Trusted WordPress tutorials, when you need them most.
Beginner’s Guide to WordPress
WPB Cup
25 Million+
Websites using our plugins
16+
Years of WordPress experience
3000+
WordPress tutorials
by experts

How to Easily Replace Image and Media Files in WordPress

Editorial Note: We earn a commission from partner links on WPBeginner. Commissions do not affect our editors' opinions or evaluations. Learn more about Editorial Process.

Have you ever tried replacing an image that you uploaded in WordPress? If you did, then you probably had to upload a new file, rename it, and insert it into the post while replacing the old file. Now wouldn’t it be nice if you could do all of this with just few clicks? In this article, we will show you how to easily replace attachment files in WordPress.

Video Tutorial

Subscribe to WPBeginner

If you don’t like the video or need more instructions, then continue reading.

First thing you need to do is install and activate the Enable Media Replace plugin. Once activated, it works out of the box, and there are no settings for you to configure.

All you need to do is visit Media » Library in your WordPress admin area. If you are using the grid-view, then you would need to switch to the list view.

Now locate the file that you want to replace. Once you found the file, take your mouse near the file name, and you will see a link labeled ‘Replace Media’.

Replace media link in the media library

When you click on the link, it will take you to replace media page. There you need to upload your new file by clicking on the Choose File button.

Once you choose the file, you have two options that you can choose. You can choose to only replace the file, or you can replace the file, use new filename, and update all links pointing to the old file.

After choosing one of the options, simply press the upload button.

Replacing old file by uploading new media

WordPress will now upload your media file, and the plugin will replace the old media file. If you opted to use new filename and update links, then the plugin will take care of that as well.

You can now visit your posts or page where you had this media file attached and see it replaced with the new file you just uploaded.

We hope that this article helped you find an easier way to replace attachment files in WordPress.

If you just wanted to rename media files, then you may want to checkout our tutorial on how to easily rename images and media files in WordPress.

If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Google+.

Disclosure: Our content is reader-supported. This means if you click on some of our links, then we may earn a commission. See how WPBeginner is funded, why it matters, and how you can support us. Here's our editorial process.

Editorial Staff

Editorial Staff at WPBeginner is a team of WordPress experts led by Syed Balkhi with over 16 years of experience in WordPress, Web Hosting, eCommerce, SEO, and Marketing. Started in 2009, WPBeginner is now the largest free WordPress resource site in the industry and is often referred to as the Wikipedia for WordPress.

The Ultimate WordPress Toolkit

Get FREE access to our toolkit - a collection of WordPress related products and resources that every professional should have!

Reader Interactions

31 CommentsLeave a Reply

  1. Syed Balkhi says

    Hey WPBeginner readers,
    Did you know you can win exciting prizes by commenting on WPBeginner?
    Every month, our top blog commenters will win HUGE rewards, including premium WordPress plugin licenses and cash prizes.
    You can get more details about the contest from here.
    Start sharing your thoughts below to stand a chance to win!

  2. Daniel Whalen says

    I love your videos but please slow down on how to do it, older persons need to see it slowly.

  3. Phil says

    Is there a way to batch replace? I’m a photographer and sometimes have over 100 images per blog post. I wanted to replace them with smaller file sizes to help with my pages speeds. Is this possible?

    Many thanks

  4. Jeff Vetterick says

    If I use the plugin to just “replace image only” (with one of the same file name) will the alt text, image description, and image caption of the original image be overwritten or preserved. If they are preserved, this would save me a ton of time.

    • WPBeginner Support says

      It should keep that information if it is able, you would want to reach out to the plugin’s support for specifics.

      Admin

  5. jg says

    This option isn’t available in the new version as it just allows you to delete or edit it. if I delete it I don’t know the url to replace it with?

    • WPBeginner Support says

      You may want to ensure you are in the correct view for your media library as the feature is currently available

      Admin

  6. Sanjay Sajeev says

    Thank you for your post.

