Can I go straight from Joomla 4 to Joomla 6?

Why one step at a time

Each major upgrade runs database changes that the next one expects. Joomla Update only offers the next major version, and only from the last release of the current one: Joomla 5 from 4.4, Joomla 6 from 5.4.

The path

1. Update Joomla 4 to the latest 4.4.
2. Upgrade to Joomla 5 and update to the latest 5.4 (PHP 8.1+, later 8.3+).
3. Upgrade to Joomla 6 (PHP 8.3+).

Make it smooth

• Check that your template and extensions have Joomla 6 versions before you start: then you only have to test once.
• Do the whole path on a test copy first, and back up before each step.
• Each step takes minutes once the extensions are ready; the planning takes longer.