How To Upload A Document To A Website Using WordPress And File Manager

Uploading documents to your website can be important, especially when you need to share files like PDFs, Word documents, or even presentations with your visitors. Whether you’re providing downloadable resources, contracts, or guides, having the ability to upload and display documents makes your site more user-friendly and functional.

There are two main methods to upload documents to a WordPress website: through the WordPress dashboard or when you use the File Manager feature provided by your hosting service. Both methods are simple but serve different purposes based on your requirements.

Here we will show you step-by-step instructions on both methods to upload a document to a website. You’ll learn how to upload documents using WordPress’s built-in features and how to do it using your hosting provider’s File Manager for more control. This way, you can choose which option works for you and your website.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

1. Uploading documents to your WordPress site is easy and helps you share files like PDFs and Word docs with visitors.
2. You can use the WordPress built-in feature and File Manager to upload your documents depending on your needs and what you want.
3. WordPress allows you to upload documents directly to posts or pages by editing them and through the Media Library, making it quick and user-friendly.
4. File Manager offers more control and is useful for larger files or when you need to organize files directly on your server.
5. Always be careful with security when using File Manager, as you work with your website’s core files.
6. Keep your documents organized in folders and use SEO-friendly file names.
7. Always optimize file sizes for faster loading, which improves user experience and SEO performance.

Upload a Document Using WordPress Dashboard

In WordPress, you may upload a document to a website in two ways: by editing your page or post or uploading it directly to your Media Library. You can upload many types of documents.

However, the most common ones are PDFs, Microsoft Word documents (DOC or DOCX), Excel files (XLS or XLSX), PowerPoint presentations (PPT), and text files (TXT). Among these, PDFs are often the best option because they look the same on any device and are harder to edit, which can protect your content.

Furthermore, before uploading, here’s what you need to know about file sizes. WordPress has limits on how big the files can be. The maximum file size you can upload depends on your hosting settings, but it’s usually around 2 MB to 500 MB, which is more than enough for most WordPress users.

But, if your file is too large, you might need to compress it to reduce its size before uploading. There is no minimum size, so keep files small so they load quickly for visitors. Large files on your website can significantly slow down your site’s performance and speed.

We don’t recommend uploading large files like videos to your site. Instead, host those videos or files on the cloud and embed your links in your WordPress page or post.  Moreover, if you run a photography website and must upload large images, contact your hosting provider to increase your limit.

If you are a Hosted® user, you can easily do this yourself. Go to Hosted Control Panel (cPanel) → Software → MultiPHP INI Editor → Basic Mode and select your domain name. Now scroll to the upload_max_filesize option, modify its value per your requirements, and click Apply to save changes.

Upload a Document to a Website by Editing Pages/Posts 

To upload a document directly onto a page or post, follow these simple steps:

First, log into your WordPress dashboard. Do this by typing your website’s URL. Follow this with /wp-admin (e.g., yourwebsite.com/wp-admin). Enter your email address (or Username) and Password to access the dashboard.

Next, go to the post or page where you want to upload your document. If creating a new post or page, click Add New Post under the Posts or Add New Page under the Pages menu.

However, if you’re adding the document to an existing one, hover over your desired post or page and click Edit under the post or page you want to update (for this tutorial, we’ll demonstrate the process using posts; you can follow the same process for pages).

Once the post is opened in the WordPress block editor, click the Plus (+) button to add a new block. This opens a menu where you can choose different types of content to add.

From the block options, scroll down and find the File block. This block is where you add PDFs, Word files, and more. Click on it to insert the block into your post or page.

You will see a new block added to your post with two options. You can click Upload to upload a file from your computer or choose from the media library by hitting Media Library. In this tutorial, we upload a PDF file from our local machine.

By default, the anchor text would be the same as the file name. However, you can modify it by clicking the hyperlink near the Download button (see the screenshot above). Then, click Save at the top-right corner of your page to save your post. Now, the PDF file will be available within your post.

Important:

You may also use a WordPress plugin to upload a document to a website. Use this approach to limit the maximum file size, add a watermark to the images, modify the location of where documents are stored (by default, it’s a wp-content/uploads folder), automatically create thumbnails, and enforce restrictions on file types. This is useful when you only want users to upload certain file types.

