Upload files and folders to cPanel with a ZIP

To upload a folder or many files from cPanel's File Manager, prepare a ZIP on your computer and extract it at the destination.

Prepare the content

Check that the ZIP contains what you want to publish. If you compress a folder called miweb, extracting it may leave an extra level: public_html/miweb instead of the files directly in public_html.

Save a copy of the content you are going to replace. You'll need space for both the ZIP and its extracted files; the compressed size doesn't reflect the final usage.

Upload and extract

1. In cPanel, open File Manager and go to the domain's directory. Check its document root in Domains if it isn't the primary domain.
2. Click Upload, select the ZIP and wait for the transfer to finish.
3. Go back to the directory, select the ZIP and click Extract.
4. Check the destination path before confirming. For an update, review which existing files it may overwrite.
5. Open the resulting folder and check the structure. Test the website, its images and an inner page.

If the file exceeds the upload limit shown or the transfer is interrupted, use SFTP or FTPS to upload it.

Finish publishing

Remove the ZIP from the public directory when you no longer need it; it could be downloaded by anyone who knows its URL. If it goes to the trash, it'll keep using space until you empty it.

Uploading the files doesn't by itself migrate a database or adapt an application's configuration. For WordPress or another CMS, also check its database, credentials and URL. If the result isn't what you expected, restore the previous copy before overwriting more content.