How to Fix WordPress Not Displaying Post Revisions (Complete 2025 Guide)

When you’re editing a page or post in WordPress, there’s nothing more frustrating than discovering that post revisions are not showing up. Whether you’re a blogger, agency, developer, or site owner, revisions are essential. They help you undo mistakes, roll back unwanted changes, or track how content evolved.

If you’ve tried all the troubleshooting steps and still cannot restore your post revisions, it might be time to get expert help. Our guide on get emergency WordPress support connects you with professionals who can resolve complex issues quickly and safely.

But what happens when WordPress doesn’t display post revisions at all?

This guide explains every possible reason behind missing revisions — and how to fix them step-by-step. Whether the issue is caused by hosting limits, database irregularities, plugin conflicts, or WordPress configuration constants, you will find your answer here.

Let’s dive deep and bring your post revisions back.

What Are WordPress Post Revisions?

Post revisions are automatic or manual snapshots of your content that WordPress saves every time you edit a post or page. These snapshots let you:

• Restore older versions

• Compare two versions side-by-side

• Recover lost drafts

• Undo accidental deletions

• Track editorial changes

Revisions are stored inside the wp_posts table with the post type revision.

If revisions disappear, WordPress loses the ability to access these snapshots — but the issue is always fixable.

Why WordPress Might Not Display Post Revisions

Your revision panel may disappear for several reasons:

1. Revisions are disabled in wp-config.php

2. Revisions were disabled by your theme or a plugin

3. The post has no revisions saved yet

4. The editor screen options hide the revisions panel

5. Database revisions were deleted by a cleanup plugin

6. Hosting provider disabled or limited revisions

7. The Classic Editor or Gutenberg block editor behaves differently

8. Custom post types do not support revisions

9. WordPress user permissions restrict editing

10. Object caching or site caching prevents updates

The following sections explain how to fix each of these issues one by one.

1. Check if WordPress Post Revisions Are Disabled in wp-config.php

One of the most common reasons WordPress doesn’t show revisions is that they are manually disabled in the configuration file. Sometimes, missing revisions are not just a simple WordPress glitch—they can be related to blank posts or pages after saving. If you’ve encountered this issue, you can check our detailed guide on how to fix blank posts/pages after saving in WordPress for step-by-step solutions.

Step 1 — Open your wp-config.php

Connect via:

• cPanel File Manager

• FTP (FileZilla)

• Local installation

Step 2 — Look for this line:

If you see that, it means revisions are intentionally disabled.

Fix: Enable Revisions

Replace the line with:

Or specify a maximum number of revisions:

After editing:

Save the file and refresh your WordPress editor. The revisions panel should now appear.

2. Make Sure Your Post Actually Has Revisions Saved

Revisions only appear after a post has been saved multiple times.

If you created a new post and clicked “Publish” only once, revisions won’t exist yet — so nothing will display.

Fix: Create a revision manually

• Edit the existing post

• Make a small change

• Click Update

Reload the editor — you should now see “Revisions: 1”.

3. Check the Screen Options Panel (Classic Editor Only)

In the classic editor, revisions can be hidden from the UI.

Fix: Enable the “Revisions” Checkbox

1. Edit any post

2. Click Screen Options at the top right

3. Look for Revisions

4. Ensure the checkbox is enabled

If unchecked, revisions will simply not show.

4. Your Theme or Plugin Might Be Disabling Revisions

Some optimization plugins disable revisions automatically to reduce database size.

These include:

• WP-Optimize

• LiteSpeed Cache

• W3 Total Cache

• Perfmatters

• SiteGround Optimizer

Fix: Disable Revision Cleanup

Check each plugin’s settings for:

• “Remove revisions”

• “Disable revisions”

• “Optimize database”

Turn that feature off.

Bonus Tip — Prevent Plugins from Disabling Revisions

Add this to functions.php:

Or create a custom code override if needed.

5. Check If Custom Post Types Support Revisions

By default, WordPress post types like post and page support revisions. But custom post types (CPTs) must explicitly enable them.

Example: A developer added a custom post type without revision support:

The CPT above does not support revisions.

Fix: Add Revision Support

Update the CPT registration:

Or enable revisions using:

Then refresh the editor — revisions will now display.

6. Your Database May Have Deleted Old Revisions

Database cleaner plugins sometimes delete revisions automatically.
Examples:

• Advanced Database Cleaner

• WP-Sweep

• WP-Optimize

Fix: Check if revisions exist in database

Go to phpMyAdmin → wp_posts and run:

If empty, revisions were deleted.

Fix: Stop plugins from auto-cleaning the database

Turn off any revision cleanup rules.

7. Hosting Providers Limiting Revisions

Some hosts limit or disable revisions for performance reasons.

This is common on:

• Managed WordPress hosting

• Low-cost shared hosting

They may inject rules like:

Fix: Override the hosting limit

Place this at the bottom of wp-config.php:

If the host still overrides it, contact support and ask them to:

“Please enable unlimited WordPress post revisions for my site.”

8. Conflict Between Gutenberg and Classic Editor

Switching between editors can hide or confuse revision history.

Fix: Re-enable full Gutenberg features

Go to:

Settings → Writing → Default editor
Choose Block Editor

If using Classic Editor plugin:

Settings → Writing → Allow users to switch editors → Yes

Now open the post again — revisions should show.

9. User Role Permissions May Hide Revisions

Certain roles may lack capability to view or restore revisions.

For example, custom roles created using:

• User Role Editor

• Members plugin

Fix: Ensure the role has this capability:

and

And for restoring:

You can fix via plugin or add:

10. Object Caching or CDN May Hide Revision Counts

Caching layers may serve an outdated editor screen.

