How to Fix the 500 Internal Server Error in WordPress

Introduction

When you open your WordPress website and suddenly see a big white screen with the words “500 Internal Server Error,” it can feel confusing and scary. You might think your whole website is broken. But don’t worry — this is a very common problem. Many website owners face this error at some point, and the good news is, it can be fixed. You just need to understand what’s going wrong and take the right steps to solve it.

The 500 error is like a mystery message. It tells you something is wrong on the server or in the website code, but it doesn’t say exactly what the problem is. This is what makes it tricky, but once you know the common causes, it becomes much easier to find the right fix.

In this guide, you’ll learn what the 500 Internal Server Error really means, why it happens especially in WordPress websites, and what you can do to fix it. Whether you're a beginner or someone who has been using WordPress for a while, you’ll find this step-by-step guide helpful and easy to follow. You don’t need to know coding to understand it. Just take one step at a time.

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What Is the 500 Internal Server Error?

The 500 Internal Server Error is a general error message. It appears when your website’s server knows that something went wrong, but it doesn’t know how to explain it clearly. It’s like calling customer support and the person says, “Something’s broken, but we’re not sure what.”

This type of error doesn’t happen on just WordPress websites. It can happen to any website on the internet. But in WordPress, it usually means something went wrong behind the scenes — maybe a broken file, a plugin that caused trouble, or your hosting server didn’t respond properly.

When this error shows up, your website might stop loading. Instead of your homepage or blog, your visitors will only see that error message. This can be stressful, especially if your site is for a business or an online store. But don’t panic — the 500 error is not the end of your website. You just need to find the cause and fix it.

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Why This Error Happens on WordPress Sites

There are many reasons why you might see a 500 Internal Server Error on your WordPress site. One of the most common reasons is a broken .htaccess file. This file controls many rules about how your website works, like how your links are displayed. If the file gets damaged or has a mistake in it, your server may not know what to do, and it will show the 500 error.

Another common reason is your website running out of memory. Every time someone visits your website, it uses some memory from the server to load everything — images, plugins, themes, and more. If your site uses too much memory, and the limit is too low, your server will give up and show the error.

Sometimes, a new plugin or theme might cause problems. Maybe you just installed a new plugin or updated an old one, and it doesn’t work well with the rest of your website. When WordPress tries to load it, the error happens.

Corrupted WordPress files can also cause the issue. These are the files that make your website run — like the engine of a car. If even one of these files is missing or broken, your website won’t work properly.

Finally, the problem might not be with WordPress at all. Your hosting provider could be having issues. Maybe their server is overloaded or something is misconfigured. In these cases, the 500 error might be their fault, not yours.

Understanding these reasons will help you find the right fix faster. In the next section, we’ll walk you through how to solve the problem step by step, starting with the simplest methods.

Common Causes of 500 Errors

The 500 Internal Server Error is like a red warning sign that tells you something is broken, but it doesn’t give you the full story. So, to fix it, you first need to know what usually causes it. Most of the time, this error happens because something inside your WordPress website isn’t working right — like a messed-up file, a bad plugin, or a problem with your web hosting. Let’s take a closer look at the most common reasons this error might show up.

Corrupted .htaccess File

One of the most common reasons for a 500 error is a broken or corrupted .htaccess file. This tiny file lives in the root folder of your WordPress website and controls how certain parts of the site behave. For example, it handles pretty links, redirects, and security settings. But sometimes, when you install a plugin or change a setting, this file gets messed up. When that happens, your website may crash and show the 500 error. The server gets confused by the rules in the file and doesn’t know what to do. Luckily, this is easy to fix by replacing or resetting the .htaccess file.

PHP Memory Limit Exhausted

Your website runs on something called PHP, and every time a visitor comes to your site, PHP uses memory to process all the content, plugins, and features. But your web hosting has a limit on how much memory your site can use. If your site becomes too big or if you install too many heavy plugins, the PHP memory gets full. When that happens, the server can’t handle any more requests, and it throws the 500 error. It’s like when your phone runs out of storage space and crashes. Increasing the PHP memory limit usually fixes this problem.

