How to Change the WordPress Upload Limit

Check the current upload limit

The current limit appears on the WordPress admin's Media → Add New screen as "Maximum upload size: XX MB". You can also see PHP settings in Site Health → Info. WordPress defaults to 2–10 MB depending on your PHP configuration.

The effective upload limit is the smallest of these three settings:

• upload_max_filesize — maximum size per uploaded file
• post_max_size — maximum size of an entire POST request (must be larger than upload_max_filesize)
• memory_limit — maximum memory PHP can use

Method 1: Edit wp-config.php

The simplest approach. Add the following line to wp-config.php in your WordPress root.

@ini_set('upload_max_filesize', '64M');

This won't work if your server disables ini_set. In that case, try the other methods. To raise WordPress's memory limit specifically, you can also use:

define('WP_MEMORY_LIMIT', '256M');

This raises WordPress's memory limit but doesn't directly change the upload limit. Combine it with one of the methods below.

Method 2: Edit .htaccess (Apache)

If you're on Apache with mod_php, add this to .htaccess in your WordPress root.

php_value upload_max_filesize 64M
php_value post_max_size 128M
php_value memory_limit 256M
php_value max_execution_time 300
php_value max_input_time 300

Note: CGI PHP and FastCGI environments (common on shared hosts) cannot change PHP settings via .htaccess. If you get a 500 error, remove the lines you added.

Method 3: Edit php.ini / .user.ini

Editing the PHP config file is the most reliable approach but requires server access.

php.ini

upload_max_filesize = 64M
post_max_size = 128M
memory_limit = 256M
max_execution_time = 300
max_input_time = 300

.user.ini (for shared hosts)

If you can't edit php.ini directly, create a .user.ini file in your WordPress root with the same content. Changes may take a few minutes to a few hours to take effect.

upload_max_filesize = 64M
post_max_size = 128M
memory_limit = 256M

Method 4: Add a filter to functions.php

Add hooks to your theme's functions.php. This works when you can't change PHP settings directly, but it cannot exceed the server's PHP limits.

@ini_set('upload_max_filesize', '64M');
@ini_set('post_max_size', '128M');
@ini_set('memory_limit', '256M');
@ini_set('max_execution_time', '300');
@ini_set('max_input_time', '300');

Or use a WordPress filter:

add_filter('upload_size_limit', function($size) {
    return 64 * 1024 * 1024; // 64MB
});

Note: This only changes WordPress's limit; the underlying PHP upload_max_filesize still wins if it's smaller.

Method 5: Use your hosting control panel

Most managed WordPress hosts let you change PHP settings from their control panel. This is the safest and most reliable approach. Look for a "PHP settings" or "php.ini" section, then change upload_max_filesize and post_max_size.

Testing the new limit

After changing the settings, test by uploading a large file. DevLab's threshold test files let you run precise boundary-value tests against your new limit.

Troubleshooting

• Settings don't apply: You may need to restart Apache/Nginx or the PHP-FPM process.
• 500 error: Check your .htaccess for typos or unsupported directives.
• 413 error: On Nginx, check client_max_body_size in nginx.conf.
• Timeouts: Large uploads also need higher max_execution_time and max_input_time.