How to Disable Gravatar in WordPress (GDPR)

Gravatar sends hashed email addresses to external servers, which is a GDPR concern. Here's how to disable it and use privacy-friendly alternatives.

Method 1: WordPress Settings (Simplest)

1. Go to Settings → Discussion in your WordPress admin.
2. Scroll down to the Avatars section.
3. Uncheck "Show Avatars".
4. Click Save Changes.

This completely disables avatar display, including Gravatar requests.

Method 2: Replace Gravatar with Local Avatars

If you still want to display avatars but without Gravatar, add this to your functions.php:

// Disable Gravatar - use local default avatar instead
add_filter('get_avatar_url', function($url, $id_or_email, $args) {
    // Return a local default avatar
    return get_template_directory_uri() . '/images/default-avatar.png';
}, 10, 3);

// Prevent any DNS prefetch to gravatar.com
remove_action('wp_head', 'wp_resource_hints', 2);

Method 3: Use a Plugin

Several plugins handle this for you:

• One User Avatar — Allows users to upload local profile pictures
• Simple Local Avatars — Stores avatars locally on your server
• Avatar Privacy — Comprehensive privacy-focused avatar solution

Verify with InspectWP

After disabling Gravatar, run a new InspectWP scan. The GDPR section should no longer show Gravatar as an active external service.