Broken WordPress plugins and/or themes
How to fix plugin or theme issues on an outdated WordPress site
Sometimes, updating a plugin or theme – or just installing a new one – can break your site, especially if you’re running an older version of WordPress. Pages might stop loading, styling can disappear, or you might get errors you’ve never seen before. Here’s how to troubleshoot and fix these issues without making things worse.
Step 1: Pinpoint the issue
Check whether the problem is caused by a plugin or a theme.
- Does the error appear after activating a specific plugin?
- Does switching to a default theme (like Twenty Twenty-Five) fix the issue?
- Are you seeing a fatal error message that mentions a plugin or theme folder?
If you can’t access your dashboard at all, skip to Step 2 to disable things manually.
Step 2: Disable the faulty plugin or theme (via file manager or FTP)
If you’re locked out of your site:
- Log in to your hosting control panel (like cPanel) or connect via FTP.
- Navigate to /wp-content/plugins/ and rename the folder of the suspected plugin (e.g., change elementor to elementor-disabled).
- If it’s a theme issue, go to /wp-content/themes/ and rename the active theme’s folder.
WordPress will automatically deactivate anything it can’t find.
Step 3: Log back in and test
Try accessing your WordPress dashboard again. If it loads now, you’ve confirmed the culprit.
If it’s a plugin issue, try reinstalling an earlier version that’s compatible with your WP version.
If it’s a theme issue, switch to a basic theme temporarily and look for a version that matches your WordPress.
Step 4: Check compatibility
Visit the plugin/theme’s page on WordPress.org and scroll down to “Tested up to.” If it’s not compatible with your current WP version, you’ll either need to:
- Upgrading WordPress ideally (in a staging environment first)
- Downgrade the plugin or theme (if WordPress upgrade is not possible)
Step 5: Restore a backup (if needed)
If things are really broken and none of the above works, your safest option is to restore your site from a recent backup.
No backup? We make them for you regularly. Just contact our support team to get a list of the available backups and choose one you’d like to restore your website from.