The Most Common WordPress Issues I Fix (and How to Prevent Them)

WordPress is powerful, flexible, and honestly kind of magical.
But like any well-loved system, it has its quirks. Things break, plugins don’t play nice, and sometimes your site decides to throw a tantrum just because it’s Tuesday.

Here are the most common WordPress issues I fix for clients – plus tips to help you avoid them (or at least catch them early).

⚠️ 1. Plugin Conflicts & Update Disasters

This is hands-down the most frequent issue I see.
One update later and boom – your layout’s broken, your form vanishes, or your entire site throws a white screen of doom.

Why it happens:
Plugins are built by different developers and aren’t always perfectly compatible with each other – or with your theme.

🛡️ Prevention Tips:

  • Only update one plugin at a time and check your site afterward
  • Always back up before making any changes
  • Stick to reputable plugins that are actively maintained
  • Less is more – avoid the 30-plugin pileup if you can help it

🧹 2. Slow Load Time

Your site looks great… once it finally loads.
Speed issues are sneaky, and most visitors won’t wait around.

Why it happens:
Oversized images, bloated themes, too many plugins, or lack of caching.

⚡ Prevention Tips:

  • Compress your images before uploading
  • Use a caching plugin (like WP Rocket or W3 Total Cache)
  • Consider a CDN if your audience is global
  • Get a performance audit (👋 hi) to identify specific slowdowns

🔒 3. Security Warnings or “Not Secure” Messages

You visit your site and suddenly your browser says it’s unsafe. 😳
Not the best look for new visitors.

Why it happens:
Your SSL certificate may have expired, been misconfigured, or you’re loading insecure content.

🔐 Prevention Tips:

  • Make sure your hosting includes an active SSL certificate
  • Use HTTPS across your entire site
  • Avoid embedding content using http:// links
  • Periodically test your site with Why No Padlock

📱 4. Broken Layouts on Mobile

Looks great on desktop. But on your phone?
The text overlaps, buttons are tiny, and the menu… just vanishes.

Why it happens:
Poor mobile responsiveness, outdated themes, or messy custom CSS.

📱 Prevention Tips:

  • Always test on multiple devices
  • Don’t rely solely on desktop design tools
  • If you’re using Elementor (or any builder), double-check mobile views
  • My Mobile Optimization service fixes all of this and more

📭 5. Forms That Don’t Send

Your contact form looks fine. But… no one’s actually contacting you.
Spoiler: this happens a lot.

Why it happens:
Misconfigured form settings, no SMTP plugin, or email deliverability issues.

📬 Prevention Tips:

  • Test your form regularly
  • Use a proper SMTP plugin
  • Don’t send from the same email you’re sending to
  • Or better yet – let me check and fix it for you

🧩 So... Why Does WordPress Break So Often?

Here’s the thing:
WordPress is open-source, which is a huge win – no licensing fees, total flexibility, and a massive library of plugins and themes to customize your site.

BUT…
Every plugin and theme is built by different developers. That means it’s up to them to keep things updated and compatible with each new version of WordPress. If they don’t? Things break. It’s not because WordPress is unstable – it’s just a big ecosystem with a lot of moving parts.

The tradeoff is worth it. But it does mean occasional chaos.
That’s where I come in.

👩‍💻 What to Do If Any of These Sound Familiar

If something here is happening on your site – or has before – you’re not alone.
I troubleshoot these problems every week, and I can usually fix them quickly (without breaking anything else or making you regret trying in the first place).

Not sure what’s broken? That’s okay.
That’s literally my job.

🧠 Final Thoughts

WordPress is amazing – but it’s also a living system.
Things break. Plugins change. Bugs show up uninvited.
But you don’t have to battle them alone.

I offer:

  • One-time website repairs
  • Ongoing maintenance plans
  • Performance tuning
  • Full rescue missions when needed
  • Let’s make your site solid again – and keep it that way.
Let's Chat 🤙