Before you start
- Your WordPress site must be reachable over https on the standard port (443). Addresses with
http://or a custom port are refused. - The WordPress REST API must be reachable at
/wp-json/. That requires pretty permalinks: under Settings → Permalinks, any option except Plain works. - You need a WordPress user that may publish posts and upload images. The built-in roles Author, Editor and Administrator can do both; Contributor cannot.
- Security plugins and firewalls that block the REST API or the
/wp-json/wp/v2/users/meendpoint make the connection test fail. Allow REST requests for that user.
Connect step by step
Create an application password
In WordPress, open Users → Profile for the publishing user and scroll to Application Passwords. Enter a name such as “StrideRank”, click Add New Application Password and copy the password. WordPress shows it only once.
Open the publishing settings
In StrideRank, open Autopilot → Settings and go to Publishing. You can also connect during setup (step 3). Only owners and admins of the account can change the connection. Choose WordPress.
Enter the site address
Enter the exact address of your WordPress site in WordPress address, for example
https://example.com. If WordPress lives in a subfolder, include it:https://example.com/blog. Use the address your site really answers on (with or withoutwww) — redirects are not followed.Enter user name and application password
Enter the WordPress username and paste the Application password. Not your login password. The spaces WordPress shows inside the password do not matter.
Choose the optional settings
Article status: “Publish immediately” (default) or “Save as draft”. Category IDs: numbers separated by commas, up to 20. Author ID: a numeric WordPress user ID; empty means the connected user.
Save and test
Click Save connection, then Test connection. The test reaches your site with the saved details and reports the first problem it finds. A connection that has been saved but not tested shows “saved — not tested yet”.
What StrideRank sets in WordPress
- Title, content and URL slug of the post.
- The meta description goes into the post excerpt. Many themes show it, and Yoast SEO and Rank Math fall back to it when no own description is set.
- A featured image when the article has one — uploaded to your media library together with its alt text, only when the post is first created. Updates do not upload a second copy.
- The categories and author you configured.
StrideRank does not write Yoast SEO or Rank Math fields. Those plugins do not accept them reliably through the REST API, so we use the excerpt instead of risking a rejected post.
If the test fails
| Message | What to check |
|---|---|
| WordPress rejected the credentials | User name and application password; a security plugin blocking REST logins. |
| This WordPress user is not allowed to publish posts / upload images | Give the user the Author role or higher. |
| WordPress could not find the target | The address, including any subfolder; permalinks must not be “Plain”. |
| The site redirected the request | Enter the final address exactly — check https and www. |
| This does not look like a WordPress REST API | The address points to a page that is not WordPress, or the REST API is disabled. |
Questions
Can StrideRank publish as drafts first?
Yes. Set “Article status” to “Save as draft”. The article is then created as a WordPress draft and you publish it in WordPress yourself.
Does StrideRank need my WordPress admin password?
No. It uses an application password, which you can revoke at any time in WordPress under Users → Profile → Application Passwords without changing your login.