WP MCP self-updates

Tested with Elementor: 4.x Stable tag: 2.13.0 License: GPL-2.0-or-later

Turns a WordPress site into its own remote MCP server, so Claude (web, Desktop, Cowork, Claude Code), Gemini or any MCP client can manage pages, posts, custom post types, media, taxonomies, WooCommerce stores and Elementor layouts. No local software needed.

Upgrading to 2.1.0

Deactivate the previous plugin before installing and activating this version. The entry file is now wp-mcp.php, and all internal identifiers use WPMCP/wpmcp. Activation creates new settings and a new API key; previous settings and keys are not migrated. Review the enabled setting in the WP MCP admin menu. Copy the new connection URL into each MCP client. Previous endpoint URLs, custom header names, query parameters, and filter names are no longer supported.

Connecting

The WP MCP admin menu (also linked as Settings on the Plugins screen) shows both URLs ready to paste.

Recommended -- key in a request header: https://SITE/wp-json/wpmcp/v1/mcp header: x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY Alternatively use Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY. Select No sign-in in clients that distinguish OAuth from API-key authentication. The clean URL requires a header; it does not allow anonymous access.

Compatibility -- key in the URL (content tools only): https://SITE/wp-json/wpmcp/v1/mcp/YOUR_API_KEY Requires Allow API keys in URLs in settings, which is off on new installs (sites that already had the plugin keep their current setting). Query-string keys are not accepted.

Requirements: the site must be on HTTPS, and permalinks must not be set to "Plain" (otherwise /wp-json/ 404s).

Tools (38, and 19 more with WooCommerce)

wp_ping, wp_list_post_types, wp_list_content, wp_get_content, wp_create_content, wp_update_content, wp_delete_content, wp_get_elementor, wp_set_elementor, wp_upload_media, wp_list_media, wp_list_terms, wp_create_term, wp_list_extensions, wp_install_extension, wp_list_extension_files, wp_read_extension_file, wp_edit_extension_file, wp_list_file_backups, wp_restore_extension_file, wp_set_extension_active, wp_list_history, wp_rollback, wp_list_block_types, wp_get_blocks, wp_set_blocks, wp_get_divi, wp_set_divi, wp_clear_cache, wp_get_settings, wp_update_settings, wp_acf_list, wp_acf_save_post_type, wp_acf_save_taxonomy, wp_acf_save_field_group, wp_acf_delete, wp_acf_get_values, wp_acf_set_values.

With WooCommerce active, 19 more are offered: wp_woo_overview, wp_woo_list_products, wp_woo_get_product, wp_woo_list_config, wp_woo_sales_summary, wp_woo_list_orders, wp_woo_get_order, wp_woo_list_customers, wp_woo_save_product, wp_woo_save_variation, wp_woo_bulk_update, wp_woo_save_category, wp_woo_save_coupon, wp_woo_create_order, wp_woo_update_order, wp_woo_save_attribute, wp_woo_update_settings, wp_woo_refund_order, wp_woo_delete. Sites without WooCommerce see exactly the tools they always did.

WooCommerce

Everything goes through WooCommerce's own product, order, coupon and attribute functions, so stock, prices, lookup tables, caches and order rules behave as they do in the WooCommerce admin. WP MCP never writes WooCommerce's tables directly, and it declares itself compatible with High-Performance Order Storage.

Products: wp_woo_save_product creates and updates simple, variable, grouped and external products (name, descriptions, SKU, prices and sale dates, stock, tax, size and weight, shipping class, categories, tags, images, attributes, downloads, linked products, custom fields). wp_woo_save_variation adds and edits variations of a variable product, and wp_woo_bulk_update changes prices and stock for up to 100 products or variations at once. wp_woo_save_category, wp_woo_save_coupon and wp_woo_save_attribute manage categories, coupons and global attributes.

Orders: wp_woo_create_order, wp_woo_update_order (status, addresses, notes), wp_woo_refund_order, wp_woo_list_orders, wp_woo_get_order, wp_woo_list_customers and wp_woo_sales_summary. Changing an order status can make WooCommerce email the customer, exactly as it does for a store manager; a refund only records the refund unless refund_payment is true, in which case the payment gateway returns the money.

Reading the store: wp_woo_overview (version, currency, counts, settings) and wp_woo_list_config (attributes, categories, shipping zones and classes, payment gateways without keys, tax rates, order statuses, coupons). Shipping zones, payment gateways and tax rates are read-only here on purpose. wp_woo_update_settings changes a short allowlist of store settings (address, currency and price format, taxes, coupons, stock thresholds, guest checkout, reviews, units). Gateway keys, emails and URLs cannot be changed.

