🧹 How to Remove Sample Comments and Posts from WordPress
When you first install WordPress or import a theme demo, your site may include placeholder content such as the “Hello World!” post, “Sample Page,” and example comments. Cleaning up this content is essential before launching your website.
This guide will walk you through removing:
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Sample posts and pages
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Demo comments
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Default categories
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Unwanted media files
📝 Step 1: Delete the Sample Post (“Hello World!”)
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Log in to your WordPress admin dashboard
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Go to the menu on the left and select Posts, then choose All Posts
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Hover over the post titled Hello World
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Click Trash to remove it
Optional: To permanently delete it, go to the Trash tab and click Delete Permanently
📄 Step 2: Delete the Sample Page (“Sample Page”)
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From the dashboard, go to Pages and select All Pages
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Find the page titled Sample Page
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Hover over it and click Trash
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You can permanently delete it from the Trash if desired
💬 Step 3: Delete the Sample Comment
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Click on Comments in the dashboard
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Look for the comment by “A WordPress Commenter”
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Hover over it and click Trash
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To remove it permanently, open the Trash tab and click Delete Permanently
🗂️ Step 4: Delete the “Uncategorized” Category (Optional)
WordPress sets “Uncategorized” as the default post category. You cannot delete this until a new default is chosen.
To delete it:
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Go to Posts and then Categories
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Create a new category such as Blog or News
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Navigate to Settings and then Writing
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Change the default post category to your new category
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Return to Posts, then Categories, and now delete Uncategorized
🖼️ Step 5: Remove Demo Media Files (Optional)
If your theme demo installed sample images or icons, follow these steps to delete them:
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Go to Media and then Library
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Use the list view to better identify demo content
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Select files you no longer need and click Delete permanently
✅ Final Clean-up Checklist
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Check Menus: Go to Appearance, then Menus, and remove links to deleted sample pages
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Check Widgets: Visit Appearance, then Widgets, and remove default widgets like Recent Comments or Meta
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Check Homepage Settings: Go to Settings, then Reading, and confirm your homepage settings are correct
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Clear Caches: If you use a caching plugin, clear the cache to reflect all recent changes
🧾 Conclusion
Removing sample content from WordPress is a vital part of launching a clean, professional website. It improves user experience, enhances SEO, and ensures your branding is consistent across every page.