Plugin Conflicts

Plugins are small add-ons that give your WordPress website extra features, like contact forms, SEO tools, sliders, and more. But not all plugins get along with each other. Sometimes, one plugin tries to do something that another plugin doesn’t like. Or a plugin update has a bug in it. When these kinds of conflicts happen, your website can break — and the result might be a 500 Internal Server Error. This is especially common if you recently installed or updated a plugin before the error showed up.

Theme Conflicts

Just like plugins, your WordPress theme can also cause trouble. A theme controls how your website looks and works. But if the theme’s code has an error, or if it doesn't work well with your version of WordPress or your plugins, it can break the site. In some cases, changing to a default WordPress theme like Twenty Twenty-Four can quickly show whether your theme is the cause of the error. If switching themes solves the problem, then your old theme was likely the issue.

Core File Issues

WordPress is made up of a lot of important files — these are called core files. They include things like index.php, wp-config.php, and others that help your website run. If one or more of these files becomes corrupted or is accidentally deleted during an update, backup, or file move, your site might stop working. When the server tries to load WordPress and sees a missing or broken file, it shows the 500 error. Fixing this usually means re-uploading fresh versions of the core files from WordPress.org.

Hosting Server Issues

Sometimes, the problem isn’t with your website at all. Your hosting company might be facing technical issues. Their server could be down, slow, or misconfigured. Maybe the server is too busy with too many websites or there’s an issue with their software. In these cases, your site will show the 500 error even though everything inside your WordPress dashboard looks fine. If you’ve tried everything and the problem still exists, it’s a good idea to contact your hosting provider. They can check things on their end and often fix the issue quickly.

Initial Checks Before You Start

Before you try to fix the 500 Internal Server Error, there are a few very important things you should do first. Think of it like checking your tools and safety gear before fixing a car. These steps will protect your website and help you fix the problem more safely and easily.

Take a Backup of Your Site

Before making any changes, always back up your website. A backup is like a safety copy of everything on your site — your text, images, settings, plugins, themes, and more. If something goes wrong while you're trying to fix the error, a backup lets you go back to how things were before. You can use a backup plugin like UpdraftPlus, or you can back up manually through your hosting control panel. It's better to be safe than sorry, especially if you're editing files or disabling plugins.

Use a Staging Environment If Possible

If your web hosting gives you a staging environment, use it. A staging environment is a private copy of your website that only you can see. It’s perfect for testing things without affecting your real site. You can try out fixes, update plugins, or even switch themes without breaking anything live. Once you’re sure everything works in staging, you can apply the same fixes to your real site. Many managed WordPress hosting providers like SiteGround, Kinsta, or WP Engine offer one-click staging tools.

Enable Debugging in WordPress

WordPress has a built-in tool that can help you find what’s wrong when things break. It’s called debugging. To turn it on, you’ll need to open your wp-config.php file using your file manager or FTP. Inside this file, look for the line that says WP_DEBUG and set it to true. Like this:

If you don’t see it, you can add it just before the line that says “That’s all, stop editing!” Once debug mode is on, WordPress will show you error messages instead of just the 500 screen. These messages often point to the exact file or plugin causing the problem, which makes it easier to fix.

Step-by-Step Fixes

The 500 Internal Server Error on WordPress might feel scary, but most of the time, it’s fixable. Let’s go through each solution one by one. Follow these steps slowly and carefully. After trying each one, check your site to see if the problem is gone. If not, go to the next fix.

Fix 1: Rename or Delete the .htaccess File

The .htaccess file helps control how your WordPress site talks to the server. Sometimes, this file gets corrupted or has wrong code, which can cause a 500 error. To fix it, use your hosting file manager or an FTP program like FileZilla to go into the root folder of your website. Look for the file named .htaccess. Rename it to something like .htaccess_old. This will turn it off. Then try visiting your site again. If it works, the .htaccess file was the problem. After that, go to your WordPress dashboard, click on “Settings” > “Permalinks,” and hit “Save Changes” to make a new .htaccess file.

