How to Set Up WordPress Multi-Tenancy with GrabWP

Multi-tenancy lets you run multiple isolated WordPress sites from a single codebase and database. Unlike WordPress Multisite, each tenant gets its own table prefix, uploads directory, and configuration — without the complexity of managing separate installations.

Why Multi-Tenancy?

Traditional WordPress hosting means one installation per site. That works for a handful of sites, but when you’re managing dozens or hundreds, it becomes a maintenance nightmare. Multi-tenancy solves this by sharing the WordPress core while isolating each tenant’s data.

Key benefits:

Single codebase — update WordPress once, all tenants get the update
Reduced server costs — share PHP processes and database connections
Simplified management — one dashboard to manage all tenant sites
Data isolation — each tenant’s content, users, and settings are separate

Prerequisites

Before you start, make sure you have:

WordPress 6.0 or later
PHP 8.0 or later
MySQL 5.7+ or MariaDB 10.3+
The GrabWP Tenancy plugin installed and activated

Step 1: Install the Plugin

Download GrabWP Tenancy from the WordPress plugin directory or install it directly from your admin panel:

Go to Plugins → Add New
Search for “GrabWP Tenancy”
Click Install Now, then Activate

Step 2: Create Your First Tenant

Navigate to GrabWP → Tenants in your admin sidebar:

Click Add New Tenant
Enter a name for the tenant site (e.g., “Client A”)
Set the domain or subdirectory path
Click Create Tenant

The plugin automatically creates isolated database tables and an uploads directory for the new tenant.

Step 3: Configure Domain Routing

Each tenant needs a way to be accessed. GrabWP supports three routing methods:

Domain mapping — clienta.com points to tenant A
Subdomain — clienta.yourdomain.com
Subdirectory — yourdomain.com/clienta

Configure your preferred method in GrabWP → Settings → Routing.

What’s Next?

Once your first tenant is running, explore these features:

Tenant templates — clone a base configuration for new tenants
Bulk management — update plugins across all tenants at once
Pro features — separate wp-content directories and per-tenant databases

Check the full documentation for advanced configuration options.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between WordPress multi-tenancy and WordPress Multisite?

WordPress Multisite shares the same database tables with blog IDs, which can cause performance issues at scale. Multi-tenancy with GrabWP gives each tenant isolated database tables and uploads directories, providing better data separation and scalability without the overhead of separate WordPress installations.

How many tenants can GrabWP handle on a single server?

GrabWP is designed for scale. On a typical VPS with 4GB RAM, you can comfortably run 50-100 tenants. With proper caching and database optimization, production deployments have scaled to 500+ tenants on a single server.

Is tenant data truly isolated?

Yes. Each tenant gets its own database table prefix and uploads directory. One tenant cannot access another tenant's content, users, or settings. The Pro version also supports separate wp-content directories and per-tenant database connections for even stricter isolation.