Everything is checked before anything is saved. Changes are in the history and can be rolled back, except refunds, permanent deletes and deleting an attribute. wp_create_content, wp_update_content and wp_delete_content refuse products, orders and coupons while WooCommerce is active, so they cannot skip WooCommerce's rules. Orders and customers hold personal details, so reading them needs Read and edit. Refunds, deletes, store settings and global attributes need Full access.

Advanced Custom Fields

Works with the free ACF plugin (6.1 or newer for post types and taxonomies) and ACF Pro. Everything goes through ACF's own functions, so ACF registers post types and taxonomies itself and keeps its field references correct.

wp_acf_list reads field groups (and their fields), ACF post types, taxonomies, options pages (Pro) and the field types available. wp_acf_save_post_type and wp_acf_save_taxonomy create or update custom post types and taxonomies from a slug, singular and plural names and a small set of checked settings; WordPress's reserved names and names owned by another plugin are refused. wp_acf_save_field_group creates or updates a field group and its fields from a plain description (repeater, flexible content, gallery and clone need ACF Pro and are refused on the free plugin). wp_acf_get_values and wp_acf_set_values read and write field values for posts, options pages, users and terms, and wp_create_content and wp_update_content accept an "acf" object. Setting a value that no ACF field defines is refused rather than saved as loose meta. Every change is in the history and can be rolled back. Creating or deleting post types, taxonomies and field groups needs Full access; setting values needs Read and edit; reading needs Read only.

Access levels

Each connected app has an access level, chosen when you approve it and changeable later in Connected apps:

Read only      look at content, layouts, settings and history; change nothing (14 tools, 19 with WooCommerce)
Read and edit  also create and edit content, layouts and media, clear caches and undo (24 tools, 39 with WooCommerce)
Full access    everything that is switched on, including delete, settings and plugin tools (all)

Approval defaults to Read and edit. An app is only offered the tools its level allows, and a refused call explains which level is needed. Undoing a change needs the level that could have made it. The API key has its own level under Security; it stays at Full access unless you lower it, and connections made before levels existed keep Full access. A tool that has not been placed in a level is available at Full access only.

Page builders, cache and settings

wp_ping reports each page's editor ("builder": gutenberg, elementor, divi or classic), the Divi version and generation, and which cache plugins were found. Use the tools that match the builder and do not mix editors on one page.

Gutenberg: wp_get_blocks (summary, then one block by index) and wp_set_blocks write block markup (replace, append, prepend, insert, replace_block). Every block comment must be closed in order and its attributes must be valid JSON, otherwise nothing is saved. Unregistered blocks are reported as warnings. wp_list_block_types shows what is available.

Divi 4: wp_get_divi and wp_set_divi read and write shortcode layouts section by section. Nesting is checked, the Divi Builder is switched on for the page and Divi's cached CSS is cleared. Divi 5 stores layouts as blocks, so use the Gutenberg tools there.

wp_clear_cache clears the object cache, expired transients, Elementor CSS, Divi static resources and the page cache plugin if present (LiteSpeed, WP Rocket, W3 Total Cache, WP Super Cache, WP Fastest Cache, Autoptimize, SiteGround, Cache Enabler, Breeze, Hummingbird, Nginx Helper). CDN and host-level caches are outside WordPress.

wp_get_settings and wp_update_settings cover title, tagline, timezone, date and time format, posts per page, homepage and posts page, search engine visibility, comment defaults and the permalink structure. Values are validated together, previous values are saved for rollback, and URLs, the admin email, registration and roles cannot be changed.

wp_set_extension_active activates or deactivates a plugin or switches the theme. It is off until you turn on Allow activation, and WP MCP cannot deactivate itself.

With an API key the requests run without a WordPress user, so WordPress may filter some HTML (for example scripts or iframes) from content. Connecting through OAuth runs them as the administrator who approved the app.

Change history and rollback

Every write made through WP MCP is recorded (the connected app or API key, what changed, when) in the History tab, with what is needed to undo it: content and meta fields, terms, featured image and Elementor layout are restored from a snapshot of only what the call touched; created items are trashed; deleted items are restored (permanent deletes come back with the same ID); uploads and terms are removed; file edits restore their pre-edit snapshot. If an item was edited after the change, rollback asks for confirmation before overwriting those edits. The latest 300 changes are kept for 90 days. AI apps can use wp_list_history and wp_rollback. Plugin and theme installs are recorded but cannot be undone.

