When an app or service wants to connect to your site, it first has to find out what your site supports. Where are the feeds? Is there an API? Can it look up the people who write here?

host-meta is a small file that answers these questions. It always lives at the same address, /.well-known/host-meta, so apps know where to look. The format is an internet standard.

This plugin adds that file to your WordPress site. You don’t have to do anything else, there are no settings.

Why would I need it?

Most visitors never see it. It is for other software. You need it if a plugin or service asks for it, for example:

The WebFinger plugin can add a link to it, so older apps can still find the profiles of your authors.
The Open Search Document plugin adds your site search to it.
Feed readers and other tools can use it to find your feeds and the WordPress API.

What is in the file?

Links to your feeds (Atom, RSS and RDF)
A link to the WordPress REST API
A link for blogging apps (RSD)
Your site icon, if you set one under Appearance > Customize > Site Identity
Your privacy policy, if you published one under Settings > Privacy
Everything other plugins add to it

The file comes in two versions: XML at /.well-known/host-meta and JSON at /.well-known/host-meta.json. Both have the same content.

Logo by Eran Hammer