---
title: edit_published_posts
description: "## What is the edit_published_posts permission in WordPress? The edit_published_posts permission allows you to edit Posts that are live on a WordPress site. The main goal of this permission is to allow or prevent people from editing Posts that have…"
url: "https://publishpress.com/knowledge-base/edit_published_posts/"
updated: "2026-10-14"
category: WordPress Permissions / WordPress Permissions
---

# edit_published_posts

## What is the edit_published_posts permission in WordPress?

The edit_published_posts permission allows you to edit Posts that are live on a WordPress site.

The main goal of this permission is to allow or prevent people from editing Posts that have already been published.

If you have the edit_published_posts permission, you will see the "Edit" and "Quick Edit" links on the "Pages" screen.

![The edit_published_posts permission on the WordPress posts screen.](https://publishpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/my-published-post.png)

This edit_published_posts permission is very specific. These are 4 key limitations:

- It only applies to the "Posts" post type.
- It only applies to Posts that have the "Published" status.
- It only applies to Posts where the user is the author. To edit Post written by other people you need the [edit_others_posts](https://publishpress.com/links/edit_others_posts) permission.
- To use it, you must also have [edit_posts](https://publishpress.com/blog/edit-posts-permission-wordpress/) permission. Without [edit_posts](https://publishpress.com/links/edit_posts), you won't be able to access the "Posts" screen at all.

The edit_published_posts permission is used by the [PublishPress Revisions](https://publishpress.com/links/revisions) plugin. If you don't have the edit_published_posts permission and try to update a post, your updates will be held for moderation.

---

## Who has the edit_published_posts permission?

The edit_published_posts permission is available on single WordPress sites and on multisite networks.

By default, the edit_published_posts permission is only given to Super Users, Administrators and Editors.

Users not in these roles are not allowed to edit published Posts written by other users.

---

## How to control who has the edit_published_posts permission

You can control who has the edit_published_posts permission by installing the [PublishPress Capabilities](https://publishpress.com/links/capabilities) plugin.

- After installing [PublishPress Capabilities](https://publishpress.com/links/capabilities), go to "Capabilities" in your admin menu.
- Check or uncheck the box in the "Posts" row of the "Edit published" column.

![](https://publishpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/edit-published-posts-1024x344.png)