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update: Kinde and WordPress guide #753

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initial update to wordpress integration
tamalchowdhury Jun 13, 2026
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create the full doc update to wordpress
tamalchowdhury Jun 14, 2026
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154 changes: 115 additions & 39 deletions src/content/docs/integrate/third-party-tools/kinde-wordpress.mdx
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Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
@@ -1,15 +1,19 @@
---
page_id: ab64c5ff-8de5-4c1c-b008-398e74b79f89
title: Connect Kinde and WordPress
description: Guide to integrating Kinde with WordPress using the OpenID Connect Generic Client plugin including plugin installation and OAuth configuration
title: Use Kinde authentication to WordPress self-hosted site
description: "Add Kinde auth to self-hosted WordPress via OpenID Connect—social login, SSO, passwordless flows, and user migration"
sidebar:
order: 3
label: Kinde and WordPress
tableOfContents:
maxHeadingLevel: 3
relatedArticles:
- 4cf32822-c02b-41d1-9396-f292bdbe5577
- 84581694-59d6-4a02-ab8b-c7a2889713d5
topics:
- integrate
- third-party-tools
- openid-connect
sdk: []
languages: []
audience:
Expand All @@ -19,59 +23,131 @@ complexity: intermediate
keywords:
- wordpress
- openid connect
- plugin
- oauth
- client id
- client secret
- self-hosted wordpress
- callback urls
- endpoints
updated: 2024-01-15
- user migration
- sso
- refresh tokens
updated: 2026-06-14
featured: false
deprecated: false
ai_summary: Guide to integrating Kinde with WordPress using the OpenID Connect Generic Client plugin including plugin installation and OAuth configuration.
ai_summary: "Guide to integrating Kinde authentication with self-hosted WordPress using the OpenID Connect Generic Client plugin. Covers creating a Kinde back-end web application, configuring allowed callback and logout URLs, enabling authentication methods such as email password, username, social, or enterprise connections, installing and configuring the WordPress plugin via OpenID discovery or manual endpoint setup, and testing sign-in with automatic WordPress user provisioning. Also explains advanced settings including SSO auto-login and refresh tokens, exporting WordPress users for bulk import into Kinde without passwords, and troubleshooting failed user creation when an email already exists in WordPress. No Kinde SDK is required. Intended for developers and site administrators."
---

This topic describes how to set up Kinde with WordPress using the `OpenID Connect - Generic Client` plugin.
WordPress includes built-in user authentication, but many teams want more than the default login form—social sign-in, enterprise SSO, passwordless flows, or a single identity layer shared across multiple products. Kinde handles authentication and user management for you, and you can bring that experience to a self-hosted WordPress site without custom code.

<Aside>
## What you need

This topic includes only basic steps. Depending on your exact setup, additional configuration might be required.
- A [Kinde](/get-started/guides/first-things-first/) account with **Admin** or **Engineer** permissions (sign up for free)
- A [self-hosted WordPress](https://wordpress.org/) site with **Administrator** permissions

</Aside>
## Quickstart

## Step 1: Install the Plugin
### 1. Create a Kinde application

1. In the WordPress admin area, go to **Plugins** and select **Add New**.
2. Search for `OpenID Connect - Generic Client` and select **Install Now**.
1. Go to your Kinde dashboard and select **Add application**.
2. Enter a name (for example, "WordPress"), select **Back-end web** as the application type, and select **Save**.
3. Select **Other back end** as the SDK, and select **Save**.
4. Go to **Details** and copy the **Domain** (or [Custom domain](/build/domains/pointing-your-domain/)), **Client ID** and **Client secret** values.
5. In the **Allowed callback URLs** field, enter:
- Callback URL: `https://[your_wordpress_domain]/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php?action=openid-connect-authorize`
- Logout redirect URL: `https://[your_wordpress_domain]`

Select **Save**.
6. Go to **Authentication** and select the authentication methods you want to use (**Email + code** is enabled by default).

