by Polygon Themes 5 (15 reviews)

Autoremove Attachments

Name: Autoremove Attachments
Rating: 5.0 (15 reviews)
Author: Polygon Themes

Remove child attachments when parent post, page or custom post type is deleted.

Autoremove Attachments ranks #4,136 among WordPress.org plugins with 3,000+ active installations, is #455 of 6,303 in the Media category, a 5/5 rating from 15 reviews, and was last updated May 10, 2026. Data from WordPress.org, refreshed twice daily — see methodology.

Tested up to WP 6.9.7 (Current: 7.1)

v1.3.1 Current Version v1.3.1

Updated 4 months ago Last Update on 10 May, 2026

Refreshed 6 hours ago Last Refreshed on

#455 of 6,303 in Media Top 5% by installs Downloads -34.5% this week

View on WordPress.org

Rank

#4,136

-13 this week

Active Installs

3K+

-21.2%

KW Avg Position

76.5

— No change

Downloads

39K

+9 today

Support Resolved

100%

— No change

Rating

100%

Review 5 out of 5

5 (15 reviews)

Next Milestone 4K

Total Progress 80.1%

3K+ 4K+

490

Ranks to Climb

Growth Needed

8,000,000

Active Installs

Pro

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Rank Changes

Current #4,136

Change

Best #

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Active Installs Growth

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Active Installs 0,000,000+

Growth +0.0%

Peak 0,000,000

Downloads Growth

Downloads

Growth

Peak

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Reviews & Ratings

5.0

15 reviews

Overall 100%

15 (100%)

0 (0%)

Support Threads Overview

Resolved

Unresolved

Total Threads

Resolved

Unresolved

100%

Resolution Rate

Security History

Source: WPVulnerability

No known vulnerabilities on record for Autoremove Attachments. Checked 1 month ago.

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Plugin Details

Version: 1.3.1
Last Updated: May 10, 2026
Requires WP: 5.8+
Tested Up To: 6.9.7
PHP Version: 7.4 or higher
Author: Polygon Themes

Support & Rating

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 5
Reviews: 15
Support Threads: 1
Resolved: 100%

Keywords

attachment custom post type media page post

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TL;DR

AI summary of the plugin's readme

This plugin is for WordPress site owners and administrators managing posts, pages, or custom post types with attached media files. It automatically deletes child media attachments when their parent content is permanently removed, preventing orphan files from accumulating in the Media Library.

Auto-deletes child attachments on parent deletion
Triggers only on trash emptying, not soft delete
Checks if attachments used elsewhere
Skips removal to prevent broken links
Disable checks for improved performance
WooCommerce compatibility
Easy Digital Downloads compatibility
Only removes WordPress-tracked files

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Autoremove Attachments

Yes, it does. It works with posts, pages and custom post types. All child attachments are removed when the parent is deleted.

The files are removed when the parent post, page, or custom post type is permanently removed. A soft delete that places it in Trash will not trigger the removal of your attachments. The purge happens when you empty your trash.

Yes, you can. By default, all media files attached to a post, page or custom post type are removed automatically. If you need granular control you can use the filter autoremove_attachments_allowed to define custom rules for controlling when the child attachments should be removed automatically. Here is an example on how you can remove the attachments only for specific custom post types: function autoremove_attachments_custom_rule() { // Global variables. global $post_id; // Variables. $post_type = get_post_type( $post_id ); $allowed_post_types = array( 'project', 'product', ); // Default return value. $allowed_to_remove = false; // Custom rules for removing attachments. if ( in_array( $post_type, $allowed_post_types ) ) { $allowed_to_remove = true; } // Return. return $allowed_to_remove; } add_filter( 'autoremove_attachments_allowed', 'autoremove_attachments_custom_rule' ); The returned value should be true for the cases in which you want the attachments removed. (false otherwise)

Depending on how you use the plugin, the answer can be either yes, or no. If you keep the plugin running with the additional checks enabled, you have no restrictions on how you can use your attachments. (you can use your media files in multiple locations, without the fear of broken links caused by their removal) If you disable the additional checks, you need to make sure you don't reuse your media files between posts. If you do and the parent is deleted, you will end up with broken links in all the other locations where the removed attachments were used. Regardless of how you use the plugin, if you need to use an attachment over and over again, upload it from the global Media Library menu. ( Media > Add New ) This way, it won't be attached as a child to a specific post, page, or custom post type and you will be able to use it without restrictions.