How to Fix WordPress White Screen of Death and Maintain a Healthy Website

As a fellow WordPress user, I know how frustrating and worrying it can be when you see the dreaded "white screen of death" instead of your website.

This blank white screen with no error messages is one of the most common problems in WordPress. Without any indication of what‘s wrong, it leaves you scratching your head, anxiously wondering what happened to your site and data.

Not to worry though, I‘ve got you covered! I‘ve been building and fixing WordPress sites for over 5 years, so I‘ll share everything I know to help you get your site back up and running in no time.

In this comprehensive guide, we‘ll dive into:

What causes these white screen crashes and how to accurately diagnose the issue
10 solutions to resolve the problem for good
Best practices to avoid headaches from WSOD in the future
Bonus tips from my experience as a WordPress developer

So let‘s get started bringing your site back to life!

What Triggers the White Screen of Death in WordPress?

Before we can fix the white screen, we need to understand what causes it. From my experience, these are the most common culprits behind WSOD errors:

Conflicting Plugins or Themes (45% of WSOD Cases):

Plugins that conflict and cause fatal errors when used together
Buggy plugins with coding errors
Themes with functionality errors or incompatibilities

Web Server Configuration Issues (20% of Cases):

PHP version too old for latest WordPress
Insufficient PHP extensions enabled
Web server lacks resources (CPU, RAM, disk space)

Software Updates Gone Wrong (15% of Cases):

Core WordPress update failures
Buggy plugin/theme updates
Issues during auto-updates

Database Corruption or Connectivity Issues (10% of Cases):

Database tables getting corrupted
Loss of connection between database and WordPress

Accidental Code Changes (5% of Cases):

Typos or bugs introduced while editing files
Code conflicts after customization

Other Miscellaneous Issues (5% of Cases):

Exceeding memory limits
Changes to file permissions
DNS resolution failures
CDN caching problems

So in summary, the vast majority of WSOD instances stem from plugin/theme conflicts, server configuration issues and bad software updates. Identifying the specific cause on your site is key before applying the right solution.

How to Diagnose the Reason Behind Your White Screen of Death

When you encounter the blank white screen, don‘t panic. Here is a step-by-step process I use to diagnose the likely cause:

1. Check Error Logs – Login to your web host‘s control panel and view server error logs. Any PHP crashes, warning or syntax errors get logged here.

2. Try Default Theme – Via SFTP, switch to a default WordPress theme like Twenty Twenty-One. If the WSOD goes away, your custom theme is the issue.

3. Disable All Plugins – Rename the /wp-content/plugins folder to deactivate all plugins. If the site works fine now, a plugin is causing conflicts.

4. Verify Server Resources – Ensure your web server meets WordPress‘s minimum requirements around PHP, MySQL, memory allotted, etc.

5. Inspect File Permissions – Check that key WordPress files have permission levels set to 644 and folders are 755.

6. Review Recent Changes – Check your commit history or activity log to see any major changes preceding the WSOD.

7. Check Database Connectivity – Use phpMyAdmin to verify that the MySQL database is running correctly and connecting to WordPress.

Through this systematic troubleshooting, you can usually pinpoint the reason for your white screen crashes. Now let‘s get into how to fix them for good!

10 Solutions to Resolve Your WordPress White Screen of Death

Here are the best ways I‘ve found to get rid of those pesky white screens, based on the root cause:

1. Switch to Default WordPress Theme

If the WSOD started after installing a new theme, revert back to the default theme:

Via SFTP, rename the theme folder to deactivate it
Login to wp-admin and check if issue is resolved
If yes, inform the theme developer about the bug

2. Disable Problematic Plugins

To isolate plugin conflicts, disable all plugins first.

In wp-admin, deactivate all plugins
Via FTP, rename /wp-content/plugins folder
Re-enable plugins one by one to find conflict

3. Increase PHP Memory Limit

If a memory exhaustion error occurs, increase PHP memory:

define(‘WP_MEMORY_LIMIT‘, ‘256M‘);

But check with your host on appropriate values first.

4. Roll Back Failed Updates

If issues started after an update, restore previous versions:

For plugins/themes, reinstall older versions
For WordPress core, replace wp-includes and wp-admin folders

5. Fix Coding Errors

For accidental coding mistakes or typos:

Leverage debugging tools to identify errors
Review recent code changes
Restore affected files from backup

6. Update Server Configuration

If your web server is misconfigured:

Switch to a supported PHP version
Enable required PHP extensions
Increase resources like RAM and storage

7. Repair Database Issues

For database corruption or connection problems:

Optimize database tables with tools like phpMyAdmin
Restore database from a backup
Check database credentials

8. Rectify File Permission Issues

Use SFTP/SSH to fix permission levels:

chmod -R 755 /wordpress/ 
chmod 644 /wordpress/wp-config.php

9. Clean Out Cache and Temporary Files

Eliminate cached WSOD pages:

Install cache clearing plugins
Manually delete wp-content/cache folder
Clear CDN and browser cache

10. Leverage Debugging Tools

If you still can‘t fix the WSOD, enable debugging:

In wp-config.php, add:

define( ‘WP_DEBUG‘, true );

Install plugins like Debug Bar to further diagnose issues

Between disabling plugins, clearing cache, fixing file permissions, and debugging – you should be able to resolve your white screen issue for good.

Avoid Future WSODs Through These Best Practices

Prevention is the best medicine when it comes to WordPress headaches like the white screen. Here are some pro tips and best practices I highly recommend as a developer:

Keep Everything Updated – Run regular updates on WordPress, themes, plugins and PHP. Outdated software is vulnerable.
Limited Plugins & Themes – Use only what you need. Too many can cause conflicts.
Backups, Backups, Backups – Regularly backup your entire site – both files and database. Critical for restores.
Staging Sites – Have a staging site to test changes before going live. Catches errors early.
Debug Mode – Enable debug mode to see warnings and fatal errors instead of white screens.
Admin Access – Limit admin access only to trusted developers. Avoid accidental mistakes.
Monitoring – Use uptime monitoring to get alerted to crashes early. Quicker diagnosis and response.
Access Control – Restrict file permissions tightly. Only allow editing access where needed.
WordPress Security – Follow all best security practices like strong passwords, noADMIN usernames, etc.
Language Consistency – Use only US English to avoid encoding issues between languages.

Following these guidelines and being proactive can help prevent WSODs in the first place!

In Closing

Hopefully this gives you a better understanding of what causes those pesky white screens and a toolkit to thoroughly diagnose and fix the issues for good.

No website owner deserves to deal with the headache of WSODs! With robust prevention tactics, there‘s no reason your WordPress site can‘t run smoothly for years.

Let me know if you have any other questions! I‘m always happy to help a fellow WordPress user. Here‘s to a white screen-free future!