{"id":29912,"date":"2023-10-10T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-10-10T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dhblog.dream.press\/blog\/?p=29912"},"modified":"2026-08-02T18:47:45","modified_gmt":"2026-08-03T01:47:45","slug":"how-to-fix-wordpress-404-error","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dreamhost.com\/blog\/how-to-fix-wordpress-404-error\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Fix the WordPress 404 Not Found Error"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

You\u2019ve likely seen the \u201cPage Not Found\u201d error before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately, if you operate a website of any sort (WordPress or not), the day will probably come when you see the message on one of your own<\/i> pages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fortunately, like many common WordPress errors<\/a>, 404s are relatively easy to troubleshoot and fix. The solution usually involves restoring your site\u2019s permalink structure, which you can do in just a few minutes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The short answer:<\/b> most WordPress 404 errors are fixed by resetting your permalinks. Head to Settings<\/i> > Permalinks<\/i> in your dashboard and click Save Changes<\/i> \u2014 you don\u2019t need to edit anything. If the error persists, restoring the default .htaccess file or deactivating a misbehaving plugin or theme resolves nearly every remaining case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this article, we\u2019ll explain just what a 404 error is and what can cause one on your site. Then, we\u2019ll walk you through how to fix it in four simple steps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s get started!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is the WordPress 404 not found error?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A 404 error, also known as a \u201cPage Not Found\u201d error, is the HTTP status code a server returns when it can\u2019t find the page you requested. On WordPress sites, a 404 usually stems from broken permalink rewrite rules or a corrupted .htaccess file rather than content that\u2019s genuinely missing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The exact message can look a bit different depending on the browser you\u2019re using, but it will generally always contain either the \u201c404\u201d code or a \u201cpage not found\u201d message of some kind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Website owners can also create their own custom 404 Not Found pages. For example, here\u2019s what our (very cool, we might add) 404 page looks like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"404<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Seeing this notification (or any other error message<\/a>) when trying to access your site can be frustrating. While there is a chance that your post has actually gone missing<\/a>, the vast majority of the time, there\u2019s a more benign cause.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some common reasons WordPress posts might return 404 errors include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n