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If a WordPress plugin is causing your site to crash, show a white screen, or lock you out of the admin panel, you can disable all plugins at once through the database without needing to log into WordPress.
One SQL query disables all plugins
In phpMyAdmin (cPanel > Databases > phpMyAdmin), select your WordPress database, click the SQL tab, and run:
UPDATE wp_options SET option_value = 'a:0:{}' WHERE option_name = 'active_plugins';
This deactivates every plugin instantly. Your site should load again, then you can reactivate plugins one by one to find the culprit.
01. Step by Step
- Log into cPanel > Databases > phpMyAdmin
- Select your WordPress database from the left sidebar
- Click the "SQL" tab
- Run this query:
UPDATE wp_options SET option_value = 'a:0:{}' WHERE option_name = 'active_plugins';- Visit your site - It should load now with all plugins deactivated
- Log into WordPress admin
- Go to Plugins and reactivate them one at a time, checking your site after each one
Reactivate plugins one by one, refreshing your site after each. When the site breaks again, the last plugin you activated is the culprit. Either update it, find an alternative, or contact the plugin developer. See Optimize WordPress Performance for identifying resource-heavy plugins.
If your WordPress installation uses a custom table prefix (not the default wp_), replace wp_options with your actual prefix. Check wp-config.php for the $table_prefix value.
02. Alternative: Rename the Plugins Folder
If you prefer not to use SQL, you can rename the plugins directory via cPanel File Manager or FTP:
- Navigate to
wp-content/ - Rename
pluginstoplugins_disabled - Visit your site - WordPress automatically deactivates all plugins when it cannot find the folder
- Rename back to
plugins - Reactivate one at a time in WordPress admin
Site Still Down After Disabling Plugins?
If disabling all plugins does not fix the issue, the problem may be your theme, a corrupted core file, or a database issue. Open a ticket and we will investigate.
Open a Support TicketQuick Recap
- Run the SQL query in phpMyAdmin to deactivate all plugins at once
- Or rename the plugins folder via File Manager
- Reactivate one at a time to find the problem plugin
- Check your table prefix in wp-config.php if using a custom prefix
- Still broken? The issue may be the theme or WordPress core
WordPress emergency troubleshooting · Last updated March 2026 · Browse all WordPress articles
