How to Fix the WordPress White Screen of Death

Last modified: May 31, 2026

FAQ

The WordPress White Screen of Death (WSOD) is exactly what it sounds like: a completely blank white screen when you try to load your website. Unlike most WordPress errors, it gives you no message, no code, and no clue about what went wrong.

The white screen is caused by a PHP fatal error that prevents WordPress from rendering anything at all. It typically happens because of a plugin or theme conflict, exhausted PHP memory, or a corrupted WordPress core file. The error can affect your entire site, just the admin panel, or only the public-facing front end — knowing which version you’re dealing with helps narrow down the cause.

The good news is that the WordPress White Screen of Death is one of the better-known WordPress problems and can almost always be fixed without a developer. Here is how.

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Step One: Disable All Plugins/Themes

If you don’t know where the problem is, you need to disable all plugins and switch to a default theme.

If you can still access your WordPress admin panel: Go to Plugins, select all plugins using the checkbox at the top, then use the Bulk Actions dropdown to choose “Deactivate” and click Apply. This is the fastest method if your admin area is loading.

If the white screen is affecting the admin panel too: You need to use an FTP client. Connect to your site and navigate to the wp-content folder. Rename the plugins folder to ‘plugins_disabled’. This immediately deactivates all plugins. Then immediately rename it back to ‘plugins’ so WordPress can find the folder again. Do the same for your active theme folder inside wp-content/themes , rename it, which forces WordPress to fall back to a default theme.

After doing either of the above, reload your site. If it loads, you know a plugin or theme was the cause. Reactivate them one at a time to find the culprit.

Step Two: Check For Updates

When you’ve determined which plugin/theme has not worked, you should look for the reason why. Sometimes this is because the plugin/theme is outdated and needs an update. So check whether there is an update, if there is, update the theme/plugin and then reactivate.

Don’t activate and then update. This will cause the problem again and you will have to start the process from the start.

Step Three: Find An Alternative

Sometimes it isn’t that the plugin/theme is outdated, it is that an update has been badly programmed. This means that any changes you make won’t have any impact. Therefore, you need to remove the plugin from your site and find an alternative.

Step Four: Increasing Memory

Sometimes, this problem is caused when the memory limit has been exceeded. This seems to be more common with websites on shared hosting. To change this, you need to go to the wp-config.php file through your FTP client.

Then find the line that starts

wp_memory_limit

Change the value after this to 64M.

If that line doesn’t exist, add in the following code.

define('WP_MEMORY_LIMIT', '64M');

This should solve the problem. However, there could be an underlying issue, such as a faulty plugin that is using all your resources. You will know this is the problem happens again.

It Isn’t As Scary As It Sounds

The WordPress white screen of death sounds scary, but it is one of the common problems on WordPress and is easily fixed. Follow the instructions above and your WordPress website will be back online soon, earning you revenue. If the white screen is accompanied by a memory error, the WordPress memory exhausted error guide covers how to increase the PHP limit directly. If you find yourself logged out repeatedly after resolving the white screen, that is a separate issue , see the guide on fixing WordPress keeps logging you out for the most common causes and step-by-step fixes.

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