The Media Library is where WordPress stores every image, video, and document you upload. Managing it well keeps your site organised and fast. This guide covers uploading, editing, and tidying your media.
What the Media Library holds #
Every file you add to a page, post, or the library itself lives here: images, PDFs, audio, and video. You can reuse any file across your site without uploading it again.
Uploading media #
- Go to Media > Add New, or use the “Add Media” / image block while editing.
- Drag files in, or click to select them from your computer.
- Wait for the upload to finish; files then appear in the library.
Add details that help SEO and accessibility #
Click any item to add important details:
- Alt text: describes the image for screen readers and search engines; always add it for meaningful images.
- Title, caption, and description: optional context shown in various places.
Keep images optimised #
Large images are the most common cause of slow pages. Before uploading:
- Resize images to the dimensions you actually need.
- Compress them so file sizes stay small.
- Use modern formats like WebP where possible.
- Consider an image-optimisation plugin to automate this.
Organising and deleting media #
- Switch between grid and list views to browse.
- Use the search and date filters to find files.
- Delete files you no longer use to save space, but check they are not still in use first.
Troubleshooting #
- Upload fails or is too large: raise the PHP upload limit, or upload via File Manager.
- Image looks blurry: upload a higher-resolution version at the right size.
- Wrong image shows after replacing: clear your cache.
Need help? #
If uploads keep failing, our support team can check your limits and help over live chat.
