Closing your account deletes all sites you own and all their contents. After a few weeks, the data will be entirely purged from our system, and at this point, the process cannot be reversed.
In this guide
To permanently close your WordPress.com account, follow these steps:
- Consider if you need to close your account by reviewing these alternatives first.
- Cancel any active subscriptions in your account (you cannot close an account with active purchases.)
- Click on your profile at https://wordpress.com/me
- In the options on the left, select Account Settings.
- Scroll down to the bottom of the screen and click the “Close your account permanently” link:
This deletes your username and deletes all the WordPress.com sites you own and all their contents. After a few weeks, this data will be entirely purged from our servers, and the process cannot be reversed. Therefore, please be certain you want to cancel your entire WordPress.com presence before proceeding.
Consider that you may wish to use WordPress.com again in the future. Instead of deleting your account, consider these less drastic steps that may suit your situation:
- Cancel your purchases to ensure no future charges from WordPress.com.
- Delete a site in your account, but keep your account.
- Reset your site for a fresh start and continue using the same address.
- Create a new site in your existing account.
- Transfer your site to another WordPress.com account.
- Change your username if you are unhappy with it. Closing an account will not release the username to use with a new account.
- Change your email address. When you close your account, your email address remains in our system for 30 days. Therefore, you cannot immediately use your account’s email address to sign up for a new WordPress.com account.
- Unsubscribe from WordPress.com email notifications by going to your subscription settings and checking the box that says “Block all email updates from blogs you’re following on WordPress.com.”
If you have a WordPress.com plan or other upgrade, such as a domain, you must cancel all active purchases before closing your account. This can be done in the Purchases area of your account. Visit our Manage Purchases, Renewals & Cancellations guide for step-by-step instructions.
WooCommerce.com Purchases
WordPress.com accounts also manage WooCommerce.com purchases, tickets, and subscriptions. Therefore, closing your account may close off your access to WooCommerce assets. You can check the information in your WooCommerce.com dashboard for your account before you close to ensure you are not unintentionally deleting something you want to keep.
Gravatar.com
WordPress.com accounts are also used to manage your Gravatar at Gravatar.com. Therefore, closing your WordPress.com account will also result in the removal of your Gravatar.com account. As a result, any Gravatar images currently displayed with your profile or comments you have made in the past will be removed.
Akismet
Akismet uses WordPress.com account infrastructure for its accounts, so when you close your WordPress.com account, you are closing the Akismet account as well.
Jetpack
WordPress.com accounts are also used to manage a self-hosted WordPress site’s Jetpack connection, features, and any paid plans you may have. When you close your WordPress.com account, your self-hosted WordPress site is disconnected from Jetpack. Approximately 30 days after Jetpack disconnects, your data will be removed from our servers. For some features like Jetpack’s Site Accelerator feature, your images and/or static files may be removed from our CDN sooner to free up server space.
If you have a Jetpack plan that includes backups and want to have a copy of the last backup made before you cancel your Jetpack subscription, please download the backup using these instructions.
VaultPress
WordPress.com accounts are also used to manage your VaultPress backups and security scans. When you cancel your VaultPress subscription and close your WordPress.com account, you will also be closing your VaultPress account. If you wish to have a copy of the last backup that was made on your site before you cancel your VaultPress subscription, please download the backup using these instructions.
It is possible to reverse an account closure during the first 30 days after an account is closed. If you have closed your account in error, please contact us immediately. We will assist you in reopening your account during this 30-day window. However, once the 30 days have passed, all your sites and account data are purged and cannot be restored.
