How to Change PHP Version in cPanel

Check which PHP version the site is using

MultiPHP Manager lists the PHP version beside each domain. That row is what the website runs on the next request. The cPanel build number in the panel footer is a different figure and does not change the site.

You can read the live version in any of these places:

• The domain row in MultiPHP Manager, under Software.
• The PHP Version line in a one-off phpinfo file, which you delete afterwards.
• WordPress: Tools, then Site Health, Info, Server.

Put a file named phpinfo.php in the document root that contains only <?php phpinfo();, open it in the browser, and note the version at the top. Remove the file the same day. Anyone who can open it can see server paths.

A cron job or the Terminal command php -v can show a different binary. The public site follows the domain row in MultiPHP Manager. A scheduled task follows that row only when the cron line calls that same PHP binary.

Change the PHP version in MultiPHP Manager

Use MultiPHP Manager under Software. That screen is part of cPanel. It is not a registrar's own product page, and it is not the XAMPP menu on a laptop.

Take a backup in cPanel before you switch a live site. WebJi® cPanel plans include JetBackup.

1. Log in to cPanel. On WebJi® the panel link is in the client area, separate from the page where you pay invoices.
2. Open Software, then MultiPHP Manager.
3. Tick the domain you want to change. Each addon domain has its own row.
4. Choose the PHP version in the dropdown and click Apply.
5. Reload the homepage and the phpinfo file. The PHP Version line should match the row you just set.

Apply takes effect on the next request. You do not restart the server. If the domain already runs on PHP-FPM, leave that handler as it is and change only the version.

Pick a supported PHP version before you switch

PHP's supported-versions list, read on 30 October 2026, still includes 8.2, 8.3, 8.4 and 8.5. PHP 8.1 is not on it. PHP 7 and older are long out of support. The site can keep loading, but new security fixes will not arrive.

Choose 8.3 when the theme and plugins allow it. PHP 8.2 still receives security fixes until 31 December 2026, so treat it as a bridge, not a home. PHP 8.4 was released on 21 November 2024 and PHP 8.5 on 20 November 2025. Neither is inside the published 8.1 to 8.3 range.

Email support@webji.services if you need a version the menu does not list. Do not assume 8.4 or 8.5 is installed. For WordPress, read Requires PHP on each plugin you cannot lose, update the one that blocks 8.3, and do not park the whole site on 8.1 for a single add-on.

Set a different PHP version on each domain

Each domain and addon domain has its own row. Tick only the one you want to move, choose the version, and click Apply. The others stay put, so a shop can run 8.3 while a legacy app stays on 8.2.

A subdomain that shares the main document root uses the main domain's PHP version. A subdomain with its own document root has its own row. Change the row whose folder the browser actually opens.

Use Select PHP Version when MultiPHP Manager is missing

Some accounts show Select PHP Version under Software instead of MultiPHP Manager, or they show both. Select PHP Version sets one version for the whole account from a dropdown, then you save it as current. The extension checkboxes on that screen apply to the version you just saved.

On WebJi®, start with MultiPHP Manager, because that is the tool the cPanel plans document. Open Select PHP Version only when MultiPHP Manager is missing. If the two screens name different versions, visitors get whichever handler actually runs the request, so make them match.

Enable mbstring and other extensions for that PHP version

Extensions are stored per PHP version. mbstring can be on for 8.1 and off for 8.3. After the switch, open the extensions list for the new version in MultiPHP Manager and enable mbstring if the app needs multibyte strings.

The same list holds mysqli, intl, zip, and gd or imagick. Enable OPcache there when you want PHP to reuse compiled scripts. The how to enable PHP OPcache guide covers the ini flags. A Redis module shows up only when that PHP build includes it. Do not assume it on shared hosting.

Set the PHP memory limit in MultiPHP INI Editor

MultiPHP Manager picks the version. MultiPHP INI Editor sets memory_limit, upload_max_filesize and max_execution_time for one domain on that version.

Open the editor, choose the domain, set memory_limit, and save. 256M is enough for a normal WordPress dashboard. If phpinfo still shows the old number, a php_value line in .htaccess, or a php.ini in the site folder, is overriding the editor.

Fix a white screen after the PHP version change

A white screen or a fatal error means the new version is running and the code is not. If people are using the site, switch that domain back to the previous version first, then find the cause.

In cPanel, open Metrics, then Errors. The line names a file. In WordPress, set WP_DEBUG_LOG to true in wp-config.php, reload once, and read wp-content/debug.log. The path is usually one plugin or the theme.

In cPanel File Manager, rename that plugin folder under wp-content/plugins so the name ends in -off. WordPress skips a folder it does not recognise. Update or replace the plugin, move the domain forward again, and restore the folder name only after the homepage and one form both load.

If phpinfo still shows the old version, the panel change did not win. Check the three causes below. Also delete the phpinfo file and upload it again, because a cached copy can keep the old header.

• The wrong domain was ticked, often an addon domain with its own row.
• The dropdown changed, but Apply was never clicked.
• .htaccess still has AddHandler or SetHandler for an older ea-php build.