Use Media Library to Upload a Document to a Website

The WordPress Media Library is a convenient and user-friendly tool for uploading documents to your website. You should use this feature to add files like PDFs, Word documents, images, or spreadsheets to your posts, pages, or anywhere on your site.

It’s perfect for situations where you want to quickly upload a document and create a download link for your visitors. The Media Library feature makes it easy to manage your files, access them later, and reuse them across different parts of your website without uploading them again.

You should also use the Media Library as a simple way to keep track of your uploaded documents and images, especially if you don’t need advanced file management features. It’s ideal when you have fewer files to manage or when working directly on a post or page and you need to insert a document quickly.

Here are the step-by-step instructions to upload a document to a website using WordPress Media Library:

Go to your WordPress Dashboard → Media → Add New Media File. This will open the file upload area of the Media Library.  You’ll see an area labeled Drop files to upload. Drag your document (like a PDF or Word file) from your computer into this area. Alternatively, click Select Files and manually choose the document from your computer.

Once you’ve dropped or selected the file, let it upload. You’ll see a progress bar showing the upload status. After the upload is done your document will appear in the Media Library, which you can access by navigating to Media → Library.

Now you can click on the file to view more details, like file name, URL, and other options. You can also add an image title, description, and alt text.

Now, go to the post or page where you want to insert the document. In the WordPress editor, click Add Block button (+) and choose File. Then, select Media Library to pick the document you just uploaded.

Now, choose your file. You can also modify the title and add a description and caption to boost the website’s SEO. Lastly, click Select.

This will insert the document to your post (or page if you’ve done it for pages). Once you’re happy with how the document is placed, click Save to make this document available to your potential audience.

So far, we’ve learned how to upload a file to WordPress by editing posts or pages and using a Media Library. However, this approach can’t be used if you don’t have access to the WordPress admin area. In that case, you need to use the File Manager feature provided by your hosting service. Let’s see how to do that below.

Use File Manager to Upload a Document to a Website

Using the File Manager feature provided by your hosting service can be useful when you want more control over your files or need to upload documents outside the WordPress dashboard.

This approach is helpful when you have large files that may exceed the WordPress upload limits or wish to organize multiple files directly on your server. It’s also a good option if your WordPress dashboard is inaccessible due to a plugin conflict or other issues.

However, keep WordPress website security in mind when using the File Manager. Since you’re directly accessing your website’s files, there’s a higher risk if something goes wrong.

Accidentally deleting or moving critical WordPress files could cause parts of your website to fail. Ensure you only work with necessary files, and always create website backups before making changes. Also, ensure your File Manager connection is secure, ideally using an encrypted HTTPS connection or SSH File Transfer Protocol (SFTP).

Here’s how to upload a file to a website using the Hosted File Manager:

First, log into your Hosted account. To do so, navigate to the Hosted® login page, provide your email and Password, and click Sign In.

Once on the Hosted dashboard, go to Manage Services → WordPress Hosting and click Manage next to your domain name.

Under Product Information, click Login to access the Hosted cPanel.

Then, go to Tools → Files → File Manager.

In the File Manager, go to the public_html directory (where the WordPress site is installed). Then, navigate to the wp-content folder, and locate or create a folder where you want to store the document. For example, we have created a documents folder inside the wp-content/uploads/ directory.

With the correct directory open (in our example it’s wp-content/uploads/documents), click Upload at the top of the File Manager interface. This will let you browse your computer and select the document you wish to upload. Once selected, the file will be uploaded to your server.

After the upload is complete, you need its URL. The URL is the web address where your document is stored. You can manually construct the URL by adding the file path to your website address. For example, if you uploaded the PDF to the wp-content/uploads/documents folder, the URL would be something like:

https://yourwebsite.com/wp-content/uploads/documents/yourfile.pdf

Don’t forget to replace yourwebsite.com with your actual domain name and yourfile.pdf with your original file.

