{"id":586,"date":"2026-06-01T12:50:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-29T11:10:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brutefort.com\/blog\/wordpress-php-errors\/"},"modified":"2026-09-03T09:03:55","modified_gmt":"2026-09-03T09:03:55","slug":"wordpress-php-errors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brutefort.com\/blog\/wordpress-php-errors\/","title":{"rendered":"WordPress PHP Errors: What They Mean and How to Fix Them"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"PHP
Photo by Lukas from Pexels<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Your WordPress site just threw a PHP error, and you’re staring at a wall of text you don’t fully understand. Is it urgent? Can it wait? Did it just break your site for every visitor?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You’re not alone \u2014 most site owners never learn the difference between a fatal error, a warning, and a notice, because WordPress rarely explains it. Once you know the four error types, reading your log takes minutes instead of guesswork.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Quick Answer:<\/strong> A fatal error breaks your page immediately and needs fixing now. A warning means something ran but misbehaved. A notice and a deprecated notice are low-urgency code-quality flags. Below is how to tell them apart and fix each one.<\/p><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Most of these errors happen silently. Unless you have debugging enabled, WordPress won’t display them \u2014 they accumulate in a log file that most site owners never look at, while the underlying issue quietly gets worse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Four Types of WordPress PHP Errors<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Fatal errors<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

A PHP fatal error stops execution entirely. The page fails to load, and visitors typically see a white screen, a generic server error, or (if display errors are on) a raw error message.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fatal errors are almost always caused by a plugin or theme calling a function that doesn’t exist, a syntax error in custom code, or a class conflict between two plugins. In your log, a fatal error looks like this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PHP Fatal error: Uncaught Error: Call to undefined function some_plugin_function() in \/wp-content\/plugins\/some-plugin\/some-file.php:42<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
The file path and line number tell you exactly where the problem is. A plugin update, a PHP version incompatibility, or a missing dependency is usually the cause.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Warnings<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
A PHP warning means the code ran, but something unexpected happened. The page usually loads, but some functionality may be broken or behaving incorrectly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Common causes include a plugin trying to include a file that doesn’t exist, a function receiving a variable of the wrong type, or a database query returning something unexpected. Warnings are often symptoms of plugin conflicts rather than outright code bugs. They’re worth investigating even when the visible impact seems minor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Notices<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Notices are the most common entries in a WordPress debug log. They flag things like an undefined variable or a value that had to be guessed at.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A notice won’t break anything today. But a site running hundreds of them is accumulating technical debt that will cause a fatal error the next time PHP updates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Deprecated notices<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
These are a subset of notices specifically flagging functions that WordPress or PHP has marked for removal. When a plugin still calls wp_get_user_contact_methods()<\/code> after it’s been deprecated, for example, you’ll see a deprecated notice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These are low urgency individually, but a plugin generating dozens of them is a signal it hasn’t been well-maintained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Most Common Causes of PHP Errors in WordPress<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Plugin or theme updates<\/strong> are the most frequent trigger. A plugin that was working fine can introduce a fatal error after an update if the new version has a bug or conflicts with another plugin. This is why keeping a log \u2014 and checking it after updates \u2014 is valuable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
PHP version changes<\/strong> are another major source. If your host upgrades PHP and a plugin uses functions removed in the new version, you’ll start seeing fatal errors. Logmate’s System Info screen shows your current PHP version so you can cross-reference it against plugin compatibility notes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\"Logmate<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Custom code<\/strong> \u2014 snippets added via a code plugin or directly to functions.php<\/code> \u2014 is the other common culprit. A small syntax error anywhere in that file can take down the entire site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
How to Find and Read PHP Errors in WordPress<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
First, enable the debug log if it isn’t already on. Add these to wp-config.php<\/code>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
define( 'WP_DEBUG', true );\ndefine( 'WP_DEBUG_LOG', true );\ndefine( 'WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY', false );<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
Once enabled, errors write to \/wp-content\/debug.log<\/code>. Reading that file directly means SSH or FTP access every time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Logmate handles this from inside the WordPress admin. The Logs screen shows every PHP error with its type, message, source file, occurrence count, and last occurrence time. You can filter by PHP errors specifically, search by message or file path, and export the log if you need to share it with a developer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\"Logmate's<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Pro Tip:<\/strong> Watch the occurrence count. An error that happened once might be a one-off. An error that’s occurred 847 times in the last 24 hours is something actively breaking your site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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