By Wpexpert 
Error 500 Internal Server Error is one of the common errors that WordPress users may encounter. This error usually doesn’t provide much information about the cause, making it difficult to fix. However, error 500 is often related to the server or the configuration of the WordPress site. In this article, we will show you how to quickly fix 500 Internal Server Error on WordPress.
Step 1: Check the .htaccess File
File .htaccess is an important file that helps control how the server handles requests, but if this file is corrupted or misconfigured, it can cause a 500 Internal Server Error.
How to Edit .htaccess File
To check if the error is related to the file .htaccess or not, you can follow these steps:
- Connect to your WordPress site using FTP or through your hosting’s file manager.
- Find files .htaccess in the root directory of the website.
- Rename this file to .htaccess_old to disable temporarily.
- Revisit the website to see if the error is resolved.
If your website works properly after renaming the file .htaccessthis file may be corrupted. You can recreate the file .htaccess new by going to Settings -> Permalinks in the WordPress dashboard and click Save Changes (Save changes).
Step 2: Increase PHP Memory Limit
Another cause of the 500 Internal Server Error could be that the PHP memory limit is too low. When WordPress does not have enough memory to handle requests, error 500 may appear.
How to Increase PHP Memory Limit
To increase the PHP memory limit, you can edit the file wp-config.php:
- Connect to your website via FTP or your hosting’s file manager.
- Open the file wp-config.php in the root directory of your WordPress site.
- Add the following line of code to the file before the line
/* That's all, stop editing! Happy blogging. */:define('WP_MEMORY_LIMIT', '256M'); - Save the file and test your website.
After increasing the PHP memory limit, if the website works normally again, this indicates that the memory-related issue has been fixed.
Step 3: Disable Plugin
Error 500 Internal Server Error can also be caused by conflicts between plugins. To test this, you can disable all plugins and check if the error still occurs.
How to Disable All Plugins
- Connect to your website via FTP or your hosting’s file manager.
- Go to folder wp-content and rename the folder plugins wall plugins_old.
- Revisit the website to see if the error is resolved.
If the error goes away, this indicates that one of the plugins is causing the problem. Please rename the folder plugins_old wall plugins and activate each plugin one by one to find the conflicting plugin.
Step 4: Disable Theme
If the 500 error persists after disabling plugins, the problem may come from the theme you are using. To test this, you need to disable your current theme and switch to the default WordPress theme.
How to Disable Theme
- Connect to the website via FTP or your hosting’s file manager.
- Go to folder wp-content/themes and rename the current theme’s folder.
- WordPress will automatically switch back to the default theme (like Twenty Twenty-One). Check the website again to see if the error persists.
If the error persists after disabling the theme, the current theme may be corrupted or incompatible with the WordPress version you are using.
Step 5: Enable Debug Mode
For more detailed information about the 500 Internal Server Error, you can enable debug mode on WordPress.
How to Enable Debug Mode
- Open the file wp-config.php in the root directory of the website.
- Find the line
define('WP_DEBUG', false);and change to:define('WP_DEBUG', true);
define('WP_DEBUG_LOG', true); - Save the file and visit the website to view error details in the file debug.log in folder wp-content.
Based on the information in the debug.log file, you can determine the cause of the error and fix it accordingly.
Tips to Fix Error 500 Internal Server Error
To avoid encountering the 500 Internal Server Error error, you can take the following measures:
- Regular updates: Make sure your WordPress, plugins, and themes are always updated to avoid errors arising from old versions.
- Periodic backup: Back up your site regularly so you can restore it quickly if something goes wrong.
- Check plugins and themes before installing: Test plugins and themes on a test environment before installing them on the main website to avoid conflicts.
Error 500 WordPress
Error 500 Internal Server Error can come from many different causes, but with the steps in this article, you can fix the problem quickly. Start by checking the .htaccess file, increasing the PHP memory limit, and disabling plugins or themes to determine the cause. If you need more help, you can contact your hosting provider to check for errors on the server. Wish you success!
