You’ve likely seen the “Page Not Found” error before. Unfortunately, if you operate a website of any sort (WordPress or not), the day will probably come when you see the message on one of your own pages.
Fortunately, like many common WordPress errors, 404s are relatively easy to troubleshoot and fix. The solution usually involves restoring your site’s permalink structure — something you can do in just a few minutes.
In this article, we’ll explain just what a 404 error is and what can cause one on your site. Then we’ll walk you through how to fix it in four simple steps. Let’s get started!
An Overview of the WordPress 404 Error
A 404 error, also known as a “Page Not Found” error, indicates that your browser can’t locate the page you’re trying to access. The exact message can look a bit different depending on the browser you’re using, but it will generally always contain either the “404” code or a “page not found” message of some kind.
Websites can also create their own custom 404 pages.
Seeing this notification (or any other error message) when you’re trying to access your site can be frustrating. While there is a chance that your post has actually gone missing, the vast majority of the time, there’s a more benign cause.
Some common reasons that WordPress posts might return 404 errors include:
- A mistyped URL. It could simply be attributed to a typo in the URL. This is the most common cause.
- An issue with your Domain Name System (DNS) settings. If you’ve recently updated any of your DNS information and you’re seeing this error, it could be because the changes haven’t propagated fully. It can take up to 48 hours for this process to complete.
- Problems with the permalink structure of your site. Permalink problems can be caused by a missing, broken, or corrupted .htaccess file. Compatibility issues with WordPress components such as plugins and themes could also be the culprit.
Regardless of the cause, this error prevents access to your site, so it needs to be resolved as quickly as possible. We’ll look at troubleshooting and resolving the problem shortly.
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Why 404 Errors Matter
404 errors pose several problems for a website, beyond simply preventing you from accessing pages. First, they create a poor User Experience (UX).
If there are many of these errors on your site, and they aren’t resolved quickly, they could eventually turn users away. In the worst-case scenario, those visitors could land on a competing website instead, costing you business.
404 errors can also hurt your Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Search engine crawlers won’t index a page that returns a 404 because they think it doesn’t exist.
Related: WordPress Installation Tutorial — Learn How to Set up the CMS
What to Do Before Troubleshooting the WordPress 404 Error
Before changing your permalink settings or .htaccess file, it’s a smart idea to create a backup of your website and database. This way, if you accidentally make something worse, you can easily restore your site to a functioning state.
If your website is hosted with DreamPress, backups couldn’t be easier. DreamPress automatically backs up your entire site every day, so you always have a fresh copy to access. You can also create a manual backup with just a few clicks.
How to Fix WordPress Posts Returning 404 Error (In 4 Steps)
With a fresh backup of your site in hand, it’s time to get to work. You’ll want to follow these steps in order and check if the error has been resolved after each one.
Step 1: Reset Your WordPress Permalinks
The first step to try is resetting your permalinks. Head to your WordPress dashboard and navigate to Settings > Permalinks.
From here, just click on Save Changes. That’s right — you don’t actually need to edit anything. Clicking that button will update the permalink settings even if you don’t make any changes. This is important because it also refreshes the rewrite rules used for “pretty permalinks.”
With this done, go ahead and reload the pages you were trying to access. If everything works, you’re all done. If you still get a 404 error, head to the next step.
Step 2: Restore Your .htaccess File
If resetting your permalinks didn’t work, the next strategy is restoring your .htaccess file. This controls how WordPress interacts with the server and how it generates permalinks for your pages. Restoring it to the default settings can fix sudden 404 errors.
To restore the .htaccess file, you’ll first need a way to access it. If you’re using DreamPress hosting, you can use the built-in file manager found in the DreamHost control panel. Most other web hosts offer a similar feature, or you can use a Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) client such as FileZilla. We have detailed instructions for connecting via SFTP if you need help.
For this example, we’ll use the DreamHost file manager. Head to your DreamHost panel and navigate to WordPress > Managed WordPress in the sidebar.
Find the domain you’re having trouble with and click on the blue Manage button. On the next page, make sure the Details tab is selected at the top, and then click on Manage Files.