To keep password authentication with username and email like WordPress, do the following:

- In **Passwordless connections**, disable **Email + code**
- In **Password connections**, enable **Email + password** and **Username**

![enable email username password authentication](https://imagedelivery.net/skPPZTHzSlcslvHjesZQcQ/5415d8bf-5c41-41fd-2ef7-b06d08b74500/socialsharingimage)

Enable any other authentication methods you want to use for your WordPress site (for example, Google, Facebook, or Enterprise).

Select **Save**.

### 2. Install the WordPress plugin

1. Sign in to your WordPress dashboard, go to **Plugins** and select **Add New**.
2. Search for `OpenID Connect - Generic Client` ([by Jonathan Daggerhart](https://wordpress.org/plugins/daggerhart-openid-connect-generic/)) and select **Install Now**.
3. Once installed, select **Activate**.

## Step 2: Set up Kinde
![openid connect generic client plugin installation](https://imagedelivery.net/skPPZTHzSlcslvHjesZQcQ/8616e510-6cb6-4904-632c-33517727b600/socialsharingimage)

### 3. Configure the plugin

1. In WordPress, go to **Settings > OpenID Connect Client**.
2. In the **Quick setup** section, enter your Kinde OpenID configuration URL and select **Load Configuration**.
```text
https://<YOUR_DOMAIN>/.well-known/openid-configuration
```
<Aside>
Replace `<YOUR_DOMAIN>` with your [custom domain](/build/domains/pointing-your-domain/) or your Kinde domain (for example, `https://your_business.kinde.com`).
</Aside>

3. Enter the **Client ID** and **Client Secret Key** from your Kinde application.
4. Set the **Scope** to `openid profile email`.
5. If auto-configuration fails, manually enter the following details:

- **Login Endpoint URL:** `https://<YOUR_DOMAIN>/oauth2/auth`
- **Userinfo Endpoint URL:** `https://<YOUR_DOMAIN>/oauth2/v2/user_profile`
- **Token Validation Endpoint URL:** `https://<YOUR_DOMAIN>/oauth2/token`
- **End Session Endpoint URL:** `https://<YOUR_DOMAIN>/logout`
- **JWKS URI:** `https://<YOUR_DOMAIN>/.well-known/jwks`
- **Issuer:** `https://<YOUR_DOMAIN>`

<Aside>
You can find all these endpoints by visiting the OpenID configuration URL (for example, `https://<YOUR_DOMAIN>/.well-known/openid-configuration`).
</Aside>
6. Enter the following details:
- **Identity Key:** `sub`
- **Nickname Key:** `name`
- **Email Formatting:** `{email}`
- **Display Name Formatting:** `{given_name} {family_name}`
7. Select **Save Changes**.

### 4. Test authentication

1. Sign out of your WordPress site and visit your login page (for example, `https://your_wordpress_domain/wp-login.php`).
2. Select the **Login with OpenID Connect** button. The Kinde hosted login page opens.

@coderabbitai coderabbitai Bot Jun 14, 2026

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⚠️ Potential issue | 🟡 Minor | ⚡ Quick win

Hyphenate or rephrase “hosted login page” for consistency.

Line 114 and Line 128 use “hosted login page,” which should be hyphenated or rephrased to avoid adjective-noun ambiguity in user-facing copy.

Suggested wording update 
-2. Select the **Login with OpenID Connect** button. The Kinde hosted login page opens.
+2. Select the **Login with OpenID Connect** button. The Kinde hosted-login page opens.

-- **Auto Login - SSO**: When enabled, users are redirected to the Kinde hosted login page, bypassing the default WordPress login screen.
+- **Auto Login - SSO**: When enabled, users are redirected to the Kinde hosted-login page, bypassing the default WordPress login screen.

Also applies to: 128-128

🧰 Tools
🪛 LanguageTool

[grammar] ~114-~114: Use a hyphen to join words.
Context: ... with OpenID Connect** button. The Kinde hosted login page opens. 3. Sign in or s...

