How to Install WordPress on Hostinger (Step-by-Step, 2026)

Installing WordPress sounds like the hard part if you have never set up a website. On Hostinger it is not. Buy a hosting plan, click through a short installer in hPanel, and log in to a fresh WordPress dashboard. No code, no file uploads, no database setup by hand.

This guide covers the full process: what you need first, the exact clicks in hPanel, and the settings worth changing in the first hour. It assumes you have never touched WordPress.

Before you start: the short checklist

• A Hostinger hosting plan. Any shared or WordPress hosting plan includes the 1-click installer.
• A domain name. Annual plans include a free domain for the first year. Pick it at checkout, or connect a domain you already own.
• An email address you actually check. This becomes your WordPress admin email, so password resets go there.
• A strong admin password, saved somewhere safe. Use a password manager, and do not reuse your Hostinger account password for WordPress.
• About half an hour, unhurried. The installer itself takes around two minutes once you are in hPanel.

Step 1: Choose a Hostinger plan and a domain

Start at Hostinger and pick a plan. For a first site, Premium is the sensible starting point; Unlimited costs a little more and suits you if you will run more than one site. For the full picture of what Hostinger does well and where it falls short, read our Hostinger review first.

At the time of writing, Hostinger's Black Friday sale runs from 19 October to 14 December 2026. Premium is $1.99 a month (85% off) on a 48-month term — $95.52 upfront — renewing at $10.99 a month. Unlimited is $2.79 a month (85% off). No coupon code is needed, and Premium includes a free domain for the first year, free SSL, and free weekly backups.

Check two things before you pay. Prices exclude VAT and change often, so confirm the current price on Hostinger's pricing page before buying. And the renewal price matters more than the intro price: Premium at $10.99 a month is a different cost from $1.99, and that is the number that counts from year two. Our guide to the real cost of WordPress hosting renewals breaks down the math.

Pick your domain at checkout, spell it carefully, and double-check it before you pay — a typo costs money to fix.

Step 2: Open hPanel and start the installer

There are two routes into the installer, depending on whether your account is new or you already have a plan.

If you just bought hosting, the onboarding wizard starts right after purchase and installs WordPress for you. Follow the on-screen chat: pick a domain, create your login details, and choose a blank site or a Hostinger-generated starter. The install takes about two minutes.

If you already have a hosting plan, log in to hPanel, go to Websites, and click Dashboard next to your site. Then go to Website → WordPress Install and click Install. Or go to Websites → Create website → WordPress. Either path opens the same installer.

One warning: installing WordPress overwrites any existing files on that website, so back up anything you care about first. On a fresh plan with a new domain there is nothing to lose.

Step 3: Fill in your admin details

The first installer screen asks for your site credentials.

• Website title. The name of your site. You can change it later, so do not overthink it.
• Administrator email. Usually prefilled with your Hostinger account email. Use an address you check — password resets go there.
• Administrator username. Do not use "admin". It is the first username every automated login attack tries.
• Administrator password. Long, random, and stored in a password manager. This login guards your whole site.

Click Advanced to see the extra options, but leave them alone. Keep Create new database switched on — the installer sets up the database for you. Leave the installation path empty so WordPress installs on your main domain; only fill in a subdirectory if you deliberately want it in a folder like yoursite.com/blog.

Click Next. Leave the WordPress version on the latest available, pick your language, and keep Update only to minor version selected — security and bug fixes install automatically, bigger upgrades wait for your approval. If the installer flags a PHP conflict, switch PHP versions from the same screen. Click Install and wait a few seconds.

Step 4: Pick a theme and finish the first setup

Once WordPress is installed you land in the dashboard, and the theme is the next decision. Hostinger may offer a starter site or a blank one first.

Go to Appearance → Themes and pick something light and simple — you can change it any time without losing content. Do not install ten themes "to try later"; pick one and move on. Browse the free themes inside WordPress rather than downloading files from random sites.

Hostinger also drops an onboarding checklist into your dashboard, covering your domain, plugins, and basic setup in one place. Work through it and skip what does not apply.

Step 5: Check SSL, then log in at /wp-admin

Before you share the site with anyone, check the padlock. Hostinger activates SSL automatically when you connect a domain, and your hPanel dashboard shows the SSL status plus a Force HTTPS toggle. Open your site and look for the padlock next to the address. If it is there, you are done.

If the site still loads over http, give it a little while — SSL can take some time to activate — then check the SSL section in hPanel. Fix the padlock before you build pages or share links.

To log in, go to yourdomain.com/wp-admin and enter the admin username and password from Step 3. Or go to Websites in hPanel and click the WP Admin button next to your site. Bookmark the login page.

What to do right after install

WordPress works out of the box, but fix these defaults in the first hour — none of it takes long.

• Fix your permalinks. Go to Settings → Permalinks and choose Post name. The default plain URLs with ?p=123 look bad and are awkward to share. Change this before you publish anything.
• Delete the default content. WordPress ships with a "Hello world!" post, a sample page, and a default comment. Delete all three.
• Check your title, tagline, and timezone. Under Settings → General, make sure the title matches your site and the tagline says something real — or remove it. Set the timezone to your own while you are there, so scheduled posts publish when you expect.
• Install three plugins — and only three, for now. A security plugin (Wordfence), a backup plugin (UpdraftPlus), and an SEO plugin (Rank Math or Yoast SEO). One of each — overlapping plugins cause more trouble than they solve.
• Run a backup. Premium includes free weekly backups, but run one yourself once the basics are in place. The first backup should happen before you need it, not after something breaks.

Common mistakes (and how to avoid them)

The same few mistakes cause most failed installs:

• Using "admin" as the username. It is the first guess in every automated login attack.
• A weak or reused password. Your admin login is the key to the whole site. If it matches your email password, one leak opens everything.
• Installing WordPress in a subdirectory by accident. If the installation path field has anything in it, your site lives at yoursite.com/folder instead of yoursite.com. Check it is empty before you click Install.
• Building on http and ignoring SSL. The padlock is not decoration. Fix it before you publish or share a single link.
• Judging the cost by the intro price alone. The $1.99 headline is a first-term price; the renewal rate is what you pay for years.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a domain before installing WordPress on Hostinger?

No. Annual plans include a free domain for the first year, chosen during checkout. You can also start with a temporary domain and connect a real one later.

Is WordPress itself free?

Yes. WordPress is free, open-source software. You pay for hosting and the domain name, not for WordPress itself.

How long does it take to install WordPress on Hostinger?

The installer takes about two minutes, according to Hostinger. The full process — checkout, domain, install, first settings — fits in one sitting.

Can I install WordPress on a Hostinger plan I already bought?

Yes. In hPanel, go to Websites, open your site's Dashboard, then Website → WordPress Install. No new plan needed.

Can I change the theme or domain later?

Yes, both. Change the theme under Appearance → Themes any time without losing content, and point a different domain at the site later from hPanel.