This will open the file manager in a new tab. Locate and click on the folder that corresponds to your domain name. You’ll find the .htaccess file in this directory (it’s the same one that contains items such as wp-content).
Next, click on the file name and select Edit from the list of options. You can copy the current contents of the file and paste them somewhere for safekeeping. For now, you’ll want to replace the contents with the following:
# BEGIN WordPress
<IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
RewriteEngine On
RewriteBase /
RewriteRule ^index.php$ - [L]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
RewriteRule . /index.php [L]
</IfModule>
# END WordPress
This is the default .htaccess file for WordPress. When you’ve pasted this in, go ahead and save the file.
Restoring this file will also reset the permalink settings for your WordPress site. Therefore, if you’re using a custom permalink structure (or have changed it at all from the default), you’ll need to restore that setting too.
To do so, head back to your WordPress dashboard and navigate to Settings > Permalinks (just like Step 1 above). You can change it to whatever you were using before and then save it.
Finally, refresh your website and attempt to load the pages that were returning 404 errors. If everything works now, congratulations! If not, proceed to the next step.
Related: How to Choose a Web Hosting Provider — 15-Point Checklist
Step 3: Disable All of Your WordPress Plugins and Theme
If you’ve reset your permalinks and .htaccess file, but you’re still seeing 404 errors on your site, the next step is to check your plugins and theme. Plugins, in particular, can sometimes have bugs or compatibility issues that prevent a site from loading.
Let’s start there. The basic idea is to disable them one by one and then check your website. If the error persists, turn it back on and move to the next one.
To get started, head to your WordPress dashboard and navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins.
Locate and click on the Deactivate button below the first plugin. You can see that active plugins are shaded blue, while those that are off are white (as you can see with Akismet in the screenshot above). Now, refresh your site and see if the 404 error is still occurring.
If you get the error message, head back to the plugins screen, re-activate the plugin you just tried, and move to the next one in the list. If you find one that resolves the issue, you can check for updates that may resolve the problem or find an alternative with similar functionality.
If none of the plugins prove to be the issue, it’s time to try changing your theme. Head to Appearance > Themes.
Your currently-active theme is marked as such. Hover over one of the others and click on Activate. Then refresh your site and try to access the problematic page again.
Note that changing your theme can alter your site significantly. So if you find that your theme is the issue, you may need to spend some time finding one that provides a similar look and features.
Related: Tutorial: How to Install a WordPress Child Theme
Step 4: Set Up a 301 Redirect for Moved or Renamed Content
This one is a bit of a bonus step. If you do actually have content that’s been moved or renamed and thus doesn’t exist anymore at the URL you were using previously, you’ll want to set up some 301 redirects to point that old URL to the new one.
The easiest way to do this is with a WordPress plugin such as Redirection.
This tool will enable you to quickly set up the redirects you need. Plus, it’s free and user-friendly.
How to Create Your Own “Error 404 Not Found” Page
If you want to set up your own custom 404 error page, you can do so relatively easily. The process involves adding one line to the .htaccess file to point the error to a specific page and then creating that page. We have full instructions for setting up a custom error page to walk you through the process.
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Tools to Help You Monitor 404 Errors Moving Forward
Finally, if you want to keep an eye out for 404 errors in the future, you can use a few handy tools. The Google Search Console will show you crawl errors that the Google bots have come across as they index your site. This is a simple way to see all the issues Google is encountering.
You can also enter your URL into a specialized tool such as the Broken Link Checker, which will scan your entire site for broken links and let you know if it finds a 404 page.
It’s free and easy to use. You can simply input your domain and then click on Check Site.
Ready to Find That Missing WordPress Post?
A 404 error can be frustrating — especially when it happens on your own site. These messages cause problems with SEO and ruin your site’s UX. Fortunately, they’re not too difficult to resolve.
Fixing 404 pages generally involves restoring your site’s permalink structure and setting up redirects for any posts that are actually gone. You can then use tools such as Google Search Console to monitor your site for future 404s.
If you want to spend less time dealing with errors, consider switching to DreamPress, our managed WordPress hosting service. We’ll take care of all the troubleshooting for you, so you can focus on what matters!
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