File safety and recovery (2.3.0)

PHP edits are parsed without execution on the server's PHP version before writing. Missing or escaped opening tags, BOMs and new non-whitespace text outside PHP in previously PHP-only files are rejected. functions.php must remain PHP-only. Existing mixed HTML/PHP templates remain supported. JSON edits must parse. These checks do not detect every runtime or logic error.

Use dry_run=true on wp_edit_extension_file before applying an edit. Every write is checked again, then saves the old contents to a non-autoloaded database option. If the snapshot cannot be saved, the write is refused. Ten snapshots are retained per file. They can contain sensitive source, are not placed in a public uploads folder, and are included in database backups. Storage grows with the number of distinct files edited.

wp_list_file_backups takes kind, extension, file and lists snapshot metadata. wp_restore_extension_file takes kind, extension, file, backup_id and the expected_sha256 of the current file. It applies the same permissions and validation as editing and snapshots the current file before restoring. These tools require WordPress, the database and the MCP endpoint to work. They cannot resurrect a failed WordPress bootstrap or repair hosting outages. Snapshots cover only edits made through this version, not earlier changes.

Read -> dry run -> edit one file -> wp_ping -> inspect affected page. If responses become malformed or unavailable, stop editing and restore the last changed file using a known-good hosting backup via file manager/SFTP. WordPress Recovery Mode may help regain admin access after a fatal error. Do not blindly decode HTML entities across an entire file. Keep independent hosting backups and a staging site for runtime testing. No hosting access, standalone rescue endpoint, or full-site backup is provided.

Plugin and theme access

Version 2.2.0 adds opt-in extension tools. Existing content access is unchanged. Save extension permissions in the WP MCP admin menu as an administrator. The key delegates these operations to that administrator; permissions are rechecked on every call. Installation and editing have separate switches, off by default. HTTPS and header authentication are mandatory for all extension tools. Multisite is not supported. WordPress file modification restrictions apply.

Use kind="plugin" or kind="theme". List installed extensions to get identifiers. Install using a WordPress.org slug. Custom ZIP URLs, activation, updates, deletion, and creating new source files are not supported in this release. Installed extensions remain inactive.

List files, then read a file to obtain its sha256. Pass that value as expected_sha256 with the replacement content when editing. Files are limited to 100 KB. Existing WordPress editor rules and PHP loopback error checks apply; these are not a substitute for backups or staging, especially for inactive code. Remote installation requires direct filesystem access.

Call wp_ping first. It reports the Elementor version and editor generation (v3-classic vs v4-atomic), which decides the JSON shape wp_set_elementor needs.

Working with big Elementor pages

A single builder page often exceeds a client's tool-result cap (~150,000 chars on Claude.ai / Desktop). Read a layout in stages:

wp_get_elementor { id }                    -> whole tree
wp_get_elementor { id, summary: true }     -> outline only (auto-depth)
wp_get_elementor { id, index: 3 }          -> one top-level section, in full
wp_get_elementor { id, depth: 2 }          -> tree cut off below level 2
wp_get_content   { ..., include_elementor: false }

Write it back in pieces instead of resending the whole tree. Make the first array item a marker:

[{"elType":"__append__"}, ...]                  append after the last section
[{"elType":"__replace__","index":3}, ...]       swap top-level section 3
[{"elType":"__insert__","index":0}, ...]        insert before section 0

With no marker, "elements" replaces the entire layout (v1.x behaviour). wp_set_elementor also accepts "page_settings" for _elementor_page_settings, on its own or alongside elements.

Fonts

The admin screen bundles the Inter typeface (SIL Open Font License 1.1, see assets/fonts/Inter-LICENSE.txt). Nothing is loaded from external servers.

Changelog

2.13.0

• WooCommerce support: manage products (simple, variable, grouped and external), variations, categories, coupons and global attributes, update prices and stock in bulk, create and update orders, refund, and read sales, customers and store setup. 19 new tools, offered only while WooCommerce is active.
• Everything goes through WooCommerce's own functions, is checked before it is saved, and is recorded so it can be rolled back (refunds, permanent deletes and deleting an attribute cannot be undone).
• Orders and customers need Read and edit access; refunds, deletes, store settings and attributes need Full access. Declared compatible with High-Performance Order Storage.
• The generic page and post tools now refuse products, orders and coupons while WooCommerce is active.

2.12.2

• The approve screen for connecting an AI app now matches the rest of WP MCP: brand header, a clear card, access levels as selectable cards, and the same buttons. Other plugins' notices no longer appear on it.

2.12.1

• Sign-in discovery and token responses are now marked uncacheable for LiteSpeed and other page caches. LiteSpeed had been keeping the discovery data for a week, which could leave a connector with stale sign-in details.

