Common WordPress Issues (And How to Fix Them): A Beginner’s Survival Guide

Let’s be real…
At some point, something will go wrong in WordPress.

Your blog might load slowly.
The menu might break.
Your form might stop working.
And you might feel like throwing your laptop out the window 😅

But don’t worry — every blogger goes through this, and every problem has a fix.
This guide will walk you through the most common WordPress issues — and exactly how to solve them.

Let’s turn panic into peace 🧘‍♀️🔧

🐌 1. My Site Is Too Slow

Common causes:

• Too many plugins
• Large image sizes
• No caching system
• Low-quality hosting

✅ Fix it by:

• Installing LiteSpeed Cache (or another caching plugin)
• Compressing images with TinyPNG
• Using QUIC.cloud CDN
• Deleting unused plugins/themes
• Switching to a faster host like Hostinger

📌 Full guide: Website Optimization Tips

🧱 2. The Menu Doesn’t Work on Mobile

Causes:

• Conflicting theme/plugin settings
• JavaScript issues from cache plugins
• Broken menu structure

✅ Fix it by:

• Clearing all caches (LiteSpeed > Purge All)
• Temporarily disabling JS Combine
• Testing menu with a default theme
• Using Max Mega Menu for custom menus

📌 We faced this! See how we fixed it on The Blog Beginner.

📨 3. Contact Form Not Sending Emails

Causes:

• PHP mail not working
• Missing SMTP setup
• Spam filters blocking emails

✅ Fix it by:

• Installing FluentSMTP
• Connecting to Brevo (Sendinblue)
• Adding correct From Name & Email
• Verifying domain + DKIM settings

📌 See full setup: Email Marketing Tools

🧩 4. Plugin Caused My Site to Crash

Symptoms:

• White screen
• Error 500
• “Critical Error” message

✅ Fix it by:

• Accessing your site via FTP or File Manager
• Navigating to /wp-content/plugins/
• Renaming the plugin folder (e.g., pluginname-disabled)
• Refreshing your site

Then reinstall or replace the plugin safely.

🛑 5. I Can’t Log Into WordPress

Causes:

• Wrong password
• Broken login URL
• Security plugin blocking access

✅ Fix it by:

• Using Lost Password option
• Logging in via /wp-login.php
• Disabling security plugin via FTP
• Resetting password from hosting dashboard (e.g., Hostinger)

🔗 6. Broken Links or 404 Errors

Causes:

• You changed the URL of a page/post
• Incorrect permalinks settings

✅ Fix it by:

• Go to Settings → Permalinks
• Choose Post name → Save
• Use a plugin like Redirection to manage old URLs
• Run a site scan with Broken Link Checker

🧼 7. Strange Characters or Layout Issues

Sometimes your content shows weird symbols like “�” or layout breaks after copy/pasting.

✅ Fix it by:

• Pasting as plain text (use Ctrl+Shift+V)
• Switching editors (Block Editor vs Classic)
• Removing leftover formatting

📌 Bonus: Use Advanced Editor Tools to clean up blocks.

🧠 8. My Edits Don’t Show Up (Even After Saving)

Causes:

• Browser cache
• Plugin cache
• Server cache

✅ Fix it by:

• Clearing browser cache
• Purging all cache in LiteSpeed
• Deactivating cache plugin temporarily for testing

✅ Final Thoughts

Don’t let WordPress bugs ruin your momentum.
You’re not broken. The blog isn’t cursed.
You just need calm fixes — and now you’ve got them 🧰💪

Most issues come from:

• Plugin conflicts
• Cache problems
• Settings missteps

📌 Bookmark this guide and revisit whenever something breaks.
And if you’re still stuck? Contact us here — you’re not alone.