    I installed enable media replace plugin in my site. But when I replace an image that I used in a blog post, I can see the image has been replaced in the media library. But When I check that image in the blog post, there is no change to that image and its file size. What I have to do to resolve this?

    • WPBeginner Support says

      You may want to try clearing your cache and if that does not work, reach out to the plugin’s support for them to take a look at possible issues.

      Admin

  7. Linda Joyce says

    Can I do the same thing manually by replacing the image via FTP? Will that change the image?

  8. Fede says

    Hi. I keep getting request timeout. Same as when uploading using usual wp means. That is why I had to switch to uploading via ftp and then loading them through a plugin meant for that. I really need to get this working since some of the images are not scaling properly nd need to change them. Any help would be apreciated. Thanks.

  9. hitesh says

    Hi

    in my wordpress admin there is no any option like replace media..in mine there are only 3 options 1) EDIT 2) DELETE PREMANENTLY 3) VIEW

    So what is the issue there ..its old version or have any other issue can u please clear that so that i can replace that media files

    Regards
    Hitesh

  10. Nicole says

    Help

    I’m a perfrormer contacting agents and tried to replace voice reels after successfully installing yourplugin ( thought it was safest way to go )
    Now htey are blanks – I’ve cleared browsing cache

    I followed the instructions
    my media player is this :

    svnlabs HTML5 Mp3 player 3.6 installed

    please help :0

  11. Riccardo says

    Hi thanks for the article, the plugin works great. There’s one thing I don’t get though: the image replacement seems to only affect the image in its original size, when the site displays the image in other formats (thumbnails, previews, etc…) I can still see the old image file.
    How can I force the image replacement on all the other image files (e.g. imagename-300×200.jpg)?
    thank you

    • Rehan says

      Please use Regenerate thumbnails plugin to regenerate your images. after that you will see the replaced images.

  12. Panagiotis Tabakis says

    The Enable Media Replace plugin poses a security threat, I would totally avoid it. Its a shame to suggest users to use dangerous software. Please research before posting.

    The exploit holds since 2011.

    For more info see

    • WPBeginner Support says

      Hi Panagiotis,

      The issue was immediately resolved by the plugin author in the very next release (please see plugin’s changelog and scroll down to version 2.4).

      This is why we recommend users to keep their WordPress site and plugins updated.

      Admin

      • Panagiotis Tabakis says

        Yes, you are correct. I’m sorry, I saw a support post which the plugin author didn’t answer and thought it wasn’t resolved.
        The exploit was patched @ 09 February 2011 (the same day).

        I wonder why the author hasn’t replied but I will inform the forum users.

        Again, sorry.

  13. Blake says

    I am running WP 4.6.1 bootstrap and I want to remove a background photo and replace it with one that is in my galley. Can you tell me how to do it, Thanks

  14. Sky says

    I followed the steps and in the library the new image is displayed but where the image is located on the home page remains the old photo. Not sure what to do…

    • Christian Scholz-Flöter says

      Maybe it’s a browser cache related issue and you need to clean/delete the browser cache. If you don’t know how to do it, google your browser’s brand name and “clear browser cache”.

  15. jorge says

    This plugin works great in the media page. However I would like to also replace images/media from within the media modal window inside a post/page edit page without leaving the page. Any ideas?

    Thanks for this amazing post!

  16. Marilyn says

    I wish I had known this sooner! I didn’t detach my media files before I deleted them. I replaced them with a new image. The problem is that resulted in broken images. Even though I go back and reattach/choose the correct image down the road it breaks again. In my Easy recipe program I see the placeholder for the deleted image and the program searching for it. Is there a fix for this? Unfortunately there are about 200 files doing this.

Leave a Reply to Sanjay Sajeev Cancel reply

Thanks for choosing to leave a comment. Please keep in mind that all comments are moderated according to our comment policy, and your email address will NOT be published. Please Do NOT use keywords in the name field. Let's have a personal and meaningful conversation.

WPBeginner Assistant
How can I help you?

By chatting, you consent to this chat being stored according to our privacy policy and your email will be added to receive weekly WordPress tutorials from WPBeginner.