Kinsta runs your WordPress — the DraftSEO plugin keeps its blog stocked.
Kinsta is managed WordPress hosting, so your site connects through the DraftSEO WordPress plugin like any other WordPress install, and each article is filed as a genuine post with its images in your Media Library. The one Kinsta-specific catch is Bot Protection: at its stricter settings it turns DraftSEO’s server calls away until the plugin’s route is exempted in MyKinsta.
| Connection | DraftSEO WordPress plugin — an ordinary WordPress connection, nothing Kinsta-only |
|---|---|
| What lands on the site | Real posts · Media Library images — SEO title, meta description, slug and category filled in |
| Installing it | Straight from WP Admin — Plugins → Add New, search “DraftSEO”, install and activate |
| Bot Protection | Stricter modes need an exception — challenge and automation-blocking modes; add a path prefix for /wp-json/draftseo/ |
| Temporary and staging sites | Connect the live domain — sitename.kinsta.cloud is hidden from search engines; skip stg- copies |
Who does what
One setup pass: install and activate the plugin, add the Bot Protection exception if your level is stricter than “Block malicious traffic”, and connect the live domain. From then on each article reaches your Kinsta site without you.
MyKinsta stays for hosting chores; the blog fills up by itself.
Setup
Kinsta adds one step to the usual plugin setup — and only if Bot Protection is set above “Block malicious traffic”.
Connect a site → Kinsta opens DraftSEO’s WordPress connect card with Kinsta’s notes shown above it. The connection you make is a standard WordPress one.
~10 seconds
In WP Admin, head to Plugins → Add New, search for “DraftSEO”, then install and activate it.
~1 minute
In MyKinsta, open the site’s Bot protection settings. If the level is stricter than “Block malicious traffic”, add a path-prefix exception for /wp-json/draftseo/ — otherwise the challenge and automation-blocking modes refuse DraftSEO’s requests.
Only on stricter levels
On the live site (not a stg- staging copy), first check Settings → General → WordPress Address (URL) shows your real domain — the plugin connects the address saved there, not the one in your browser, not the temporary sitename.kinsta.cloud address. Then click Connect with DraftSEO.ai in the plugin’s settings. The connect card in DraftSEO updates by itself once the link is made.
~1 minute
Set how often to post and whether articles go live or wait as drafts. Each one then arrives on your Kinsta site on schedule, images and SEO fields included.
Ongoing · zero clicks
FAQ
Yes. Kinsta is managed WordPress hosting, so the DraftSEO WordPress plugin connects your site exactly as it would any WordPress install. The one condition: if Bot Protection is set stricter than “Block malicious traffic”, add a path-prefix exception for /wp-json/draftseo/ in MyKinsta so DraftSEO’s requests get through.
DraftSEO’s servers call your site’s /wp-json/draftseo/ routes directly, with no browser in the loop, so they cannot get past a challenge. Kinsta’s challenge and automation-blocking modes refuse those calls. A path-prefix exception for /wp-json/draftseo/ in the site’s Bot protection settings lets them reach the plugin.
Connect the live domain instead. The temporary sitename.kinsta.cloud address is hidden from search engines, and a stg- staging copy is not the site your readers visit — neither is where finished articles belong.
In the WordPress Media Library of your Kinsta site. The plugin uploads each image as the post is published, so no picture on the page is loaded from DraftSEO’s servers.
No card required. Your Kinsta site connects in about two minutes.