10 Most Common WordPress Login Issues (How to Fix Them)

Are you experiencing any login issues and looking for a way to troubleshoot the WordPress login page?

If you’re having trouble accessing your WordPress account and the login is not working, there could be a number of reasons for this issue.

It could be due to incorrect login credentials, server problems, or other technical issues.

WordPress is a powerful and widely used content management system.

Sometimes you might face occasional login issues. These issues can be frustrating, but they are often easily fixable. 

In this article, we’ll take a look at the most common WordPress login issues and provide practical solutions to troubleshoot the WordPress login page.  

This guide will surely help you get back to accessing your WordPress site and managing your content quickly and efficiently.

So, without much ado, let’s get started!

List of Common Issues WordPress Login Not Working

WordPress login errors can take several forms. We’ll discuss each potential WordPress login error and the possible solution/fix.

1. Lost or Forgotten Password

Lost or forgotten passwords are common login problems. It’s good for site security to change your password regularly.

However, it’s quite easy to forget/lose track of your current password. 

WordPress has a built-in feature that helps you easily reset your password. 

But sometimes you might face difficulty in recovering it.

Recovering a Lost or Forgotten Password:

You can try WordPress’s default recovery feature if you’ve lost or forgotten your password. 

Simply click on Lost your password? On the login form, you’ll be asked for your email address.

Next, you’ll receive an email from WordPress with instructions to create a new password.

2. Cache and Cookies

Cookies are small files that store information about a user’s visit to a site. These cookies help a website remember a visitor.

WordPress login can’t occur if cookies aren’t enabled.

The cache also stores temporary files in visitors’ web browsers when they access a web page.

If visitors’ cache isn’t updating correctly, the user might see the old versions of some files that support WordPress.

Recovering Browser’s Cache and Cookies:

Fortunately, cache- and cookie-related WordPress login issues can be easily fixed.

You need to enable cookies (if not already enabled), then clear your cache and cookies.

Go to Google Chrome, click the browser settings menu, select More Tools, then select Clear browsing data.

The new screen with a ‘Clear Browsing Data’ pop-up will be opened.

Select the “Clear cookies and other site data” and “Cached images and files” checkboxes from here. 

Simply click the ‘Clear data’ button, and the browser cache will be cleared.

This will fix the issue for most users.

3. Plugin Interference

Sometimes, login issues might be caused by a plugin. For example, a plugin may need to be updated correctly, or two or more of your plugins could be conflicting.

Solving Plugin Interference With the WordPress Login

First off, make sure a plugin is causing the issue. What you can do is temporarily rename the plugins’ folder.

Once you’ve renamed the folder, WordPress can no longer access it. This will simply disable all activated plugins on your website. 

This will confirm that any plugins were behind your login issues and fix them immediately.

4. Theme Interference

WordPress login issues are caused by theme interference. It mostly happens when your theme includes a custom login page or when WordPress is updated and produces a theme incompatibility.

Solving Theme Interference With the WordPress Login 

If you find your WordPress Theme troublesome to log in to, you’ll need to do the same as you would when troubleshooting the plugin’s error. 

Simply rename the folder for your active theme through FTP. Once done, WordPress will automatically revert to its default template.

When you rename the Theme folder, WordPress doesn’t recognize it.  Now, try to log in and confirm that the theme was the issue. 

5. Corrupted Login File

By default, the WordPress login page is located in wp-login.php, the name of its corresponding file. 

When WordPress can’t find the wp-login.php file, you cannot log in to your website and may run into a 404 error.

Restoring a WordPress Login File

To restore your login, you’ll need to replace the wp-login.php file with a new one. To do so, you’ll need to delete your login files. 

Locate your wp-login.php file inside the WordPress directory.

Next, download the latest version of WordPress. Locate the wp-login.php file in the new download and then copy this file in place of your deleted file.

Now, open the new login file > search for “redefining user_login.” and replace it with the code shown in the snippet below.

6. Through FTP

You can easily update your password using the FTP. Simply log in to the site via FTP and download the theme’s functions.php file; include the following line in this file right after the first <?php

wp_set_password( 'password', 1 );

Type the new password for the admin user and upload the file back.

Once you are able to log back in to your site, remove this line of code; otherwise, it will reset the password on every page load.

7. Redirected WordPress or Site URL

Go to the left sidebar of the WordPress admin dashboard, navigate to Settings, and click the General option (in case you have access to your WordPress admin area).

