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Troubleshooting

WordPress White Screen of Death: How to Fix It

A white screen with no error message almost always means a PHP fatal error, most often triggered by a plugin or theme conflict, a memory limit being exceeded, or a corrupted file from a failed update. The fix is to isolate which plugin, theme, or setting is causing it. Here's how, step by step.

Fix it in order, most likely cause first

  1. Turn on WordPress debugging. Edit wp-config.php and add define('WP_DEBUG', true); and define('WP_DEBUG_LOG', true); just above the line that says "That's all, stop editing". Reload the site, then check wp-content/debug.log for the actual error message and which file it points to. This turns a blank screen into an actual clue.
  2. Deactivate all plugins. If you can't reach wp-admin, connect via FTP or your host's File Manager (a tool most hosts provide for editing files directly) and rename the wp-content/plugins folder to something like wp-content/plugins-disabled. Reload the site. If it comes back, rename the folder back and reactivate plugins one at a time to find the one causing it.
  3. Switch to a default theme. If plugins weren't the cause, rule out the theme next. Rename your active theme's folder via FTP, or if wp-admin is reachable, switch to a default theme like Twenty Twenty-Four under Appearance > Themes.
  4. Check for a memory limit error. If the debug log mentions "Allowed memory size exhausted", add define('WP_MEMORY_LIMIT', '256M'); to wp-config.php, or ask your host to raise the PHP memory limit on their end.
  5. Clear caches. If you've fixed the underlying issue but the white screen persists, clear any caching plugin (WP Rocket, LiteSpeed Cache, etc.) and any CDN cache (like Cloudflare). A cached broken page can outlive the bug that caused it.

When to stop and get help

If the debug log points to a core WordPress file rather than a plugin or theme, or you're not comfortable using FTP or a file manager, stop here. Editing core files or guessing at fixes without a backup can make things worse, and a white screen caused by a hacked site needs different handling than a plain compatibility issue.

Related reading

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