This includes:

• Cloudflare

• LiteSpeed Cache

• Redis object cache

• Server caching layers

Fix: Purge All Caches

• Clear your WordPress cache plugin

• Purge CDN cache

• Flush Redis or Object Cache

• Clear browser cache

Reload the editor — revision count usually appears immediately. Sometimes, missing post revisions occur because WordPress is running low on memory or server resources. Caching can help improve site performance and reduce such problems. Learn about the best WordPress caching plugins to optimize your site and prevent revision-related issues.

11. WordPress Autosave Overwriting Revisions

Autosave creates only one autosave per user.

Sometimes it overwrites itself without adding new revision entries.

Fix: Force Manual Save Instead of Autosave

Click Update after each edit instead of relying on autosave.

12. Debugging Misconfigured Revision Hooks

Advanced developers or agencies sometimes modify revision behavior using hooks like:

Check if your theme has custom filters

Search your theme for:

If you find something like this:

Revisions are intentionally disabled.

Fix: Remove the filter

Delete or comment out the line:

13. Corrupted Database Table for Revisions

The wp_posts table may be corrupted.

Fix: Repair Database

In wp-config.php add:

Visit:

Click:

• Repair Database

Then remove the line from wp-config.php.

This often restores access to revisions.

14. Increase PHP Memory Limit (Revisions Need Memory)

If your hosting memory is too low, WordPress may silently fail to save revisions.b

Sometimes, WordPress fails to save or display revisions due to server memory limits, slow database performance, or other optimization issues. Improving your site’s performance can prevent these problems from recurring. Check out our comprehensive guide on WordPress optimization tips to speed up your site and avoid revision-related issues.

Fix: Raise PHP memory limit

Add in wp-config.php:

Or if supported:

Reload and try saving again.

15. Disable All Plugins Temporarily

Sometimes a plugin silently breaks revision-saving hooks.  Sometimes, post revisions don’t appear because a plugin or theme update introduces incompatibility or errors. Rolling back to a previous stable version can resolve this issue. Learn how to safely roll back WordPress plugin or theme versions to restore normal revision functionality.

Fix: Plugin Conflict Troubleshooting

1. Disable all plugins

2. Edit a post, save, and check revisions

If revisions appear:

Enable plugins one-by-one until the issue returns.

Now you found the culprit. Sometimes, missing post revisions occur because a plugin or theme triggers a fatal error, preventing WordPress from saving your content properly. If your site ever gets stuck in a recovery loop, you can follow our complete guide on how to fix WordPress stuck in recovery mode to regain full control and restore normal functionality.

16. Switch to a Default Theme

A poorly coded theme may:

• Block revision support

• Override editor settings

• Remove the revisions meta box

Fix: Switch Theme

Go to:

Appearance → Themes → Activate Twenty Twenty-Five

Check if revisions appear now.

If yes → your theme needs debugging. Sometimes, a broken or improperly updated theme can prevent WordPress from saving or displaying post revisions. If you suspect a theme issue, you can follow our guide on how to restore a broken WordPress theme without losing data to fix your theme safely and recover full functionality.

17. Increase Autosave Interval for Better Revision History

By default, WordPress autosaves every 60 seconds.
You can increase this value if you’re losing snapshots due to rapid changes.

Modify Autosave Interval

This will reduce revision overlap.

18. Enable Revision Meta Box in Gutenberg Using Code

Sometimes Gutenberg hides the revisions panel for custom roles or themes.

Fix: Force the panel to show

Add this snippet:

This forces WordPress to send revision data through the REST API.

19. Restore Deleted Revisions from Backup

If revisions were removed, you can restore your database backup. In some cases, WordPress post revisions may disappear due to database issues, accidental deletion, or plugin conflicts. If you find that your revisions are permanently missing, you can restore your site from a backup manually. Check out our detailed guide on how to restore WordPress site from backup manually for step-by-step instructions.

Options:

• UpdraftPlus backup

• cPanel database backup

• Jetpack backup

• BlogVault

• WP-Manage

Restore the wp_posts table only if possible.

20. When All Else Fails — Reinstall WordPress Core

Reinstalling WordPress does NOT delete:

• Posts

• Pages

• Revisions

• Media

• Plugins

• Themes

Fix: Reinstall WordPress

Go to:

Dashboard → Updates → Reinstall Now

This can fix revision display bugs caused by corrupted core files.

Final Thoughts

Post revisions are essential for content editing, collaboration, and error recovery. When WordPress stops displaying revisions, it’s almost always due to a configuration setting, plugin cleanup, hosting limit, or missing support in custom post types.

By following the fixes in this guide step-by-step, you should be able to restore revision functionality completely — even on large or complex WordPress installations.

If none of these solutions work, the issue may require advanced debugging related to your theme or hosting.

FAQs

1. Why is WordPress not saving post revisions?

Revisions may be disabled in wp-config.php, plugin settings, theme functions, or hosting limits. Enabling revisions using define('WP_POST_REVISIONS', true); usually fixes the issue.

2. Where are WordPress revisions stored?

Revisions are stored in the wp_posts table with the post type revision.

3. How do I enable revisions for custom post types?

Add 'revisions' to the supports array:

4. Can plugins remove revisions automatically?

Yes. Database cleanup plugins often delete revisions. Disable the cleanup feature in plugin settings.

5. How do I restore deleted revisions?

You can restore them using a database backup from your host or a backup plugin.

6. Why are revisions not appearing in the Gutenberg editor?

Caching, plugin conflicts, disabled REST API, or hidden UI components may be responsible. Clearing cache and disabling conflicting plugins typically solves it.

7. Does WordPress limit revision count?

WordPress allows unlimited revisions unless restricted using:

8. Does reinstalling WordPress delete revisions?

No, reinstalling WordPress Core does not delete revisions or content.