"There has been a critical error on this website": how to fix it

What the error means

WordPress shows this message when some PHP code on your site hits a fatal error. The most common causes are:

• a plugin or theme update that doesn't agree with another plugin;
• your host upgrading the PHP version, which older plugins can't handle;
• a half-finished update, or files that have been edited or damaged.

Step 1: check the site admin's inbox

When this happens, WordPress normally emails the site's admin email address with the subject "Your Site is Experiencing a Technical Issue". The email says which plugin or theme caused the problem and includes a special recovery mode link.

Click the link and log in. WordPress lets you into the dashboard with the broken plugin paused. Go to Plugins, deactivate the one named in the email, then exit recovery mode. The recovery link only works for a limited time, so use it promptly.

Step 2: no email? Check spam, then check who gets it

Look in spam or junk. Then check which address the email went to. It goes to the admin email set in Settings → General, which is often an old address or the developer who built the site. If your site can't send email at all, the recovery email won't arrive either.

Step 3: turn the plugin off without the dashboard

Before changing files, save a backup and record the current folder names. Use a staging copy where possible. Disabling plugins can interrupt checkout, forms and other features.

If you can't get into the dashboard, you can switch a plugin off through your hosting control panel's File Manager (or SFTP):

1. Open wp-content/plugins/.
2. Rename the folder of the plugin you suspect, for example contact-form to contact-form-off. WordPress will then treat it as deactivated.
3. If you need to disable all plugins, rename plugins to plugins-off. While it is renamed, log in and visit /wp-admin/plugins.php so WordPress records the missing plugins as inactive. Then restore the folder name to plugins and reactivate plugins individually, checking the site after each change.

If the dashboard still fails with ordinary plugins disabled, the problem may involve the theme, a must-use plugin or another server-side error. Stop guessing and ask your host to check the log.

Step 4: read the error log

If it's still broken, the error log names the exact file and line. Your hosting control panel usually shows PHP error logs. If more detail is needed, ask whoever manages your site to investigate on a staging copy using WordPress’s debugging tools. Keep error details and logs away from public visitors, and turn debugging off when the investigation is finished.

How to stop it happening again

• Keep a working, tested backup. See our guide: how to test your website backup.
• Update plugins regularly rather than all at once after months, and delete plugins you don't use.
• Make sure the admin email in Settings → General goes to an inbox someone actually reads.