2.12.0

• Advanced Custom Fields support, for the free plugin and ACF Pro: create and update custom post types, taxonomies and field groups, and read and write field values, through ACF's own functions. Seven new tools (38 in total).
• wp_create_content and wp_update_content take an acf object so a post and its custom fields are saved in one call.
• ACF changes are recorded in the history and can be rolled back; the Works with section and System health show whether ACF is installed.

2.11.4

• The header icon is now the updated WP MCP mark in the brand orange.

2.11.3

• The admin header now shows the WP MCP icon instead of a generic bolt. The image is bundled with the plugin.

2.11.2

• The note beside Save settings now says activation, as well as installation and editing, needs extension access.

2.11.1

• Fixed: in the Security tab the API key field and the key-in-URL showed "full" instead of the key (the access level picker reused the same variable). The stored key was never changed; it is shown correctly again. If you copied the key from 2.11.0, copy it again.
• No focus outline is left on icon buttons after a mouse click.

2.11.0

• Access levels for connected apps: Read only, Read and edit, or Full access. Choose one when you approve an app (Read and edit is preselected) and change it any time in Connected apps; it applies on the app's next request.
• Apps are only offered the tools their level allows, and refused calls say which level is needed. Undoing a change needs the level that could have made it.
• The API key has its own level in the Security tab. Existing connections and the API key stay at Full access until you change them.

2.10.2

• New Works with section on the Connect tab: Gutenberg, Elementor 3 and 4, Divi 4 and 5, content, caches and settings, with what is active on this site.
• Health checks moved to the System tab, with optional items (Elementor, Divi, page cache) shown as information instead of warnings.
• The blue focus ring that WordPress adds to buttons and links no longer appears after a click; keyboard focus still shows a coral outline.

2.10.1

• Cleaner admin screen: notices from other plugins no longer appear on it, the server status pill and footer credit are gone, and the focus outline on tabs no longer shows a blue box.
• The Tools tab is now a compact list (name, access level, and why a tool is off) instead of a table with descriptions; hover a row for what it does.
• Show and copy are icon buttons, and collapsible sections use a chevron.

2.10.0

• Block editor (Gutenberg) tools: read blocks as an outline or one block at a time, and write block markup with replace, append, prepend, insert and replace-block modes. Markup is validated before saving.
• Divi 4 tools: read and write shortcode layouts section by section, with nesting checks. Divi 5 sites are pointed at the block tools.
• Clear caches from the assistant: object cache, transients, Elementor, Divi and eleven page cache plugins.
• Read and change common site settings, with validation and rollback.
• Activate or deactivate plugins and switch themes (off until you turn on Allow activation).
• wp_ping and wp_get_content now say which editor built each page and which cache plugins are installed.

2.9.2

• Cleaner typography: the admin screen now uses the Inter typeface, bundled with the plugin (no external font requests), with regular, medium, semibold and bold weights used consistently.

2.9.1

• Removed the headline banner from the Connect tab so the connect panel is the first thing you see.

2.9.0

• New look for the admin screen: warm off-white with coral and outlined buttons, a headline banner on the Connect tab, and icons throughout.
• A sidebar on every tab with update notice, What's new (read from this changelog), a health checklist and links to documentation and issues.
• After each update a What's new banner shows the latest changes, with a Got it button to dismiss it.

2.8.0

• History tab and rollback: every change made through WP MCP is recorded and can be undone from the admin screen, or by an app with wp_list_history and wp_rollback.
• Fixed: backslashes in post content and custom fields were removed when saving through WP MCP. They are now kept.

2.7.0

• Redesigned admin screen with four tabs: Connect (status tiles, connect an app, connected apps), Tools (all 20 tools with access level and whether each is on), Security (access switches, API key, built-in protection) and System (version and update check, site details, endpoints, file safety and recovery).
• The sidebar panels and long sections were removed from the main screen. Settings forms return to the tab they were saved from.
• The header shows when an update is available.

2.6.2

• After you click Connect with Claude, the WP MCP page watches for the connection to finish, tries to close the Claude tab it opened, and reloads with a Claude is connected notice and the Connected apps list updated.

2.6.1

• Connect with Claude is now one button: it opens Claude's add-connector dialog with this site's name and URL already filled in (Anthropic's documented install link), including a link for Team and Enterprise owners. The server URL moved under Manual setup.

2.6.0

• New connect screen: pick your AI app (Claude, ChatGPT, Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code or other) and follow one-click steps. Copy-and-open for Claude and ChatGPT, a ready command for Claude Code, Add to Cursor and Add to VS Code links.
• Connected apps list with a Revoke button that cuts access immediately.
• Setting to turn OAuth sign-in on or off. The API key moved under Advanced.
• Consent page recognizes Cursor and VS Code return addresses.

