AI assistants for WordPress, compared

We make Sarcio, one of the tools on this page, so we have tried to be fair: every fact about another tool comes from its own pages or its WordPress.org listing, checked on October 24, 2026, and linked under its section. Where a page does not say, neither do we. Tools change quickly, so check the latest before you decide.

Three ways AI can work on a WordPress site

1. Direct access to the server

An AI agent gets the keys to the site itself: it can run PHP, edit files and query the database. Nothing is out of reach, which makes it quick for a developer and risky on a live site. Tools in this group tell you to use a staging copy and keep backups.

2. A connector you drive from your own AI app

A plugin turns your site into an MCP server (MCP is the Model Context Protocol, a standard way for an AI app to use outside tools). You then ask in Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor or a similar app, and it calls a list of actions, often called abilities, such as "update a post". What it can reach is the list the plugin offers, run as the WordPress user you connect it with. You bring, and pay for, your own AI app.

3. An assistant inside wp-admin, with preview and approval

The assistant lives in your WordPress admin. You ask in plain words, see the change before anyone else does, and decide whether it goes live. No separate AI app to set up, and the actions it can take are fixed by the plugin.

At a glance

"Not stated" means the tool's own pages do not say, not that it cannot.

The tools, one by one

WordPress MCP Adapter

The MCP Adapter is the WordPress project's own connector, published on WordPress.org as a canonical plugin. It bridges the Abilities API (the list of actions WordPress and plugins can register) to MCP, so an AI app can find and use them. It has no AI features and no actions of its own: it exposes only the abilities marked public, and WordPress still checks the connected user's permissions. It suits developers and plugin makers, and anyone whose other plugins already register abilities.

MCP may come closer to WordPress itself. The WordPress AI team is discussing making MCP part of the default WordPress experience: bundling the plugin, building on core interfaces, or something between. WordPress 7.3 was mentioned as a possible target, with no release commitment and no final decision, as of the team's October 21, 2026 summary.

Sources: MCP Adapter on WordPress.org, the release announcement, the AI team's October 21 summary.

Novamira

Novamira is open source (AGPL-3.0) and gives an AI agent full access to a site: it runs PHP with WordPress loaded, runs WP-CLI commands, inspects and edits files and inspects the database. You connect Claude, Codex, Cursor or another MCP app, or a terminal agent through the Novamira CLI, and the agent signs in as an administrator. Its README says to use it for development and staging sites, with backups, always. It installs from a zip on novamira.ai; a paid Pro add-on adds a read mode and more read abilities.

It suits a developer who wants an AI pair working directly on a staging copy, with no limits on what it can try. For that job it does more than an assistant with a fixed list of actions.

Source: Novamira on GitHub.

GoBuildWP (formerly WPPilot)

GoBuildWP, the same plugin that was called WPPilot, turns a site into an MCP server for Claude, ChatGPT, Codex, Cursor, VS Code and others, with no AI model bundled. It offers safety profiles: Read Only, Production Safe (the default, which blocks raw PHP, WP-CLI, files, database access and plugin installs) and Developer Full Access. Writes are logged, and one change, a batch or a whole session can be undone; installs, updates and deletions cannot. Preview abilities show what a change would do, and an optional mode makes a person approve every call. It installs from its GitHub releases.

The plugin is free. Pro adds full WooCommerce writes, more page builders and safe updates that back up first and roll back on their own, from $39 a year for one site at its launch price. GoBuildWP Cloud links several sites to one chat, free for up to three. It suits someone already at home in an AI app who wants a wide, configurable set of actions and a way back.

Sources: GoBuildWP on GitHub, GoBuildWP pricing.

Easy MCP AI

Easy MCP AI is a free plugin on WordPress.org that turns a site into an MCP server. You connect your AI app by signing in or with an API token, and choose which WordPress user it acts as and which tools it gets. Its tools cover content, blocks and global styles, media, users, comments, settings and menus, plugins such as WooCommerce, ACF and SEO plugins, and analytics and SEO data services (which bill you directly). Change History keeps before and after snapshots of AI edits, an audit log can record every call, and an option saves new items as drafts (off by default). As of October 24, 2026 it lists 20,000+ active installations and a 5 out of 5 rating from 14 reviews.

It suits someone who already uses Claude or ChatGPT and wants it to reach their site, at no cost, from the plugin directory.

Source: Easy MCP AI on WordPress.org.

AI Agent by SiteGround

SiteGround's plugin puts a chat pop-up in your WordPress admin, and you can also work from SiteGround AI Studio. It works on any host: you create a free AI Studio account and paste a connection key, or connect in one click on SiteGround hosting. It manages content, menus, comments, media, WooCommerce products and orders, plugins and themes, settings and users, including bulk changes across connected sites. A safety layer called Power Mode is off by default, so the agent pauses for your confirmation before high-impact actions such as deletions, bulk changes and user changes. SiteGround customers get free monthly tokens; other pricing is not stated on the listing.

As of October 24, 2026 its WordPress.org listing shows 1+ million active installations and a rating of 1.7 out of 5 from 98 ratings. It suits a SiteGround customer who wants a chat in wp-admin with tokens included.

Source: AI Agent by SiteGround on WordPress.org.

Which should you choose?

• A developer comfortable with SSH, staging and AI apps: you do not need Sarcio. Novamira (open source) on a staging copy, or the free GoBuildWP plugin's Developer Full Access profile, gives your AI app far more reach.
• A plugin maker: register abilities with the Abilities API and let the MCP Adapter expose them. It is the WordPress project's own route.
• Someone who already lives in Claude or ChatGPT: Easy MCP AI and GoBuildWP are free, and both keep a record of what changed. You pay for your own AI app.
• A SiteGround customer: SiteGround's agent is a chat in wp-admin with monthly tokens included in your hosting.
• A site owner who wants to ask in plain words and see it first: an assistant inside wp-admin with a preview, such as Sarcio, means no AI app to connect and nothing live until you apply it.
• An agency with many client sites: GoBuildWP Cloud and SiteGround's agent both reach several sites from one place. Sarcio adds one request run across many sites, client-facing screens in your own brand, and a preview the client can see before it goes live.

Where Sarcio fits

Sarcio is a WordPress plugin for building and changing your site by asking. You ask in plain words inside wp-admin. Changes appear on a preview of your own site that only you see, and go live only when you choose Apply. Every applied change is recorded and can be undone. It runs the actions your WordPress user is allowed to run, as you, and never runs code the AI wrote.

It covers pages, posts, menus, WooCommerce products and orders (never refunds), comments, users, widgets, redirects, styles, the header and footer, Elementor text and the settings of your other plugins. Safe plugin updates check your key pages after each update and put the earlier version back if something broke. Agencies can run one request across many sites, with their own brand on the client-facing screens. When something does break, visitors can report it and Sarcio drafts the fix.

See Sarcio for WordPress.