\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/p>
What Triggers Broken Permalinks in WordPress?<\/h2>
The most common issue you’ll notice with broken permalinks is 404: Not Found error in WordPress when accessing a page on your website. Various causes may trigger broken permalinks on your website.<\/p>
- \n
- New plugin installation<\/strong>. The new plugins you install may interfere with your .htaccess<\/strong> file.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Restoring a backup or migrating WordPress<\/strong>. You recently restored a backup or moved your WordPress site<\/a> to a new domain or server.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Updates<\/strong>. Problems with incompatibility after updating plugins, themes, or WordPress core.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Changes in .htaccess file<\/strong>. Updating, or altering your .htaccess<\/strong> file incorrectly.<\/li>\n<\/ul>
How to Fix Broken Permalinks in WordPress?<\/h2>
Here are several methods on how you can fix broken permalinks in WordPress.<\/p>
1. Resetting Permalinks Structure<\/h3>
The simplest way to deal with this problem is by resetting the permalinks<\/a> structure:<\/p>
- \n
- Login to your WordPress Dashboard<\/strong>. Go to Settings<\/strong> → Permalinks<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Select an alternative permalinks structure → Save Changes<\/strong>. For instance, if you’re currently using the Day and name<\/strong> settings. Change it to something else, like Post name<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>
\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/10\/The-Settings-section-in-the-WordPress-admin-panel-showing-where-to-select-the-Post-name-option.png\/w=1024,h=1024,fit=scale-down\")
<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>- \n
- Once done, change it back to your standard structure and hit Save Changes<\/strong> once again.<\/li>\n<\/ol>
If you’re still getting a “404 Page Not Found”<\/strong> error, let’s try other remaining methods.<\/p>
2. Disabling Plugins<\/h3>
Deactivate the most-recently installed or updated plugin that might be triggering the error. Otherwise, you can also remove all the installed plugins altogether:<\/p>
- \n
- Go to the Plugins<\/strong> menu in your WordPress dashboard → Installed Plugins<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Click the Deactivate<\/strong> button next to the plugin’s name.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Once finished, reset the permalinks structure using the previous method.<\/li>\n<\/ol>
3. Replacing .htaccess File<\/h3>
In case none of the options solved your broken permalinks issue, the issue can be related to your .htaccess<\/strong> file’s configuration. Thus, you should replace your current .htaccess<\/strong> file with the default WordPress .htaccess<\/a> code.<\/p>
In this example, we’ll be using Hostinger’s File Manager<\/strong>:<\/p>
- \n
- Navigate to hPanel<\/strong> → File Manager<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Select your domain and press Go to File Manager<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Choose the .htaccess<\/strong> file in the public_html<\/strong> folder.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Right-click and select Rename<\/strong>. Then, change the file name (e.g., .htaccess-error<\/strong>).<\/li>\n<\/ol>
\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/10\/The-Rename-popup-appears-in-the-hPanels-File-Manager-where-you-can-rename-the-.htaccess-file.png\/w=1024,h=1024,fit=scale-down\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>- \n
- Next, click the New File<\/strong> icon at the top of the page. Don’t forget to name it .htaccess<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Paste the code below in your new .htaccess<\/strong> file.<\/li>\n<\/ol>
# BEGIN WordPress <IfModule mod_rewrite.c> \nRewriteEngine On \nRewriteBase \/ RewriteRule ^index\\.php$ - [L] \nRewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f \nRewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d \nRewriteRule . \/index.php [L] \n<\/IfModule> \n# END WordPress <\/pre>- \n
- Once all is done, click the Save<\/strong> button.<\/li>\n<\/ol>
![\"The](\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/10\/The-File-Editor-showing-where-to-add-the-code-snippet-to-the-.htaccess-file-in-the-hPanel.png\/public\")
<\/figure>Alternatively, you can also run this process by using an FTP client, like FileZilla<\/p>
If the problem is not solved, try to remember what actions you’ve taken before the error occurred. If it happened after performing a specific update, then restoring a backup might be a reliable option to get your site up and running.<\/p>
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/imagedelivery.net\/LqiWLm-3MGbYHtFuUbcBtA\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2024\/06\/New-WP_in-text-banner.png\/w=1024,h=1024,fit=scale-down\")
<\/a><\/figure>Conclusion<\/h2>
There are plenty of reasons why you can get a broken permalinks issue in WordPress. The bad news is, your website will be inaccessible and will display a “404 Page Not Found”<\/strong> error.<\/p>
Fortunately, you can effortlessly handle this problem using these three simple methods:<\/p>
- \n
- Resetting permalinks structure<\/strong> – configure your built-in permalink settings on the WordPress dashboard.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Disabling plugins<\/strong> – deactivate the installed plugins in a few clicks.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Replacing .htaccess file<\/strong> – replace the .htaccess file from hPanel or using an FTP client.<\/li>\n<\/ul>
We hope that this step-by-step tutorial will help you fix broken permalinks on your WordPress website. If you have any more questions, let us know in the comments section below.<\/p>
\n\n\n
\n\n - Disabling plugins<\/strong> – deactivate the installed plugins in a few clicks.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Resetting permalinks structure<\/strong> – configure your built-in permalink settings on the WordPress dashboard.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Paste the code below in your new .htaccess<\/strong> file.<\/li>\n<\/ol>
- Select your domain and press Go to File Manager<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Click the Deactivate<\/strong> button next to the plugin’s name.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Go to the Plugins<\/strong> menu in your WordPress dashboard → Installed Plugins<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Select an alternative permalinks structure → Save Changes<\/strong>. For instance, if you’re currently using the Day and name<\/strong> settings. Change it to something else, like Post name<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>
- Restoring a backup or migrating WordPress<\/strong>. You recently restored a backup or moved your WordPress site<\/a> to a new domain or server.<\/li>\n\n\n\n