The White Screen, the Broken Form, the Database Error — Here Is What to Do When WordPress Breaks
Every WordPress site eventually encounters an error. The white screen of death. The “error establishing a database connection.” The 404 on pages that used to work. These errors are alarming but usually fixable in minutes — if you know what to do. Here are the most common issues and their solutions.
“WordPress errors look catastrophic but are rarely permanent. Do not panic. Follow the steps. Most problems are fixed in under 15 minutes.”
The Five Most Common WordPress Errors
1. White screen of death (WSOD). The page is blank — no content, no error message. Cause: a plugin or theme conflict, or PHP memory limit exhausted. Fix: increase PHP memory limit in wp-config.php. Disable all plugins by renaming the plugins folder via FTP. If the site works, re-enable plugins one by one to find the culprit. 2. Error establishing a database connection. Cause: incorrect database credentials in wp-config.php, or the database server is down. Fix: check wp-config.php — are DB_NAME, DB_USER, DB_PASSWORD, and DB_HOST correct? Contact your host — is the database server running? 3. 404 errors on pages that worked before. Cause: permalink structure got reset. Fix: go to Settings > Permalinks and click Save Changes — no need to change anything. This flushes the rewrite rules and fixes the issue. 4. “Are you sure you want to do this?” Cause: expired nonce security token, often after a long idle period in the admin area. Fix: refresh the page and try again. 5. Memory exhausted error. Cause: a plugin or theme is using more memory than allocated. Fix: increase PHP memory limit in wp-config.php: define('WP_MEMORY_LIMIT', '256M');
When to Call a Developer
If you have followed the fix steps and the error persists. If the error is related to custom code. If your site has been hacked. If you are not comfortable editing wp-config.php or accessing your site via FTP. For professional WordPress support, see our WordPress Services.
“The difference between a minor WordPress issue and a major business disruption is knowing what to do. Learn these five fixes and you will handle 90% of problems yourself.”
