How To Uninstall a Language From WordPress Languages (Step-by-Step Guide)

If you’ve been experimenting with multilingual setups or testing different translations, you may notice that WordPress stores all installed languages—even the ones you don’t use anymore. These extra WordPress languages files take up space and clutter your dashboard. The good news? Uninstalling a language from WordPress is quick and safe.

In this guide, I’ll walk you through the simplest ways to remove unused languages, including both dashboard-based removal and the manual (FTP/File Manager) method.

Why Remove Unused WordPress Languages?

Each language installed in WordPress includes multiple .mo and .po files for core translations, plugins, and themes. Keeping unused languages may:

• Consume unnecessary server storage
• Cause confusion in the Settings → General → Site Language menu
• Load extra translation files during updates

Removing them keeps your site clean and efficient.

Method 1: Uninstall WordPress Languages via Dashboard

This is the easiest way and works for most users.

Step 1: Go to Language Settings

Navigate to: Settings → General → Site Language

Step 2: Click “Delete” on the Language

You’ll see a list of installed languages below the drop-down. Simply click Delete next to the language you want to remove.

That’s it! WordPress will remove the translation files from your server.

Method 2: Manually Delete Language Files (FTP or File Manager)

If the delete option doesn’t appear (usually due to file permissions), you can remove language files manually.

Step 1: Access Your Server

Use one of the following:

• Hosting File Manager (cPanel / DirectAdmin)
• FTP client (FileZilla, WinSCP)
• SSH (if you know what you’re doing)

Step 2: Open the Languages Directory

WordPress stores all language files here:

/wp-content/languages/

Inside, you’ll find these sub-folders:

/plugins/
/themes/

Each contains .mo, .po, and sometimes .json files for translations.

Step 3: Delete the Files for the Unwanted Language

Files are named using the locale code. For example:

• fr_FR.mo for French
• de_DE.po for German
• es_ES.json for Spanish

Just delete the files matching the language you want to remove.

Tip: Be careful not to delete the default en_US language unless your site is configured differently.

Bonus: Remove Language Packs via WP-CLI

If you manage your site using WP-CLI, you can uninstall languages using one command:

wp language core uninstall fr_FR

Replace fr_FR with the desired locale.
List installed languages:

wp language core list