How to Install WordPress on Amazon Web Services

We often hear from readers who feel a little nervous when they think about installing WordPress on Amazon Web Services (AWS). It sounds technical, complicated, and like something only developers would use.

And to be fair, AWS does offer a lot of powerful tools for developers. But it’s also a flexible cloud hosting platform that makes it possible for anyone to run a WordPress site, once you know where to start.

We’ve used AWS many times to build faster, more scalable websites that traditional hosting just couldn’t handle. With the right setup, you can tap into the same cloud technology trusted by some of the biggest websites in the world.

In this tutorial, we’ll show you exactly how we install WordPress on Amazon Web Services, step-by-step. Our goal is to make it easy for you to follow along, even if you’ve never touched AWS before.

What is AWS?

Amazon Web Services (AWS) is a cloud platform that offers hosting, storage, and powerful tools to run websites and apps on the internet. Instead of using a traditional web host, AWS lets you create your own custom hosting environment in the cloud.

It’s trusted by businesses of all sizes, from small startups to global companies. With AWS, you get more control, flexibility, and room to grow your website on your own terms.

Next, let’s look at why you might want to install WordPress on AWS — and what you should know before making the move.

Why Install WordPress on AWS?

Installing WordPress on AWS can feel like unlocking a whole new level of freedom for your website. It gives you full control over your hosting setup, with the power to scale as your site grows.

We’ve used AWS for projects where traditional WordPress hosting just couldn’t keep up. When you need more speed, flexibility, and reliability, AWS gives you the tools to build exactly what you need.

That said, AWS isn’t the perfect fit for every situation. Here’s a quick look at the pros and cons to help you decide if it’s right for you.

Pros of Using AWS for WordPress:

• Scalability: Easily handle traffic spikes without slowing down your site.
• Flexibility: Customize your hosting environment exactly how you want it.
• Performance: Take advantage of fast servers and powerful cloud resources.
• Pay-as-you-go pricing: Only pay for the resources you actually use, with no fixed monthly cost.

Cons of Using AWS for WordPress:

• Learning curve: AWS isn’t beginner-friendly, and setting it up can be complicated at first.
• Maintenance required: You’re responsible for managing updates, backups, and security settings.
• Costs can add up: Without careful management, AWS usage fees can become expensive over time.

Now that you know the pros and cons, let’s walk through how to install WordPress on AWS step-by-step.

We have split this article into two methods. The first method is a manual process that is very technical and complicated. The second method is easier for beginners because it allows you to use AWS infrastructure through a preferred managed WordPress hosting solution.

You can use the quick links below to jump to the method you want to use:

Method 1: Manually Install WordPress on Amazon Web Services (Advanced Users)

The first thing you need to do is visit the Amazon Web Services website. You can create a free account, but you will need to enter your credit card information. Amazon will verify your identity by charging you $1 for your card.

Once your account is verified, log in to your AWS console and click on the ‘Services’ menu. Under the compute section, select Lightsail to continue.

What is Lightsail?

Lightsail is one of the many services provided by Amazon Web Services. It is designed to make it easy for users to launch their own VPS hosting instances, which come pre-installed with popular web hosting software.

Lightsail vs EC2: Why We Recommend Lightsail for WordPress Beginners

When setting up WordPress on AWS, you have two main options: Lightsail or EC2. While both can host a WordPress site, Lightsail is much simpler and beginner-friendly, which is why we recommend it for most users.

Lightsail packages everything you need into an easy-to-use dashboard. It handles many technical details automatically, so you can focus on getting your website online without getting stuck in complicated server settings.

Feature	Lightsail	EC2
Ease of Use	Very beginner-friendly with simple setup	Advanced; requires technical knowledge
Setup Time	Longer manual configurations needed	Longer manual configurations are needed
Built-in WordPress Option	Yes, pre-configured	No, manual installation required
Billing	Flat monthly pricing	Pay-as-you-go with multiple separate charges
Best For	Small to medium websites, beginners	Large custom apps, experienced developers

If you’re new to cloud hosting or just want to get your WordPress site up and running quickly, Lightsail is the easier and faster choice. That’s what we’ll be using in this tutorial.