(QB_NEW_EN_HYPHEN)

🤖 Prompt for AI Agents 
Verify each finding against current code. Fix only still-valid issues, skip the
rest with a brief reason, keep changes minimal, and validate.

In `@src/content/docs/integrate/third-party-tools/kinde-wordpress.mdx` at line
114, The phrase "hosted login page" appears in two locations (line 114 and line
128) and should be hyphenated to "hosted-login page" for consistency and to
eliminate adjective-noun ambiguity in user-facing documentation. Update both
instances of this phrase to use the hyphenated form to maintain consistent
terminology throughout the document.

Source: Linters/SAST tools

3. Sign in or sign up for a new account.
4. You are redirected to your WordPress dashboard.
5. In your Kinde dashboard, go to **Users** to confirm the new user was created.
6. Sign out of WordPress and sign in again with your Administrator account.
7. In your WordPress dashboard, go to **Users > All Users**. New users are assigned the **Subscriber** role by default.

![wordpress user list](https://imagedelivery.net/skPPZTHzSlcslvHjesZQcQ/549c87ac-5fde-4213-b5ac-512cf1484d00/socialsharingimage)

## Advanced configuration

### Login type

- **OpenID Connect button on login form**: When enabled, a button appears on the default WordPress login screen. Users can sign in with Kinde or use the default WordPress login form.
- **Auto Login - SSO**: When enabled, users are redirected to the Kinde hosted login page, bypassing the default WordPress login screen.

### Refresh tokens

Add the scope `offline` and check the **Enable Refresh Token** option to get a refresh token.

## Export users from WordPress

1. In your WordPress dashboard, install and activate the **Import and export users and customers** plugin (by Codection).
2. Go to **Tools > Import and export users and customers**.
3. Select the **Export** tab and choose the roles you want to export (for example, Subscriber, Customer, or Administrator).
4. Select **Download**. The CSV file saves to your computer.

1. Sign in to your Kinde dashboard.
2. Go to **Settings > Applications > [Your App Name] > View Details**.
3. In the **Allowed callback URLs** field, enter:
`https://[your_wordpress_domain]/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php?action=openid-connect-authorize`
4. In the **Allowed logout redirect URLs** field, enter:
`https://[your_wordpress_domain]/`
5. Select **Save**.
To import the exported users to Kinde, see [Import users in bulk](/manage-users/add-and-edit/import-users-in-bulk/). Do not import passwords—WordPress uses a hashing format that Kinde does not support. Users are prompted to create a new password on their next sign-in. Let your users know in advance to avoid confusion.

## Step 3: Configure the Plugin
## Troubleshooting

1. In WordPress, go to the **Settings** page for the plugin.
2. Set the **Scope** to **openid**.
3. Enter the following details:
- **Client ID**: Client ID from your Kinde application
- **Client Secret:** Client secret from your Kinde application
- **Login Endpoint URL:** `https://[your_kinde_domain].kinde.com/oauth2/auth`
- **Userinfo Endpoint URL:** `https://[your_kinde_domain].kinde.com/oauth2/v2/user_profile`
- **Token Validation Endpoint URL:** `https://[your_kinde_domain].kinde.com/oauth2/token`
- **End Session Endpoint URL:** `https://[your_kinde_domain].kinde.com/logout`
- **Identity Key:** sub
- **Nickname Key:** sub
### ERROR (failed-user-creation)

## Step 4: Test the configuration
When a user's email already exists in WordPress, user creation fails with the following error:

Finally, you should test your configuration to ensure that everything is set up correctly.
```text
ERROR (failed-user-creation): Failed user creation.
```

1. Sign in to your WordPress site. This should redirect to Kinde pages.
2. If everything is set up correctly, you should be able to sign in successfully.
Enable the **Link Existing Users** option in **Settings > OpenID Connect Client**.
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