WP Instances: Fast local WordPress environments for Windows.
Create a fresh site, restore a live backup and test safely offline. One shared stack runs them all.
Spin up a fresh WordPress site in seconds, restore a live site's backup, and work on it safely offline. One shared stack runs every site, so a new site needs no restart and they all share about 300 MB of memory.
Features
A new site in seconds
One shared stack (MariaDB, PHP-FPM and nginx) runs every site, so a fresh WordPress takes about 2–3 seconds and never needs a restart.
Light on memory
Every site shares about 300 MB of RAM, instead of each one running its own database server.
Restore live backups
Live URLs are rewritten safely, including serialized and JSON data. The table prefix and WordPress version are matched to the backup automatically.
PHP per site
Give each site its own PHP version, from 7.4 to 8.5 built in, or add any other release. It checks the site still loads before switching.
Log in as anyone
One click opens wp-admin, or log in as any user on the site, with a signed 5-minute link that only works locally.
Email caught, never sent
Every message lands in a per-site inbox in the dashboard, so a test site can never email real customers.
Made for the keyboard
Ctrl+K opens a command bar, and single keys open admin, the site, its files or VS Code. Each site gets a live preview thumbnail.
Quietly in the tray
Starts Docker Desktop for you. Closing the window keeps your sites running, and it can start with Windows.
Supported backups
- All-in-One WP Migration: The .wpress file. Extracted by a built-in parser, with no paid extension and no 512 MB limit.
- UpdraftPlus: The whole set: database, plugins, themes, uploads and others, including split parts.
- Anything else: A .sql or .sql.gz dump, plus a zip of wp-content or of plugins, themes and uploads.
Pricing
$39 one-time, for one computer, with a 14-day free trial. 14-day money-back guarantee.
Requires Windows and Docker Desktop.
Questions
What do I need?
Windows and Docker Desktop. WP Instances starts Docker for you if it isn't running, and if it isn't installed it says so and links to the download. If Windows is missing WSL, which Docker needs, it offers an Install WSL button.
Does it send any data?
Only anonymous crash reports, so problems can be fixed. Site names and addresses, your Windows user name and folders, email addresses and license keys are removed first. It's on by default and you can turn it off anytime in Settings. The license is also checked online every few days.
Is there a Mac version?
Not yet. The app is Windows only.
Windows warns me about the installer
The installer isn't code-signed yet, so Windows SmartScreen asks once. Choose More info, then Run anyway. It installs for your user only, with no admin prompt.
What happens when the trial ends?
Your existing sites keep working. Creating, importing and duplicating sites needs a license.
Do I need to be online?
Only now and then. The license is checked online every few days, and being offline never locks a licensed user out.
Where are my site files?
In a Docker volume, for speed. Each site has buttons to open its files in Windows Explorer or VS Code, and edits show up immediately.
Can my test sites send real email?
No. Every message is caught and shown in the dashboard's Mail section, even from SMTP plugins.
What's new in 1.8.8
Released 22 Oct 2026.
Fixed
- Restoring a backup from a recent All-in-One WP Migration version (7.x) failed with "docker exited 255" while unpacking. Newer versions add a checksum to each file entry in the .wpress file, which WP Instances read as part of the folder name. Both the new and the old format restore again.