Now, return to your WordPress dashboard and edit the post or page where you want to add the document link. Highlight the text where you want to insert the link to the PDF or create a new sentence like Download PDF Here. Next, click Link in the toolbar (it looks like a small chain link).

A box will show where you can paste the PDF URL and hit Enter. Don’t forget to save the changes.

This will allow visitors to download or view the document directly from your website. Remember, the document will be opened in the current tab. If you want your visitors to view this document in a new tab, make a few changes.

To do this, click on the hyperlink you just created, then click on the pencil icon as shown below:

You’ll see a new pop-up. Scroll to the Advanced section, check a box labeled Open in new tab, and click Save. Lastly, save your post (or page if you’re editing a page).

Important: You may also use an FTP client like FileZilla or WinSCP to upload a document to a website. With an FTP client, you will need FTP login credentials to connect to your web server; your hosting service provides these credentials.

Tips for Document Management

Proper document management on your WordPress site can improve your site’s performance and make it easier for you and your visitors to find and use files. Below are detailed tips on organizing documents, having good file naming practices for SEO, and optimizing file sizes for faster loading times.

Organize Your Uploaded Documents

Here are the best practices to organize your documents:

Create Clear Folder Structures

When managing documents, it’s important to keep them organized in a logical folder structure. For instance, if you have a variety of document types like PDFs, Word files, and spreadsheets, you can create separate folders for each type inside the wp-content/uploads directory. This helps you find your files easily and maintain a clean structure on your server.

You could also organize them by date or topic, such as uploads/reports/2024 or uploads/guides/tutorials. This helps you quickly locate files and keep your Media Library clean.

Use Descriptive Folder Names

Instead of using generic folder names like “docs” or “files”, use descriptive names that tell you exactly what the folder contains. This can save you time when searching for a specific document. For example, instead of “files”, use “client-reports-2024” or “event-materials”. This also makes it easier for others on your team to find what they need.

Keep Folders Updated

Periodically review your folders to remove outdated or irrelevant files. Over time, unused files can clutter your server and take up space. Keeping things tidy helps with overall site performance and ensures you only store what’s needed.

File Naming Conventions for SEO

How you name your files is very important, particularly for SEO. Here are the file naming conventions that you must keep in mind:

Use Descriptive, Keyword-Rich Names

File names should be clear, descriptive, and relevant to the content. For instance, instead of naming a file “document123.pdf,” name it something like “wordpress-beginner-guide-2024.pdf.” This helps search engines better understand the file content, potentially improving SEO for the file and your website.

Separate Words with Hyphens

Always separate words in the file name with hyphens (-) rather than spaces or underscores. Search engines treat hyphens as word separators, while underscores or spaces might be ignored. So, for a file called “SEO tips for bloggers.pdf,” it’s better to name it “seo-tips-for-bloggers.pdf”.

Keep File Names Short & Meaningful

While including keywords is good, keep file names concise. Long file names can be difficult to manage and may get cut off in some systems. Aim for about 3-5 relevant keywords.

Keeping File Sizes Optimized for Faster Loading Times

You can do the following to keep your file sizes optimized:

Compress Files Before Uploading

Large files, especially images or PDFs, can slow your website’s loading time. Before uploading, use compression tools like GZIP to reduce file sizes without sacrificing quality. For images, tools like TinyPNG or JPEG-Optimizer are effective. For PDFs, services like SmallPDF can help compress files while maintaining readability.

Use Appropriate File Formats

Choose the correct file formats to reduce file sizes. For example, if you’re uploading images, use JPEG for photos and PNG for images with transparent backgrounds or logos. Similarly, PDF is the best format for documents shared across multiple devices without layout issues.

Set Maximum File Upload Limits

To avoid large files from being uploaded to your site, set a reasonable maximum file size limit through your hosting provider or WordPress settings. Most hosts allow you to change these limits in the php.ini file or through their control panel. Keeping file sizes under control improves load times and conserves server storage.

Use a Caching Plugin

Install a caching plugin to optimize how your website handles document files. Caching helps ensure visitors can access documents quickly, especially if those files are frequently accessed.

By following these tips, you can manage your documents effectively, ensure better SEO for your files, and keep your website running smoothly with fast loading times.

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