Hostinger automatically creates regular backups of your website files and databases so you can restore your data if an emergency occurs. To keep these automated processes fast, reliable, and optimal in size, Hostinger leaves out one specific type of file: backups created by third-party WordPress backup plugins. This guide explains which directories are affected, why they are skipped, and how to manage your external website copies safely.
In short:
- Hostinger backs up your website files and database as usual.
- We skip the backup files that other backup plugins create inside your site (for example, the .zip or .wpress archives made by UpdraftPlus or All-in-One WP Migration).
- This keeps your Hostinger backups lighter and faster, and avoids storing a backup inside a backup.
- Your actual website — pages, images, themes, plugins, and database — is still fully backed up.
Pre-requisites
- An active Hostinger web, cloud, or agency hosting plan.
- A WordPress website utilizing third-party backup plugins (such as UpdraftPlus or All-in-One WP Migration).
Identify Excluded Backup Files and Folders
Only the specific directories where popular WordPress backup plugins store their generated archives are skipped during the Hostinger backup routine. The plugins themselves and the rest of your website are fully backed up.
The following table details the exact paths excluded from Hostinger backups:
|
Backup Plugin Name |
Excluded Folder Path |
|
All-in-One WP Migration |
|
|
UpdraftPlus |
|
|
WPvivid Backup |
|
|
Duplicator (Lite) |
|
|
Duplicator Pro |
|
|
Other backup tools |
|
Understand Why These Files Are Excluded
When you use a backup plugin like UpdraftPlus or Duplicator, the plugin saves a copy of your entire website into a folder on your hosting account. That copy can easily be hundreds of megabytes or several gigabytes in size.
If Hostinger also backed up that folder, we’d be storing a backup inside our backup — the same data twice. This makes backups much larger than they need to be, makes both creating and restoring a backup slower, and doesn’t actually protect anything extra, because the real website is already saved in your Hostinger backup.
To keep backups fast and dependable for everyone, we automatically detect these backup folders and leave them out. This is also described in our Terms of Service: backups created by third-party software, plugins, or services may be excluded from Hostinger’s backup, retention, and restore processes.
Verify Included Website Data
Everything required to restore your live website to an operational state is included in Hostinger’s automated backup process:
- WordPress Core Files: Main application installation files.
- Themes and Plugins: All active and inactive website designs and software extensions.
- Uploads Directory: Media assets, including images, videos, and documents.
- Database Tables: Post content, pages, system settings, users, and comments.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this process delete my plugin’s backup files?
No. Hostinger does not remove or modify files on your live server during this process. The system simply bypasses these specific folders when copying data to the backup storage server.
Will my website restore correctly from a Hostinger backup?
Yes. Because all functional website files and your database are fully included, performing a Hostinger restoration brings your website back exactly to how it was at the time of the backup.
Can I turn this backup exclusion off?
No. This exclusion rule applies automatically across all server accounts to ensure backup generation and restoration speeds remain efficient and reliable for everyone.
I need a plugin-made backup file that was excluded — can Hostinger recover it?
No. Because Hostinger backups do not store these archive folders, they cannot be recovered through hPanel. You must maintain your own external copies of plugin-generated archives.
What You Should Do
Nothing. Your website is fully protected by Hostinger’s automatic backups.
If you also use a third-party backup plugin, we recommend configuring it to send its backups to external storage — such as Google Drive, Dropbox, or Amazon S3 — instead of saving them on your hosting account. This keeps your hosting account tidy and within its storage limit, and gives you a second, independent copy of your site off the server.