How to Change Your PHP Version and PHP Settings

Braysons Host servers run CloudLinux with LiteSpeed, so you get the Select PHP Version tool. It lets you choose your PHP version, switch extensions on or off, and change PHP options — all per account, without asking support.

Which version should I use?

PHP version	Recommendation
8.3 / 8.2	Best choice for current WordPress, WooCommerce and Laravel — fastest and supported with security fixes
8.1	OK for older plugins/themes that are not yet tested on 8.2+
7.4 or older	End of life — no security fixes. Use only temporarily while you update an old site

Step 1: Check your current version

In cPanel, go to Software → Select PHP Version. The top of the page shows Current PHP version. In WordPress you can also see it at Tools → Site Health → Info → Server.

Step 2: Choose the new version

1. Open the Current PHP version dropdown and pick the version (e.g. 8.2).
2. The change is saved immediately — there is no separate Save button on the version itself.
3. Open your website in a private window and click through key pages: home, a blog post, contact form, cart/checkout, and the admin login.

Step 3: Enable extensions your software needs

Under Extensions, tick any module your application asks for and it is enabled instantly. Common ones are already on. Examples:

Software says it needs…	Tick
Image editing / thumbnails	gd or imagick
Multilingual / currency formatting	intl
ZIP imports, plugin updates	zip
Faster PHP (recommended)	opcache
Laravel / Composer projects	pdo_mysql, fileinfo, tokenizer, xml

Step 4: Change PHP limits (Options)

Open the Options tab and click a value to edit it. The most useful settings:

Option	Good value	Why change it
memory_limit	256M (512M for big WooCommerce stores)	Fixes “Allowed memory size exhausted” errors
upload_max_filesize	64M–128M	Upload larger themes, plugins, videos
post_max_size	Same or larger than upload size	Must be ≥ upload_max_filesize
max_execution_time	120–300	Long imports and backups stop timing out
max_input_vars	3000–5000	Large menus or page-builder pages save fully
display_errors	Off on live sites	Prevents error details being shown to visitors

If something breaks — roll back

• Go back to Select PHP Version and choose the previous version. The site normally recovers instantly.
• If you cannot reach cPanel, use one-click login from the client area, or WhatsApp us — we can switch it for you.
• Then find the incompatible plugin/theme: see WordPress white screen of death and 500 Internal Server Error.

Different PHP versions for different sites

If you host several domains and one needs an older version, use Software → MultiPHP Manager (where available) to set a version per domain. Otherwise ask support and we will configure it for you.

Troubleshooting

Symptom after switching	Cause	Fix
White page or 500 error	Old plugin/theme incompatible	Switch back, update/replace the plugin, try again
“Your PHP installation appears to be missing the MySQL extension”	mysqli/pdo_mysql disabled	Tick the extension
Uploads fail above 2 MB	Low upload_max_filesize/post_max_size	Raise both in Options
Changes have no effect	Old php_value lines in .htaccess override settings	Remove php_value lines from .htaccess or set them consistently

Frequently asked questions

Will changing PHP version delete anything? No. It only changes how your code runs. Files and databases are untouched.

Does a newer PHP really make my site faster? Usually yes — PHP 8.x runs WordPress noticeably faster than 7.x, and uses less memory.