Every time a new WordPress update comes out, we get several emails from users asking whether it’s safe to update their WordPress site.

Are you also wondering whether you should update your WordPress to the latest version?

Keep reading to find out why you should update your WordPress site!

Firstly, the best thing about WordPress is that it is free. It’s been continually improved and upgraded by the community of developers who developed it in the first place. With every new WordPress update, bugs are fixed, new features are added, improvements are made in performance and existing features get enhanced. Every new update keeps your site up to date with new industry standards.

Here are 5 reasons to keep your WordPress site updated:

1. Security

It is the most important reason to keep your WordPress website updated. Presently, WordPress covers over 23% of all websites across the globe. It is quite popular, and it might be the reason why it is also popular among hackers, data thieves etc.

As it is an open source platform, it is available for everyone to study the source code and contribute towards improving it. This can also be a gateway for hackers to break into websites. However, there is more number of good hackers than bad ones. These hackers are the security experts and understand how a hacker actually thinks. They write secure codes to make sure that the site doesn’t get hacked. Every time they discover vulnerability they report the bug. A fix gets released to eliminate that vulnerability.

Now, if you don’t update to latest version of WordPress, you’ll miss out on the security update. Thus, exposing your site to hackers! Remember that plugins can also be exploited by hackers, so don’t forget to update your plugins as well when there’s an update. It is always better to be safe than sorry.

2. Cool New Features

All the WordPress releases have come with some kind of new features added to the software. For example, WordPress 4.5 named “Coleman” streamlines your workflow. It came with improved editing (inline linking), formatting shortcuts, live responsive previews, script loader improvements and many more. The latest 4.5.3 is maintenance and security release that fixed 17 bugs from 4.5, 4.5.1 and 4.5.2.

Now if you don’t update to the latest version, your WordPress experience would be a lot different. If you face any issue, you’ll have trouble finding WordPress help online.

3. Speed

WordPress developers pride themselves in developing a speedy platform for users to showcase their website. With every new update they make performance improvements to help WordPress run faster and better than the older version.

Since speed is a major factor in SEO, you cannot compromise on this update. Keep your WordPress updated to make sure that you get the fastest and SEO optimized website.

4. Bug Fixes

Since it is an open source platform, some bugs slip through rigorous testing before an update in released. This is the main reason why updates such as 4.5.3 are released as maintenance and security update to counter those bugs! This latest 4.5.3 release fixed 17 bugs from 4.5, 4.5.1 and 4.5.2.

5. Compatibility

It is quite common for plugin and theme developers to align their updates along with major WordPress updates. They do this to make sure that all your plugins work without any issue in the latest WordPress version. So, it is imperative for you to update your plugins after a WordPress update.

NOTE: Maintain regular WordPress backups. Make sure that all your data is backed-up before updating a WordPress version. The chances are quite less for data loss; however, as a user you should take all the precautions.