WordPress error - There has been a critical error on this website

 

Issue

The website displays the following message:

On the website:

There has been a critical error on this website. Please check your site admin email inbox for instructions.

In the error email from WordPress (if enabled):

• “Your site is experiencing a technical issue.”
• “Error Details: An error of type E_ERROR was caused by…”

 

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Cause

A PHP fatal error is preventing WordPress from loading. Common reasons include:

• A recently updated plugin or theme causing conflicts
• PHP version incompatibility
• Missing or corrupted core files
• Memory limit exhaustion
• Custom code errors in functions.php
• Disabled or corrupted PHP modules required by WordPress

 

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Solution

1. Enable WordPress Recovery Mode (if available)

If WordPress sent an email:

• Open the link provided to access Recovery Mode.
• Deactivate the plugin/theme that WordPress reports as the cause.

2. Manually disable suspected plugins

If Recovery Mode is not available:

1. Access the site via File Manager (cPanel or Plesk).
2. Navigate to: wp-content/plugins
3. Rename the suspected plugin folder name (e.g., elementor → elementor.disabled).
4. Test the website again.

If unsure which plugin caused it, temporarily rename the entire plugins folder to disable all.

3. Switch to a default theme

Rename the active theme folder under: wp-content/themes

WordPress will automatically fall back to a default theme (e.g., Twenty Twenty-Five).

4. Check PHP version compatibility

Ensure your PHP version is supported by:

• WordPress core
• Themes
• Plugins

Try switching to an older or lower PHP version if the issue appeared after upgrading PHP.

Check these guides:

• How to change the PHP version of one domain or multiple domains in cPanel
• How to change PHP version for a domain in Plesk

5. Increase PHP memory limit

1. Go to the file manager (cPanel or Plesk)
2. Locate your WordPress site directory and edit the file named wp-config.php
3. Find the line that says:

   93  /* That's all, stop editing! Happy publishing. */
       

4. Add the following line just above that comment:

   92  define('WP_MEMORY_LIMIT', '256M');
       

5. Save the file
6. Reload the website to see if the error is resolved

6. Enable WordPress Debug Mode

This helps reveal the exact PHP error causing the critical error.

1. Go to the file manager (cPanel or Plesk)
2. Locate your WordPress site directory and edit the file named wp-config.php
3. Look for this line:

   89  define('WP_DEBUG', false);
       

4. Change the "false" to "true":

   89  define('WP_DEBUG', true);
       

5. Save the file
6. Reload the website to see the exact PHP error causing the critical error

Change this back to "false" after your troubleshooting.