Fix 2: Increase PHP Memory Limit

If your site runs out of memory, it can crash and show a 500 error. To fix this, you can increase your PHP memory limit. Open your wp-config.php file from the root folder of your site. Add this line just before the line that says “That’s all, stop editing!”:

This tells WordPress to use more memory. Save the file and reload your site. If the error is gone, it means your site needed more memory to work properly.

Fix 3: Deactivate All Plugins

Sometimes a plugin can crash your site. To check if that’s the case, you need to turn off all plugins at once. If you can log in to your WordPress dashboard, go to the Plugins page and deactivate them. If you can’t access your dashboard, use your hosting file manager or FTP. Go to the wp-content folder and rename the plugins folder to plugins_old. This will turn off all plugins. Visit your website to see if it works. If it does, the problem was caused by one of the plugins. Rename the folder back to plugins, and then activate each plugin one by one until you find the one causing the problem.

Fix 4: Switch to a Default Theme

Your theme might be broken or not working well with WordPress or your plugins. To test this, switch to a default theme like Twenty Twenty-Four. If you can log into WordPress, go to “Appearance” > “Themes” and activate the default one. If you can’t log in, go to the wp-content/themes folder using FTP or file manager. Rename your active theme folder to something else. WordPress will then fall back to the default theme automatically. If your site loads fine now, then your original theme caused the issue.

Fix 5: Reinstall WordPress Core Files

Sometimes WordPress files get damaged or go missing during updates or server problems. To fix this, download a fresh copy of WordPress from wordpress.org. Unzip it on your computer and upload everything except the wp-content folder to your website using FTP. Let it overwrite your existing files. This won’t delete your content, but it will replace the core WordPress files with clean ones. After uploading, check your site. If it works, then corrupted core files were the problem.

Fix 6: Check File Permissions

Wrong file permissions can confuse the server and cause a 500 error. Use your hosting file manager or FTP to check them. Folders should have a permission setting of 755, and files should have 644. If they’re different, change them. Some hosting control panels have a “Fix Permissions” button. If yours does, click it. Once done, refresh your site to see if the error is fixed.

Fix 7: Contact Your Hosting Provider

If none of the above fixes work, the issue might be with the server itself. In that case, reach out to your hosting provider’s support team. Tell them you’re getting a 500 Internal Server Error and let them know what fixes you’ve already tried. A good hosting company can check your server logs and tell you exactly what’s wrong. They might even fix it for you.

Advanced troubleshooting is helpful when the basic fixes don’t work, and your site is still showing the 500 Internal Server Error. At this stage, you’ll dig deeper into technical details. Here’s how to do it in a simple and clear way.

Turn on Debug Mode in WordPress

To start, you can enable something called “debug mode” in WordPress. This helps show any hidden errors. Go to your site files using File Manager or FTP. Find a file called wp-config.php. Open it and look for this line:

php

CopyEdit

define('WP_DEBUG', false);

Change it to:

define('WP_DEBUG', true);

Now if there are any PHP or theme/plugin errors, they may show up on your screen when you load the site. This helps you understand what’s broken.

Look at the Server Error Logs

Your hosting provider usually keeps a log file of all the errors that happen on your website. These are called server error logs. You can find these logs in your hosting control panel, often under a section called “Logs” or “Error Logs.” If you’re not sure where it is, ask your host. These logs often tell you what file caused the 500 error and what line is causing the issue.

Check If Your PHP Version Matches

Sometimes your site uses plugins or themes that don’t work with your current PHP version. If your hosting server is using a newer or older version of PHP than what your site needs, it can cause errors. You can check the PHP version from your hosting control panel or ask your hosting support team. If needed, change to a version like PHP 8.1 or 8.2, which is stable and widely supported.

Scan for Malware or Hidden Code

A hidden virus or injected code inside your site files can also break your site and cause a 500 error. Use a security plugin like Wordfence or Sucuri to scan your site. These tools look for strange or harmful code in your files and help you remove them. You can also ask your hosting provider if they offer free malware scans.

If any suspicious code is found, clean it right away. Sometimes, infected files need to be replaced with fresh copies from a backup or from the original WordPress files.

Once you’ve tried these advanced steps, check your site again. If the error is still showing, it’s time to reach out to your hosting provider or a developer for deeper help.