Home / Localhost / WordPress admin

localhost/wordpress/wp-admin: log in to local WordPress

How to open the WordPress admin on localhost, and fix redirects, database errors and password resets.

A browser opening a local WordPress address, served from the htdocs folder of your local web server

Open this address: http://localhost/wordpress/wp-adminThis opens on your own computer. It only works if the program is running.

To log in to a WordPress site on your own computer, open localhost/wordpress/wp-admin. The word after localhost is the folder where you installed WordPress.

How to open phpMyAdmin

  1. Start Apache and MySQL.
  2. Open http://localhost/wordpress/wp-admin, or /wp-login.php. The part after localhost is the folder name inside htdocs.
  3. If you installed in htdocs itself, the address is just http://localhost/wp-admin.

Useful WordPress fixes

wp-config.php: fix the site address
define('WP_HOME', 'http://localhost/wordpress');
define('WP_SITEURL', 'http://localhost/wordpress');
WP-CLI: set a new password
wp user update admin --user_pass=NewStrongPass123

If WordPress admin will not open

Redirects to the wrong address or a live site
WordPress stored a different address. Add the two lines above to wp-config.php.
Error establishing a database connection
MySQL is not running, or wp-config.php has the wrong details. On XAMPP: user root, empty password.
Password reset email never arrives
Localhost cannot send email. Reset it in phpMyAdmin, in the wp_users table, or use WP-CLI as shown above.
Pages show 404 after changing permalinks
Enable mod_rewrite and set AllowOverride All. See the Apache virtual host generator.

Questions about WordPress admin

What is the WordPress admin URL on localhost?
http://localhost/wordpress/wp-admin, where "wordpress" is the folder name inside htdocs.
Why can't I reset my WordPress password on localhost?
Localhost cannot send email. Change the password in phpMyAdmin or with WP-CLI.

Updated 2026-10-02

Related pages