2.5.0

• Sign in with OAuth: add the server URL as a connector, click Connect and approve in wp-admin. No API key to copy. Administrators approve; the app acts as that administrator.
• Requests with no credentials get a 401 challenge that starts OAuth. A wrong API key is still 403, and API keys keep working.
• Discovery documents at /.well-known/oauth-authorization-server and /.well-known/oauth-protected-resource. Disable with the wpmcp_oauth_enabled option.

2.4.2

• Check for updates link on the Plugins screen looks up the latest GitHub release immediately.

2.4.1

• Update checks refresh hourly, and Dashboard > Updates > Check Again bypasses the cache.

2.4.0

• Updates are offered in the WordPress Plugins screen from GitHub releases (SaifullahQadeer/wpmcp). Publish a release tagged vX.Y.Z with a version higher than the installed one. For a private repository, define WPMCP_GITHUB_TOKEN in wp-config.php with a read-only token.
• WP MCP now has its own top-level admin menu instead of a Settings submenu, plus a Settings link before Deactivate on the Plugins screen.
• Missing or invalid API keys return 403 on every route, not 401.
• New installs start with API keys in URLs disabled; existing sites are unchanged.
• Ten invalid keys from one address within 15 minutes block further attempts from it for 15 minutes (HTTP 429). Behind a proxy or CDN, return the real client address from the wpmcp_client_ip filter.

2.3.0

• PHP and JSON preflight validation, including escaped/missing PHP tag checks.
• Dry-run validation and required pre-edit snapshots (ten per file).
• Snapshot listing and restore tools with existing authentication and permissions.
• Recovery guidance in admin and MCP instructions.

2.2.0

• Redesigned settings page with masked keys, copy controls and access settings.
• Header-first authentication and optional URL authentication.
• Five opt-in MCP tools for plugin/theme inventory, installation and file editing.
• Administrator capability checks, HTTPS/header requirements and stale-edit hashes.

2.1.0

• Renamed identifiers, entry file, routes and API-key prefix to WP MCP.

2.0.1

• A wrong or missing API key now returns 403, not 401. A 401 made Claude treat the endpoint as an OAuth server: it probed for protected-resource metadata, found none, fell back to Dynamic Client Registration and failed with "Couldn't register with the sign-in service". This server uses a static API key and has no authorization server, so 403 is the honest answer and Claude reports a plain connection error instead of a broken sign-in flow.
• Removed the WWW-Authenticate challenge header for the same reason.
• Admin page makes Option A (key in the URL) the default and warns that the header URL must not be pasted into Claude on its own.

2.0.0

• MCP protocol is now negotiated, not echoed. Supports 2026-07-28 (stateless), 2025-11-25, 2025-06-18 and 2025-03-26; answers 2025-11-25 to unknown clients instead of blindly agreeing to a revision it does not implement.
• Added server/discover, resultType, and ttlMs/cacheScope on tools/list for the 2026-07-28 stateless revision. MCP-Protocol-Version is validated and echoed.
• Header auth: x-api-key (Claude's static_headers option), X-WPMCP-Key, or Authorization: Bearer. The key-in-URL endpoint still works unchanged.
• Origin header is validated and rejected with 403 (DNS-rebinding protection), as the 2025-11-25 revision requires. Filter: wpmcp_allowed_origins.
• 401 responses now carry a WWW-Authenticate challenge, so a wrong key reports as an auth failure instead of "couldn't reach the server".
• Tool-result size guard at 140,000 characters (filter: wpmcp_max_result_chars). Oversized reads return an actionable error naming the arguments to retry with, instead of a payload the client silently truncates.
• Every tool now carries a title and behaviour annotations (readOnlyHint, destructiveHint, idempotentHint, openWorldHint). Small results also return structuredContent alongside the text block.
• wp_get_elementor gained summary / index / depth, and returns page settings and the Elementor environment. Outline depth degrades automatically to fit.
• wp_set_elementor gained replace and insert markers plus page_settings.
• wp_ping reports PHP version, Elementor version, and the editor generation (v3-classic / v4-atomic) so generated JSON matches the site.
• wp_get_content gained include_elementor.
• prompts/list, resources/list and DELETE are answered instead of erroring.
• Admin page warns about non-HTTPS sites and Plain permalinks, shows the Elementor generation, and drops the obsolete Node server instructions.
• _elementor_page_assets is cleared on write so Elementor rebuilds its asset map.

1.0.2

• Embedded MCP server (Streamable HTTP, JSON mode), 13 tools, Elementor read/write, admin settings page.