How to fix a 500 internal server error on my website

Summary

This guide helps you troubleshoot and resolve: How to fix a 500 internal server error on my website. Follow the steps below to fix the issue.

Common Causes

Review your server error logs

1. Log in to your hosting control panel (such as cPanel, Plesk, or your provider's custom dashboard).
2. Locate the Metrics or Logs section.
3. Open Error Log or Raw Access Logs.
4. Look for entries that match the time you encountered the 500 error. Common entries include PHP fatal errors, syntax errors, or permission denied messages.
5. Note any specific file paths or error codes mentioned, as these will help identify the cause.

Check and rename your .htaccess file

A corrupted .htaccess file is one of the most common causes of a 500 Internal Server Error on Apache servers.

1. In your hosting control panel, open File Manager.
2. Navigate to your website's root directory (commonly public_html or www).
3. Locate the file named .htaccess. If you do not see it, ensure Show Hidden Files (dotfiles) is enabled in File Manager settings.
4. Right-click .htaccess and select Rename. Change the name to .htaccess_old.
5. Refresh your website in a browser to see if the error is resolved.
6. If the site loads correctly, the .htaccess file was the cause. You can regenerate it by logging into your CMS admin area and saving your permalink settings, or contact your hosting provider for assistance.

Do not delete your .htaccess file permanently. Always rename it first so you can restore it if needed.

Increase the PHP memory limit

If your website exceeds its allocated PHP memory, the server may return a 500 error.

1. In your hosting control panel, open File Manager.
2. Locate the php.ini file in your website's root directory. If it does not exist, you may need to create one or use a .user.ini file, depending on your host's configuration.
3. Edit the file and look for the memory_limit directive.
4. Change the value to a higher limit, for example memory_limit = 256M.
5. Save the file and refresh your website.
6. If you cannot locate or edit php.ini, check whether your control panel has a Select PHP Version or PHP Options tool where you can adjust memory limits.

Troubleshoot CMS plugins and themes

If you use a content management system such as WordPress, Joomla, or Drupal, a faulty plugin or theme can trigger a 500 error.

1. Access your hosting control panel and open File Manager.
2. Navigate to your CMS installation directory.
3. Locate the plugins or extensions folder (for WordPress, this is wp-content/plugins).
4. Rename the plugins folder to plugins_old to disable all plugins at once.
5. Refresh your website. If the error disappears, a plugin is the cause.
6. Rename the folder back to plugins, then rename individual plugin sub-folders one by one to identify the problematic plugin.
7. If the issue persists, repeat the process with your themes folder (for WordPress, wp-content/themes), keeping only a default theme active.

Verify file and folder permissions

Incorrect permissions can prevent the server from reading or executing files, resulting in a 500 error.

1. In your hosting control panel, open File Manager.
2. Right-click a file or folder and select Change Permissions or File Permissions.
3. Standard recommended permissions are:

• Folders: 755
• Files: 644

4. Apply the permissions and test your website.
5. Avoid setting folders or files to 777, as this is a security risk and may be blocked by your server for safety reasons.

If the 500 Internal Server Error continues after checking logs, renaming .htaccess, adjusting PHP memory, disabling plugins, and verifying permissions, the issue may be related to server configuration, a corrupted database, or a problem with your hosting account itself. These issues are beyond the scope of customer-level troubleshooting.

If the error started immediately after a CMS, plugin, or theme update, the update may have failed or introduced a compatibility issue. Restore your site from a recent backup if available, or revert to the previous version temporarily while you investigate further.

If you cannot log in to your hosting control panel or your control panel also displays a 500 error, the problem is likely on the server side and requires attention from your hosting provider.

If you host with us, you don't need to do this yourself — just Open a Ticket and our Brisbane team will get it sorted.

Still Having Issues?