How to Deal with a Blank WordPress Admin Screen

If you have used WordPress for any length of time then you may have encountered a blank WordPress Admin screen before. There are many reasons why this can occur and it is always a scary situation. You go to log into your WordPress website and are presented with a blank screen or you visit your WordPress website and everything is blank. When this happens, take a breath and relax as there is probably a simple reason this occurring. Before you remove your entire installation of WordPress and restore your website from your last back up, go over these suggestions for how to deal with a blank WordPress admin screen.

Consider Your Last Changes

The first step in dealing with a blank WordPress Admin screen is considering the last items that you changed. If you have recently added or updated a WordPress plugin, this could be the issue. Also, there is a chance that an update to your WordPress theme is the cause of the problem.

If the last item that you changed on your WordPress website before encountering this error was adding or updating a WordPress plugin, then you should start by deactivating your plugins. When you cannot login into your WordPress installation, then you will have to access your WordPress files via FTP on your hosting account. Navigate to the installation of your WordPress website on your hosting account and located the folder called wp-content/plugins. This is your plugin folder. Rename this folder to something else, such as old_plugins, as doing so will deactivate all of your plugins. Try logging into your WordPress admin screen again as see if you can login. If you are able to login, then one at a time, reactivate your plugins and log back out. Each time you log back in without any problems, you can rule out a plugin. After doing this, you still cannot log into your Admin screen then the cause of the problem is probably not related to your plugins.

Deactivating a WordPress theme can be accomplished using a similar method to the one described above. Navigate to your WordPress theme via your hosting account. Go to wp-content/themes/ and find your theme’s folder. Rename this folder something else and try logging back into your admin screen.

Dealing with a Corrupted .htaccess File

When the cause of the problem is not related to either a WordPress plugin or your theme, the next most likely culprit is your .htaccess file. Using the same method as before, find your .htaccess file and rename it .htaccess_old. Try logging back into your WordPress administration screen. If you still cannot access your dashboard, then you may have a more serious problem on your hands.

If you have hired a company to create a WordPress theme, plugin, or another added feature, they may have some additional steps that you can try. Other than that, you best hope is to complete a restoration of your installation from a previous backup. At this point, when all other possibilities are ruled out, then it is time to restore your WordPress installation from your last backup. Follow the standard procedures from deleting your current installation of WordPress and backing up your entire website from the back up that you last saved.