Title: Cleanup Orphan Images Author: DimitriAus Published: December 29, 2025 Last modified: July 6, 2026 --- Search plugins ![](https://ps.w.org/cleanup-orphan-images/assets/banner-772x250.png?rev=3431993) ![](https://ps.w.org/cleanup-orphan-images/assets/icon-256x256.png?rev=3429958) # Cleanup Orphan Images By [DimitriAus](https://profiles.wordpress.org/dimitriaus/) [Download](https://downloads.wordpress.org/plugin/cleanup-orphan-images.1.8.1.zip) * [Details](https://vec.wordpress.org/plugins/cleanup-orphan-images/#description) * [Reviews](https://vec.wordpress.org/plugins/cleanup-orphan-images/#reviews) * [Installation](https://vec.wordpress.org/plugins/cleanup-orphan-images/#installation) * [Development](https://vec.wordpress.org/plugins/cleanup-orphan-images/#developers) [Support](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/cleanup-orphan-images/) ## Description Finds and deletes redundant files from the uploads folders that are not visible in WordPress Media Library. These orphan files may have been left behind from: * Failed or interrupted uploads * Plugin operations or migrations * FTP/SFTP uploads not registered in WordPress * Database restores or imports #### Features * Scans uploads directory for orphan media files * Supports images: JPG, JPEG, PNG, GIF, WebP, BMP, TIFF, SVG, ICO * Supports documents: PDF, DOC, DOCX, XLS, XLSX, PPT, PPTX, ODT, ODS, ODP, TXT, RTF, CSV * Supports audio: MP3, WAV, OGG, FLAC, AAC, M4A, WMA * Supports video: MP4, MOV, AVI, WMV, MKV, WebM, FLV, M4V, MPEG, MPG * Supports archives: ZIP, RAR, 7Z, TAR, GZ * Safe manual selection before deletion * Warns when orphan count exceeds server’s max_input_vars limit (typically 1000) * Optimized O(1) performance with hash-based detection #### Note This plugin does NOT manage “unattached” images in the Media Library. WordPress already provides built-in filtering for unattached media. ## Installation 1. Upload the `cleanup-orphan-images` folder to `/wp-content/plugins/` 2. Activate through the ‘Plugins’ menu 3. Go to Media > Cleanup Orphan Images ## FAQ ### What are orphan files? Orphan files are physical media files in your uploads folder that exist on the server but are not registered in the WordPress database. ### Is it safe to delete orphan files? Review the list before deletion. Some files may still be used by themes or plugins that reference them directly by URL. Always back up your uploads folder first. ### Can I recover deleted files? No, deletion is permanent. Back up your site first. ### Interaction with other plugins Some hosting providers and image optimisation plugins (such as Imagify or ShortPixel) auto-generate `.webp` versions of images using Nginx/Apache rewrite rules and store them in the uploads folder without registering them in WordPress. Server-side rewrite rules is not part of the official WordPress media management specification and is not endorsed by WordPress. This plugin follows the WordPress standard — if a file is not registered in the WordPress database, it is an orphan. Any files created outside of that standard by third-party tools or hosting configurations are beyond the scope and responsibility of this plugin. If you see unexpected files in the scan results, do not select them for deletion unless you are absolutely sure they are not used. For image optimisation, the workaround is to disable server-side rewriting plugins and switch to a WordPress-native WebP converter (such as [Manly WebP Converter](https://wordpress.org/plugins/manly-webp-converter/)) which significantly reduces file sizes and registers converted files properly in the database — after which those files will never appear as orphans. ## Reviews ![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/f419ba0b5104ee7b9ea0e3be73501958568e387404f34d636376d8a14a6942d1? s=60&d=retro&r=g) ### 󠀁[Lightweight and delivering, It just works.](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/lightweight-and-delivering-it-just-works/)󠁿 [walstice](https://profiles.wordpress.org/walstice/) December 30, 2025 1 reply 11.4 kb for a plugin is admirable, thank you [ Read all 1 review ](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/cleanup-orphan-images/reviews/) ## Contributors & Developers “Cleanup Orphan Images” is open source software. The following people have contributed to this plugin. Contributors * [ DimitriAus ](https://profiles.wordpress.org/dimitriaus/) [Translate “Cleanup Orphan Images” into your language.](https://translate.wordpress.org/projects/wp-plugins/cleanup-orphan-images) ### Interested in development? [Browse the code](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/cleanup-orphan-images/), check out the [SVN repository](https://plugins.svn.wordpress.org/cleanup-orphan-images/), or subscribe to the [development log](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/log/cleanup-orphan-images/) by [RSS](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/log/cleanup-orphan-images/?limit=100&mode=stop_on_copy&format=rss). ## Changelog #### 1.8.1 * Added FAQ entry explaining interaction with server-side WebP rewriting plugins #### 1.8.0 * Simplified plugin to focus on orphan files only * Removed unattached images feature (use WordPress built-in Media Library filter instead) * Expanded file format support: images, documents, audio, video, archives * Cleaner, more focused user interface #### 1.7.2 * Minor GUI fix #### 1.7.1 * Removed broken automated batch deletion button #### 1.7.0 * Full PHPCS/WPCS coding standards compliance * Performance optimization for orphan file scanning * Security improvements with capability checks #### 1.6.0 * WordPress.org compliance improvements * Enhanced security and caching #### 1.5.0 * Added orphan files detection * Batch processing with progress tracking #### 1.0.0 * Initial release ## Meta * Version **1.8.1** * Last updated **2 days ago** * Active installations **80+** * WordPress version ** 5.0 or higher ** * Tested up to **7.0** * PHP version ** 7.4 or higher ** * Language * [English (US)](https://wordpress.org/plugins/cleanup-orphan-images/) * Tags * [cleanup](https://vec.wordpress.org/plugins/tags/cleanup/)[files](https://vec.wordpress.org/plugins/tags/files/) [images](https://vec.wordpress.org/plugins/tags/images/)[media](https://vec.wordpress.org/plugins/tags/media/) [orphan](https://vec.wordpress.org/plugins/tags/orphan/) * [Advanced View](https://vec.wordpress.org/plugins/cleanup-orphan-images/advanced/) ## Ratings 5 out of 5 stars. * [ 1 5-star review ](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/cleanup-orphan-images/reviews/?filter=5) * [ 0 4-star reviews ](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/cleanup-orphan-images/reviews/?filter=4) * [ 0 3-star reviews ](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/cleanup-orphan-images/reviews/?filter=3) * [ 0 2-star reviews ](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/cleanup-orphan-images/reviews/?filter=2) * [ 0 1-star reviews ](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/cleanup-orphan-images/reviews/?filter=1) [Your review](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/cleanup-orphan-images/reviews/#new-post) [See all reviews](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/cleanup-orphan-images/reviews/) ## Contributors * [ DimitriAus ](https://profiles.wordpress.org/dimitriaus/) ## Support Got something to say? Need help? [View support forum](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/cleanup-orphan-images/)