How to fix internal server error in WordPress

HTTP 500 Internal Server Error means something is wrong with the website’s server. The internal server error can be displayed in many different ways as websites have an option to customize the message.

500 Internal Server Error

Internal Server Error

HTTP 500 – Internal Server Error

Temporary Error (500)

HTTP 500 Internal Error

HTTP Error 500

500. That’s an error

These are some of the ways you might see the HTTP 500 error.

So why do you get an internal server error?

When you get an internal server error, it means that there is an issue with the site’s programming or page. It is almost certain that the problem is on your end.

Internal server error is not WordPress specific. If can occur due to anything that is running on your server. Theme and plugin functions cause internal server errors in WordPress. Corrupt .htaccess file or running out of PHP memory limit can also cause internal server error in WordPress. They can be admin area specific as well (rest of the website works absolutely fine).

You must be wondering how to fix internal server error, aren’t you? Well, read ahead to know the exact steps to do so.

How to fix internal server error of your WordPress site?

There are various methods to fix internal server error depending on which type of error you’re getting. Following are the methods,

Increasing the PHP memory limit

Sometimes the internal server can occur if you’re exhausting your PHP memory limit. You can confirm this cause if you’re facing the error while logging into your WordPress Admin area or uploading an image in the admin area.

In that case, you’ll have to increase the memory limit by following steps-

1. Firstly you’ll have to create a blank text file called php.ini
2. Then paste the following code in that file: memory=64MB
3. Then save the file
4. Lastly, Upload the file into your /wp-admin/ folder using FTP

The above steps will solve your problem temporarily though as you’ll have to figure out the root cause of the exhaustion of the memory limit. Your plugin might be poorly coded or you’ll have check with your hosting company to look into the server logs to help you find the exact diagnostics.

Try Checking for corrupt .htaccess file

The foremost thing you can do is check for the corrupt .htaccess file. Firstly you’ll have to rename your main .htaccess file to something like .htaccess_test. In order to rename the .htaccess file, you’ll have to log in to your site using the FTP.

Now that you’ve renamed the .htaccess file, trying loading your site to see if your problem has solved. If yes then you’ve successfully removed an internal server error. Make sure that you go to Settings » Permalinks and click the save button. Doing this will generate a new .htaccess file with proper rewrite rules and ensure that your post pages do not return a 404 error. If this does not work then go ahead with the above method.

By Deactivating all plugins

If the above two methods don’t work, the error is mostly plugin specific. Sometimes the problem lies in more than one plugin. Hence, you’ll have to deactivate all the plugins at once.

If the problem is solved then you know which plugin is causing the problem. Simply delete the plugin or report.

Try Re-uploading Core Files

If the deactivation of plugin option doesn’t work, then the problem is worth re-uploading the wp-admin and wp-includes folder from a fresh WordPress install. This method will not remove any of your information, but it may solve the problem in case any file was corrupted.

Contact your hosting provider

If none of the above methods work then you’ll have to contact your hosting provider. They’ll look at the server logs and get to the bottom of the things.

Now you know how to fix internal server error of your WordPress website. Did we help you fix the error? If yes, let us know in the comment section. If you know any other method of fixing the internal server error please feel free to share with us.