Limiting Post Revisions in WordPress
Custom Code Solution
To limit post revisions, add one of these code snippets to your wp-config.php
file. Place it before the line that says /* That's all, stop editing! Happy publishing. */
Set a specific number of revisions (example shows 5 revisions):
define('WP_POST_REVISIONS', 5);
To completely disable revisions:
define('WP_POST_REVISIONS', false);
To set unlimited revisions (default WordPress behavior):
define('WP_POST_REVISIONS', true);
Alternative Database Cleanup Solution
If you want to remove existing revisions, add this code to your theme's functions.php
file:
function clean_post_revisions() {
global $wpdb;
$wpdb->query(
"DELETE FROM {$wpdb->posts} WHERE post_type = 'revision'"
);
}
add_action('admin_init', 'clean_post_revisions');
Plugin Solutions
If you prefer using a plugin, here are reliable options:
-
Revision Control - Lets you control the number of revisions per post type
-
WP-Optimize - Includes revision management along with other database optimization features
Additional Notes
- The
wp-config.php
solution is the most efficient as it prevents unnecessary revisions from being created
- Changes to
wp-config.php
affect all future posts
- Setting too few revisions might limit your ability to recover content
- A reasonable number of revisions is typically between 5 and 10
Remember to backup your database before making any changes that affect revisions.