My Website Is Down. How Do I Fix It?

What should I check first?

These steps find most outages. Work through them in order.

1. Check whether it is down for everyone. Open the site on mobile data, with Wi-Fi off, or at Down for Everyone or Just Me. If it only fails for you, the cause is your network, DNS cache, or browser cache.
2. Read the error message. It tells you where the problem is (see the list below).
3. Check what changed. A plugin update, a new plugin, a theme change, or a DNS edit just before the site broke is the most likely cause.

What does the error message mean?

• “This site can’t be reached” or DNS_PROBE errors: the problem is your domain or DNS. Check that the domain has not expired, and that the nameservers and A record still point to your host.
• SSL or “Not secure” errors: the certificate has expired. Reissue it in your hosting panel. See how to fix “Not Secure”.
• “Error establishing a database connection”: the database server is down, or the details in wp-config.php are wrong. This is often a host-side problem.
• White screen, 500 error, or “There has been a critical error”: usually a plugin or theme conflict, often after an update. Follow the WordPress steps below.
• 503 or 508 errors, or “Resource limit reached”: the server is overloaded or you have hit your plan’s limits. Ask your host, and check for a traffic spike or bot attack.
• Cloudflare 521, 522, or 524: Cloudflare cannot reach your server, so the host is down or blocking it.
• “Account suspended” page: usually an unpaid bill or a malware flag. Contact your host.
• 403 Forbidden: a permissions or firewall rule. See how to fix a 403 error.

How do I fix a WordPress crash?

1. Check your admin email. WordPress sends a recovery mode link when a plugin breaks the site.
2. Using FTP or your host’s File Manager, rename wp-content/plugins to plugins_off. If the site comes back, rename it back and turn plugins off one at a time to find the one causing it.
3. If that does not help, rename the active theme’s folder. WordPress then falls back to a default theme.
4. To see the exact error, add define('WP_DEBUG', true); and define('WP_DEBUG_LOG', true); to wp-config.php. The error is written to wp-content/debug.log. Turn it off afterwards.
5. Check your host’s status page and error logs. Sometimes the outage is on their side.
6. As a last resort, restore a backup from before the site broke.

What should I send my host or developer?

The site URL, a screenshot of the error, when it started, and what changed just before. Need it back now? Our emergency website repair works 24/7 and backs up the site before touching it.

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