"There Has Been a Critical Error on This Website": How to Fix It Step by Step

On this page

1. Common causes
2. Step 1: Check your email for the recovery mode link
3. Step 2: No email? Find the culprit through the files
4. Step 3: Read the error details
5. Step 4: Fix the cause
6. Step 5: Restore a backup if needed
7. Prevent it next time
8. Need it fixed now?

"There has been a critical error on this website" is one of the most common WordPress problems I fix. It looks alarming, but your content is almost always safe. It means PHP hit a fatal error, and WordPress stopped loading the page to avoid showing a broken one.

Common causes

• A plugin or theme update that conflicts with another plugin or your PHP version
• A PHP version change by you or your host that old code doesn't support
• Memory limit exhausted by heavy plugins or large imports
• A code edit in functions.php or a snippets plugin with a mistake
• An incomplete update interrupted halfway
• Occasionally, malware corrupting files

Step 1: Check your email for the recovery mode link

WordPress usually emails the site's admin address with details of the error, including which plugin or theme caused it, and a special recovery mode link. Open the link, log in and deactivate the plugin or switch the theme named in the email.

Step 2: No email? Find the culprit through the files

1. Open your hosting file manager or connect by SFTP
2. Go to wp-content and rename the plugins folder to something like plugins-off. This deactivates all plugins
3. If the site loads, rename it back, then deactivate plugins one at a time (by renaming each plugin's folder) until you find the one causing the error
4. If plugins aren't the cause, rename your active theme's folder so WordPress falls back to a default theme

Step 3: Read the error details

• Your hosting control panel's error log usually shows the exact file and line
• Or enable WordPress debug logging temporarily to write errors to a private log file, and turn it off afterwards

An error mentioning "Allowed memory size exhausted" points to memory limits; one naming a plugin file points to that plugin.

For memory errors in detail, see how to fix "Allowed memory size exhausted" errors.

Step 4: Fix the cause

• Plugin or theme conflict: update it, roll back to the previous version, or replace it
• PHP version: switch back temporarily in the hosting panel, then update the incompatible code; see updating PHP safely
• Memory: increase the PHP memory limit through your host, and look for the heavy plugin causing it
• Code edit: undo the change in the file you edited

Step 5: Restore a backup if needed

If you can't find the cause quickly and the site needs to be online, restore the most recent working backup, then investigate on a staging copy; see backup and restore.

Prevent it next time

• Test updates on a staging site first; see staging sites explained
• Update in a sensible order and one at a time; see updating WordPress safely
• Keep automatic backups
• Avoid editing theme files directly in the dashboard

Need it fixed now?

I fix critical errors and broken WordPress sites quickly, usually the same day. See WordPress maintenance and support, or read about other common WordPress errors.