On the next page, you can see your website’s URL and your WordPress installation URL.

You’ll be redirected to the login page if these URLs are incorrect. Now, you’ll need to edit the wp-config.php file to fix this issue.

Fix an Error With Your WordPress Address URL

The wp-config.php file has important WordPress settings. You can access it simply using an FTP client in your WordPress hosting account dashboard.

You’ll find the wp-config.php file in your site’s root folder. Simply edit the file and paste the following code just before the line says, ‘That’s all, stop editing! Happy publishing.

define('WP_HOME','https://www.example.com');

define('WP_SITEURL','https://www.example.com');

Note: Replace example.com with your own domain name.

Next, save your changes and upload the file to your website. Try logging in; hopefully, this will fix the issue for you.

8. Corrupted .htaccess File

Sometimes you might encounter a login page refresh error or an internal server error due to a corrupt .htaccess file.

Fixing a Corrupted .htaccess File

You can easily fix this problem. Access your website through an FTP client.

Once you are there, locate the .htaccess file in the root folder of your website >> and download it to your computer as a backup.

Next, delete the .htaccess file from your website.

Open the wp-admin directory, and if you find a .htaccess file there, delete it as well.

Once you are done, log in to your WordPress site. If you succeeded, it simply means your .htaccess file prevented you from logging in to WordPress.

9. Brute-Force Attack

The WordPress login page is the gatekeeper to your website. Very often, it’s the only hurdle to accessing the WordPress dashboard. 

You can imagine the consequences if hackers manage to get past the login page.

Depending on the account’s privileges, it can access, modify, or even delete website content. 

Given their structure, hackers often use brute-force attacks against WordPress login pages.

They deploy automated scripts that test hundreds of username-password combinations in an hour.

Since WordPress has built-in login rate-limiting, an unprotected login page is an easy target for these scripts. 

Securing Your Website Using LoginPress

LoginPress plugins’ Limit Login Attempts Add-on is a simple fix to this problem.

It limits the number of login attempts users can make on your website, helping you easily protect it against brute-force attacks.  

This is not it!

LoginPress offers a Hide Login Add-on that allows you to change the login page URL to a custom URL.

Changing this URL is a good practice to prevent hackers from finding it. 

WordPress displays error messages after failed login attempts that indicate whether the username or password is incorrect.

These hints make hackers’ jobs easier by verifying that at least one part of the credentials is correct. LoginPress lets you customize these error messages. 

Last but not least, LoginPress’s premium plans allow you to enable Google reCAPTCHA on the Login, Registration, and Forgot forms of your WordPress site. It protects your website from spam or abuse.

It is like a shield for your website, protecting you against bots and other malicious software. 

10. Revoked Access

On WordPress, revoked access means removing or disabling a user’s ability to access specific features or areas of a website.

This can be done for a variety of reasons, such as when a user is no longer authorized to access a particular area of the site or when their account has been compromised or deleted.

WordPress has a built-in system of user roles that defines the level of access a user has to different parts of the site.

By changing a user’s role or permissions, you can restrict their access to certain parts of the site.

It’s important to note that revoking access should be done with caution, as it can have serious consequences for your site and its users.

Before revoking access, make sure you have a clear understanding of the user’s role and permissions, and consider consulting with a developer or security expert if you’re unsure about how to proceed.

While we’ve covered common solutions for various login hurdles you might encounter, sometimes the problem extends beyond simple forgotten passwords or cache issues, leading to a complete lockout from your site.

When you’re facing a situation where you can’t access your WordPress admin at all, it can be incredibly stressful, but there are specific, detailed troubleshooting steps you can take to regain control.

Our comprehensive guide covers a wide range of lockout scenarios and provides actionable solutions to help you regain access to your dashboard.

Final Thoughts

Having WordPress login issues can be frustrating and lead to countless hours of troubleshooting.

From incorrect login credentials to technical glitches, several factors can cause login problems.  

However, with the right knowledge and troubleshooting techniques, you can easily troubleshoot WordPress login page errors.

By following the solutions provided in this guide, you should be able to resolve the most common WordPress login issues and regain access to your site quickly and efficiently.

Remember to always keep your WordPress installation and plugins updated, use strong, secure passwords, and implement proper security measures to minimize the risk of future login issues. 

Frequently Asked Questions

With these tips, you can continue to use WordPress to its fullest potential and keep your site running smoothly.

Let us know what problem you were facing and how you fixed it.