you can use wp_handle_sideload() method
// Gives us access to the download_url() and wp_handle_sideload() functions
require_once( ABSPATH . 'wp-admin/includes/file.php' );
// URL to the WordPress logo
$url = 'http://s.w.org/style/images/wp-header-logo.png';
$timeout_seconds = 5;
// Download file to temp dir
$temp_file = download_url( $url, $timeout_seconds );
if ( !is_wp_error( $temp_file ) ) {
// Array based on $_FILE as seen in PHP file uploads
$file = array(
'name' => basename($url), // ex: wp-header-logo.png
'type' => 'image/png',
'tmp_name' => $temp_file,
'error' => 0,
'size' => filesize($temp_file),
);
$overrides = array(
// Tells WordPress to not look for the POST form
// fields that would normally be present as
// we downloaded the file from a remote server, so there
// will be no form fields
// Default is true
'test_form' => false,
// Setting this to false lets WordPress allow empty files, not recommended
// Default is true
'test_size' => true,
);
// Move the temporary file into the uploads directory
$results = wp_handle_sideload( $file, $overrides );
if ( !empty( $results['error'] ) ) {
// Insert any error handling here
} else {
$filename = $results['file']; // Full path to the file
$local_url = $results['url']; // URL to the file in the uploads dir
$type = $results['type']; // MIME type of the file
// Perform any actions here based in the above results
}
}