To delete a WordPress.com account, back up any site you want to keep, remove (not just cancel) every purchase and domain in Active Upgrades, then hover over your name, open My WordPress.com account and click Delete your account permanently. You get thirty days to restore it using the email WordPress.com sends.
Closing a WordPress.com account is permanent in a way most people don't expect. It deletes every site you own and retires your username for good. So this guide starts with the backup, not the button. Everything here follows WordPress.com's own support guide, as of Nov 2026. If you run self-hosted WordPress from WordPress.org, this doesn't apply; that software runs on your own hosting.
First, make sure you want to close the account and not just delete a site. WordPress.com is clear that these are different: deleting one site keeps your account, your username and any domains you registered. Closing the account deletes every site you own.
The backup-first checklist
WordPress.com says to complete these steps in order before you close the account. I've added why each one matters.
- Export or back up every site you want to keep. Closing your account deletes every site you own, so export the content or download a backup first. If you might ever rebuild, this is your only copy.
- Remove every subscription in Active Upgrades. That includes plans, email and add-ons. Cancelling isn't enough: cancelling turns off auto-renewal, but the purchase stays on your account until its expiry date. You must remove each one, which ends it immediately. Removing a subscription refunds the eligible amount if it's still inside its refund period.
- Remove or transfer every domain you registered. A cancelled domain stays registered to you until it expires, so your account has to stay open. Transfer it to another registrar if you want to keep the name, and wait for the transfer to complete before you close the account.
- Check your other Automattic services. Look through your WooCommerce dashboard for purchases and support history you want to keep, and download Jetpack backups if you have a backup plan.
When it's done, your Active Upgrades list will be empty. A leftover domain is the most common reason the close button won't work. If you see a message that a plan was purchased by a different WordPress.com account, only that account can cancel it, so log in there first.
Delete steps, in order
- While logged into WordPress.com, hover over your name at the top right of any screen.
- Select My WordPress.com account.
- Scroll to the bottom of the screen and click Delete your account permanently.
- Keep the email WordPress.com sends you. It has the instructions to restore your account.
WordPress.com's support team can't delete your account on your behalf, so you'll need to be able to log in. If you've lost access, its guide points you to account recovery first.
What stays public, and what disappears
This is the part people get wrong. Not everything you've ever posted vanishes when the account goes.
- Stays: comments you've left on other WordPress.com sites aren't deleted. To have those removed, contact each site owner directly.
- Goes: all your sites and content are deleted, and after thirty days all data tied to the account is purged from WordPress.com's servers for good.
- Goes: your Gravatar profile images are removed from all sites, and your Akismet account closes too.
- Locked: you can't log in to other Automattic services that use your WordPress.com login, including WooCommerce.com, Crowdsignal.com, IntenseDebate.com and Gravatar.com.
- Disconnected: self-hosted sites disconnect from Jetpack, and roughly thirty days later that data is removed. Some files served through Jetpack's Site Accelerator may go sooner.
- Gone forever: your username is never available again, to prevent impersonation. And you can't reuse your email address for a new account for thirty days.
Changed your mind? The thirty-day window
If you closed the account by mistake, you can restore it within thirty days. Find the email with the subject line saying your account has been deleted, click the Restore account button, then click the I made a mistake! Restore my account link and log in. You can then visit your Hosting Dashboard to restore any sites that were deleted. Can't find the email? WordPress.com says to contact it straight away during that window. After thirty days, nothing can be recovered.
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Smaller moves that might do the job
Before you close anything, WordPress.com lists alternatives worth a look. You can cancel purchases to stop charges and keep the site online as a free site. You can delete a single site, reset a site for a fresh start, or transfer it to another WordPress.com account. You can also change your username or email, or just unsubscribe from WordPress.com email notifications. If you're leaving because the platform felt limiting, my comparison of Squarespace and WordPress might help you choose what's next, and if you'd rather start again with a cleaner setup, here's how to set up a WordPress blog the right way.
My verdict: back up, empty Active Upgrades, sort your domains, then press the button. Skip the backup and you can't undo it once the thirty days are up.
Quick answers
Why can't I close my WordPress.com account?
Something is still in Active Upgrades. A cancelled plan or domain still counts as active until it expires, so remove it, not just cancel it.
Does deleting my site delete my WordPress.com account?
No. Deleting a site removes that site only. Your account, username and any registered domains stay.
Can I restore a deleted WordPress.com account?
Yes, within thirty days, using the Restore account button in the email WordPress.com sends when you close it.
Do my comments on other blogs disappear?
No. Comments on other WordPress.com sites stay. Ask each site owner to remove them.
