How to troubleshoot a broken WordPress website

Does the error message give any indication what the issue is? If it refers to a theme or plugin, then skip to that particular section below.

Step 1: Check for updates

In the WordPress dashboard, select Dashboard > Updates. Update any themes, plugins and WordPress core versions listed here.

Browse to your website to see if the issue is resolved. If not, continue to the next step.

Step 2: Check your theme 

Replace your active theme with a default WordPress theme, such as Twenty Twenty-Three, to see if the issue is caused by your current theme. 

Note: This update could change the layout of your website.

In the WordPress dashboard, select Appearance > Themes. Your current theme will be shown as Active. Select one of the default themes listed, such as Twenty Twenty-Three and activate it.

Browse to your website and see if it displays without the error message. Note that the style of the website may have changed but the site should be functional. 

If the site displays, then you will need to contact the theme developer to report the issue and ask for assistance.

You can reactivate the previous theme in the same manner.

If the error message remains, continue to the next step.

Step 3: Check your plugins

Plugin issues are the most common cause of broken WordPress websites. Even if the plugins have worked successfully together in the past, an update to one plugin may result in conflict with another plugin.

You can disable all of your plugins to see if one of them may be causing your website error.

1. Click on Plugins in the side menu.
2. Click on the top checkbox to select all of your plugins.
3. Select the Bulk Action drop-down menu and select Deactivate. Then click Apply.
4. The page will refresh, and all your plugins will be disabled.
5. Browse to your website to check if the error still displays. Note that the site may look different. If the error is gone, it means that one of your plugins is causing your website error.
6. Activate your plugins one by one to see which plugin is the problem. After each item is activated, browse to your website to check. If your website experiences an error after activating a particular plugin, then that is the culprit. You can leave that plugin deactivated until the issue can be resolved.

As there are thousands of plugins available, it is often possible to find another plugin that does the same job. Also, contact the plugin developer as they may be able to assist.

Step 1: Check your theme

1. Access phpMyAdmin via your xneelo control panel – here’s how (steps 1-6)
2. Select your WordPress database if it is not already selected. You will then be able to see WordPress database tables.
3. In the side menu, select wp_options to open the options table.
4. Locate the rows named template and stylesheet in the option_name column – they may be on the 2nd page.
5. Double-click the field option_value for template.
6. In the option_value column, you will see the name of the active theme. Replace it with the name of a default WordPress theme e.g twentytwenty, twentytwentythree (This is assuming that a default theme exists on the site). Note: Ensure to make a note of your current theme with its exact spelling in case you require it again.
7. Click Go to save or click outside of the box to update the row.
8. Follow the same steps for stylesheet.
9. Check your website to see if the issue has been resolved (your website may look a little different). 
   

   If the issue is not resolved,  return the template and stylesheet to the previous theme, then continue to Step 2 below. If the error is gone and the website is displaying, it appears that the problem may be caused by your theme. If so, you should now have access to your WordPress dashboard: Check for any outstanding updates to the WordPress core, active theme or plugins (Dashboard > Updates). Reactivate your theme – either via the WordPress dashboard or phpMyAdmin.  If the error returns, you will need to change themes or contact the theme developer for assistance.

Step 2: Check your plugins

1. Access phpMyAdmin via your control panel.
2. Select your WordPress database if it is not already selected. You will then be able to see WordPress database tables.
3. In the side menu, select wp_options.
4. Locate the row named active_plugins in the option_name column and click on that row’s Edit button.
5. In the option_value column, you will see a list of active plugins. Copy this list, so that you can easily restore it later if necessary.
6. Delete the text in the option_value column and replace it with a:0:{}
7. Click Go to save the changes. This will effectively disable all the plugins on your WordPress website. Note: You can re-enable the plugins by copying and pasting the list of active plugins back into the option_value field, and then save your changes.
8. Browse to your website to check if your website is working (it may look different). If so, this would mean that one of your plugins is causing your website error. 
   

   If the error message is still there, restore the plugin list via phpMyAdmin. You have now reached the end of regular troubleshooting steps and will now need to get an experienced web developer to investigate. If the error is gone and the website is displaying, it appears that the problem is caused by one of your plugins. If so, you should now have access to your WordPress dashboard: Check for any outstanding updates to the WordPress core, active theme or plugins (Dashboard > Updates). Reactivate your plugins one by one via the WordPress dashboard. After each plugin is activated, browse to your website to check if it is working. If your website experiences an error after activating a particular plugin, you may use phpMyAdmin to deactivate this item once more. You can leave that plugin deactivated until the issue can be resolved. As there are thousands of plugins available, it is often possible to find another plugin that does the same job. Also contact the plugin developer as they may be able to assist.

Use this option if:

• you aren’t able to access the WordPress dashboard
• you don’t have access to the xneelo control panel (though you will need the FTP access details from the control panel)

If you have never used an FTP client before, you can see our Help Centre article on how to use FileZilla. You can find your FTP login details within your control panel.

Note: SFTP is the secure version of FTP. Simply specify port 22 for connection.

Step 1: Check your theme

To check if your WordPress theme is causing an error on your website, try activating a default WordPress theme, such as Twenty Twenty-Two using SFTP.

1. Connect to your hosting account using an FTP application.
2. In the right panel select the /public_html /wp-content /themes folder. There will likely be multiple folders with year names, such as twentytwentythree – these are the default themes. Your active theme will have another name.
3. Select your active theme and rename it to deactivate (right-click > rename e.g add “_off” to the folder name.  This will cause WordPress to automatically activate one of the default themes.
4. Browse to your website – it may look different – to see if the issue is resolved. 
   

   If the error message is still there, rename the theme In your FTP application back to its previous name then continue to Step 2 below. If the error is gone and the website is displaying, it appears that the problem may be caused by your theme. If so, you should now have access to your WordPress dashboard: Check for any outstanding updates to the WordPress core, active theme or plugins (Dashboard > Updates). Reactivate your theme. If the error returns, you will need to change themes or contact the theme developer for assistance.

Step 2: Check your plugins

Plugin conflicts are the most common cause of broken websites. Even if the plugins have worked successfully together in the past, an update to one plugin may result in conflict.

You can disable all of your plugins to see if one of them may be causing your website error.

1. Connect to your hosting account using an FTP application.
2. In the right panel select the /public_html /wp-content /plugins folder.
3. Rename the plugins folder to deactivate (right-click > rename e.g add “_off” to the folder name.
4. Browse to your website to check if your website is working (it may look different). If so, this would mean that one of your plugins is causing your website error. 
   

   If the error message is still there, rename the plugins folder back to the original. You have now reached the end of regular troubleshooting steps and will need to get an experienced web developer to investigate. If the error is gone and the website is displaying, it appears that the problem is caused by one of your plugins. If so, you should now have access to your WordPress dashboard: Check for any outstanding updates to the WordPress core, active theme or plugins (Dashboard > Updates). Reactivate your plugins one by one via the WordPress dashboard. After each plugin is activated, browse to your website to check if it is working. If your website experiences an error after activating a particular plugin, use SFTP to deactivate this item once more. You can leave that plugin deactivated until the issue can be resolved. As there are thousands of plugins available, it is often possible to find another plugin that does the same job. Also, contact the plugin developer as they may be able to assist.