Pricing for AWS Lightsail

AWS Lightsail offers a free trial that lets you test the service for three months. After that, you’ll pay a flat monthly rate based on the hosting configuration you choose when signing up.

Pricing starts at just $5 per month and goes up as you add more memory, storage, or bandwidth. For running a small WordPress site smoothly, we recommend starting with at least the $7 per month plan.

It gives you enough resources to handle regular website traffic without slowdowns, and you can always upgrade later if your site grows.

Now that you know why we’re using Lightsail and how the pricing works, let’s walk through the steps to launch your WordPress website on AWS.

Step 1: Create a VPS Instance with WordPress Installed

Next, click the ‘Create instance’ button to launch and configure your instance settings.

Now, you will be asked to choose a region for your VPS instance. You will see several geographical locations to choose from.

Tip 💡: We recommend choosing a location where your target audience is located. This reduces server latency and will boost your WordPress website speed and performance.

Click to select your region and scroll down a little to configure the instance image.

First, you need to select Linux/Unix as your platform, and then under the ‘Select a blueprint’ option, click on WordPress.

After that, you need to scroll further down to the ‘Choose your instance plan’ section.

From here, you need to select the size of your server. We recommend starting with at least 1GB of memory. This gives WordPress plenty of resources to perform even under peak traffic.

Finally, you need to enter a name for the AWS VPS instance. This could be anything that helps you identify what this VPS server does.

After that, click on the ‘Create instance’ button to continue.

AWS will now create a VPS server instance with WordPress and all the software you need to run it.

Once your instance is ready, click on the three-dot menu and select ‘Manage.’

This will bring you to the VPS instance management area.

Step 2: Retrieve WordPress Admin Username and Password

Your VPS instance management area is the control center of your virtual server hosted on the Amazon cloud. From here, you can reboot, stop, and even delete the server. More importantly, this is where you will set up your WordPress website.

On the management page, you will see a button for ‘Access WordPress Admin’, but before you do that, you need to find out your website’s default user name and password.

You will see your username under the ‘Default WordPress admin username. Click to copy it, and then paste it into a plain text editor like Notepad.

Below that, you need to click the ‘Retrieve default password’ link under the ‘Default WordPress admin password’ option.

This will show you two steps you need to complete to get your WordPress admin password.

For the first step, click the ‘Launch Cloudshell’ button to open a command-line window. Your browser screen will split, and you will see a command-line interface at the bottom.

Step 2 is to copy the above code and paste it into the CloudShell command line window.

The script will run and display your WordPress password at the end right after the bitnami_application_password text.

You can now copy the password and save it in a text editor. Then, you can safely click on the close button to exit the CloudShell window.

Now that you have the admin username and password, you can log in to your WordPress website’s admin area.

Step 3: Log in to The WordPress Admin Area on AWS

Scroll back to the top of your instance management dashboard and click the ‘Access WordPress Admin’ button.

This will bring up a popup showing the login URL for your WordPress admin area.

Since your website does not currently have a domain name, you will need to access it using its public IP address.

This will open the WordPress admin area in a new browser tab.

You will now see the WordPress login screen. Fill in using the default admin username and password you retrieved earlier.

Once logged in, you will see the familiar WordPress admin dashboard.

Note: We noticed that AWS does not automatically update WordPress or plugins, so you may need to install some updates. Here is a quick guide on how to install WordPress updates.

Step 4: Adding a Domain Name to Your AWS VPS

As you have noticed, your AWS VPS instance uses a public IP address. You will need to add a domain name to your VPS instance so that you can start working on your WordPress website and make it publicly available.

You can use your existing domain name or register a new one. Amazon doesn’t sell domain names, so you will need to buy one from a third-party domain registrar.

