Bar — Real-time progress with percentage and post count
  • Stop Button — Pause deletion at any time, keep what's already deleted
  • Image Cleanup — Automatically removes featured images (attachments) along with posts
  • Safe & Secure — WordPress nonce verification, capability checks, confirmation dialog

Screenshot

PostCleaner Interface

Installation

  1. Download or clone this repository
  2. Upload the postcleaner folder to /wp-content/plugins/
  3. Activate PostCleaner in WordPress Plugins
  4. Go to PostCleaner in the admin sidebar

Usage

Step 1: Select Categories

  • Search categories by name
  • Check the ones you want to clean up
  • Optionally include posts without featured images
  • Click Preview Posts

Step 2: Review & Delete

  • Browse the post list with thumbnails
  • Uncheck any posts you want to keep
  • Click Delete Selected Posts & Images
  • Confirm the permanent deletion dialog
  • Watch the progress bar — click Stop anytime

How It Works

  • Posts are deleted in batches of 5 via AJAX to avoid server 403/timeout errors
  • Featured images (WordPress attachments) are force-deleted along with their posts
  • Failed batches auto-retry once after a 2-second cooldown
  • All operations require manage_options capability (admin only)

Requirements

  • WordPress 5.0+
  • PHP 7.4+
  • Admin access (manage_options capability)

License

GPL-2.0-or-later

Author

Yemen TV Media — yementv.tv