Troubleshooting blank pages in WordPress

Sometimes WordPress may display a blank page (also called the “white screen of death”) when you try to view your site. This can affect one page, several pages, or even the entire site. On ruachost.com, you can resolve this issue by checking plugins, themes, and enabling debugging.

Common Causes

• A malfunctioning plugin.

• A malfunctioning theme.

• PHP or database errors hidden by default settings.

Step‑by‑Step Troubleshooting

1. Disable Plugins

• If you can log in as administrator:

  • Go to Dashboard → Plugins.

  • Deactivate plugins one by one until the site loads correctly.

• If you cannot log in:

  • Log in to cPanel.

  • Use File Manager to navigate to:

    public_html/wp-content/plugins
    

     

  • Rename each plugin folder (e.g., akismet → akismet_backup).

  • Reload the site after each change until the issue is resolved.

2. Revert to Default Theme

• If plugins are not the cause, the theme may be broken.

• If you can log in:

  • Go to Dashboard → Appearance → Themes.

  • Activate a default WordPress theme (e.g., Twenty Twenty‑Four).

• If you cannot log in:

  • Log in to cPanel → phpMyAdmin.

  • Open your WordPress database.

  • Select the wp_options table.

  • Locate the template and stylesheet rows.

  • Change their values to the default theme name (e.g., twentytwentyfour).

  • Save changes and retest the site.

3. Enable Debugging

• Edit wp-config.php in your WordPress directory.

• Add or update the following line:

  define('WP_DEBUG', true);
  

• Reload the site to see error messages that may reveal the cause.

• Remember to set it back to false after troubleshooting.