We recommend Domain.com. They offer competitive prices, and we like their easy domain management tools. You can use our Domain.com coupon to get an additional 25% off.

Once your domain name is ready, switch to the ‘Connect’ tab under your VPS instance management area and click the ‘Set up your website’ button.

This will launch a setup wizard.

First, you need to select a third-party domain and then enter your custom domain name.

Click ‘Use this domain’ to continue.

On the next screen, you will be asked how you would like to manage your domain name. Choose ‘Lightsail DNS Zone’ as it will be more convenient.

Simply click on ‘Create DNS zone’ to continue.

The setup wizard will now show you DNS nameserver values.

You need to log in to your domain registrar account to update name servers there. We have a handy guide on updating DNS nameservers covering popular hosting and domain registration platforms.

Once you have updated the nameserver information, return to the setup wizard and click ‘Continue’.

Note ⏲️: Nameserver changes can take up to 24 hours to be updated across the internet.

In the next step, you will be asked to enter a name for your static IP. You can enter any name that helps you easily identify what this IP does.

Click ‘Create static IP’ to continue.

On the next screen, you will be asked to assign your domain to your VPS instance. Click on the ‘Add assignment’ button.

This will bring up a popup.

It will show your root domain name as the recommended option. Just click to select it and then click ‘Add’.

The setup wizard will now add your root domain to the DNS settings and point it to your VPS instance.

Click ‘Continue’ to go to the next step.

In the final step, you will be asked to select your domain to install a free SSL certificate.

Below, you will be asked to enter your email address to confirm that you agree with Let’s Encrypt’s (free SSL service provider) privacy policy.

After that, you will be asked to authorize Lightsail to install an SSL certificate for you.

Click ‘Create certificate’ to move forward.

The setup wizard will now add an SSL certificate to your website.

You will now return to the manage instance page, where you will see your website’s setup status.

Note: SSL Certificate and Domain nameserver settings can take a while to take effect.

You can now log in to your WordPress site using your custom domain name:

https://yourdomain.com/wp-admin

Don’t forget to replace yourdomain.com with your own domain name.

Congratulations, you have successfully installed WordPress on Amazon Web Services.

Method 2: Install WordPress on AWS via Managed WordPress Hosting (Easier)

As you may have noticed, setting up a custom WordPress site on Amazon Web Services is both technical and complicated.

The cloud computing infrastructure provided by Amazon Web Services is a pay-as-you-go solution. This means that traffic spikes will increase your hosting bill significantly. You will also still be responsible for managing your own services, which is just extra work.

An easier way to use WordPress on cloud platforms without any hassle is by using a managed WordPress hosting provider.

We recommend using SiteGround. It is a managed WordPress hosting provider that uses Google Cloud Platform instead of Amazon Web Services. And when it comes to performance, Google Cloud and Amazon AWS are neck and neck.

However, we found that SiteGround’s additional tweaks to their Google Cloud servers gave much better performance. It was one of the reasons we switched WPBeginner to Siteground.

Many of our other partner companies are also hosted on SiteGround. For more details, please see our complete SiteGround review.

Other alternatives you may want to consider include Bluehost Cloud and WordPress.com (Business and Commerce plans).

Bonus: WordPress Setup Guides You Might Find Useful

If you want to explore even more ways to install and set up WordPress, we’ve got you covered. Here are a few extra tutorials that can help you with different hosting setups, local installations, and language options.

• How to Install WordPress – Complete WordPress Installation Tutorial
• How to Install WordPress in a Subdirectory (Step by Step)
• How to Install WordPress on a Windows Computer
• How to Install WordPress Locally on Mac
• How to Install WordPress in Other Languages

We hope this article helped you learn how to install WordPress on Amazon Web Services. You may also want to see our ultimate guide on improving WordPress speed and performance with step-by-step instructions or our expert picks of the fastest WordPress hosting.

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