WordPress with Git Setup on Localhost (Ubuntu & Windows)

When you’re starting your career in web development, the first step is always learning how to set up your environment properly. Installing WordPress locally is not just about “running a CMS on your computer.” It’s about learning the same professional practices companies use:

• Working safely in a local setup
• Tracking your changes with Git
• Understanding how development differs on Linux (Ubuntu) and Windows

In this guide, I’ll walk you through everything step-by-step, as if we’re doing it together in a lab.

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Why Local Setup + Git?

Before diving into commands, let’s understand why we do this.

• Local environment → You don’t need hosting or domain names; everything runs offline.
• Safe testing → Break things locally without worrying about a live website.
• Git version control → Helps you track changes, roll back if you make mistakes, and collaborate with teammates.
• Cross-platform setup → Some of you will use Ubuntu (Linux) while others prefer Windows. Companies expect you to be comfortable in both.

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1. Prerequisites (Before You Start)

Make sure you have these basics installed:

• PHP (7.4 or higher)
• MySQL or MariaDB
• Apache/Nginx web server
• Git
• Composer (optional, for managing PHP dependencies)

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2. Setting Up WordPress on Ubuntu

If you’re using Ubuntu Linux, you first need a LAMP stack (Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP).

👉 I recommend following this detailed step-by-step guide here:
🔗 How to Install LAMP Stack on Ubuntu

Once your LAMP stack is ready:

Step 1: Create a Database

Open MySQL in terminal:

sudo mysql -u root -p

Now create a database and user:

CREATE DATABASE wordpress_db;
CREATE USER 'wpuser'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'password';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON wordpress_db.* TO 'wpuser'@'localhost';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
EXIT;

Step 2: Download and Configure WordPress

cd /var/www/html
sudo wget https://wordpress.org/latest.zip
sudo apt install unzip
sudo unzip latest.zip
sudo mv wordpress mysite
sudo chown -R www-data:www-data mysite

Now open a browser and go to:

http://localhost/mysite

Follow the on-screen WordPress installer.

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3. Setting Up WordPress on Windows

If you’re on Windows, you have two choices:

Option 1: XAMPP (Beginner Friendly)

• Download XAMPP from the official site:
  🔗 https://www.apachefriends.org/index.html
• Install it → Open the XAMPP Control Panel → Start Apache and MySQL.
• Go to C:\xampp\htdocs\ and create a folder called mysite.
• Download WordPress from wordpress.org, extract it into mysite.
• Open http://localhost/phpmyadmin and create a database.
• Finally, run http://localhost/mysite in your browser to complete installation.

Option 2: WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux)

For students who want to get hands-on Linux experience on Windows:

• Install Ubuntu from Microsoft Store.
• Open WSL → follow the same Ubuntu LAMP steps above.

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4. Git Setup for WordPress

Once WordPress is running, let’s make it professional with Git.

Step 1: Initialize Git

cd mysite
git init
git add .
git commit -m "Initial WordPress setup"

Step 2: Connect to GitHub (or GitLab)

git remote add origin https://github.com/username/mysite.git
git branch -M main
git push -u origin main

Step 3: Create .gitignore

Inside your project, create a .gitignore file to avoid committing unnecessary files:

wp-config.php
wp-content/uploads/
node_modules/
vendor/

This prevents sensitive configs and bulky uploads from going into Git.

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5. Best Practices (What Companies Expect)

• Always work on a separate branch (e.g., feature/login-page).
• Never commit real credentials inside wp-config.php.
• Use .env files for database passwords and secrets.
• Remember: Git tracks code, not your database. Use plugins like WP Migrate DB or tools like phpMyAdmin export when sharing databases.

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Conclusion

By now, you’ve:

• Installed WordPress locally on Ubuntu or Windows
• Set up a database and environment
• Connected your project to Git for version control

This is exactly how a real-world developer prepares their system before building client projects. Once you’re confident in this setup, you’re ready to move on to theme development, plugin usage, and custom blocks.

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👉 Next in the series, we’ll cover: Using Predefined Themes Setup.