WordPress Plugins: What to Do When They Conflict

Plugins are one of the main reasons WordPress is so flexible and popular. They let you extend your website’s functionality — from SEO to e-commerce — without writing a line of code. But with great power comes… occasional chaos.

When plugins clash, your site can break or act unpredictably, causing stress, confusion, or even loss of visitors. Plugin conflicts are a common issue, especially when updates or new installations introduce code that doesn’t “play nice” with others.

Plugin Conflicts: What Are They?

Plugin conflicts happen when two or more plugins (or a plugin and your theme) interfere with each other. This can cause:

• White screen of death (WSOD)
• Broken layouts or styling
• Missing functionality (e.g. contact forms not working)
• Admin area bugs

Signs You Have a Plugin Conflict

• A feature stops working after installing or updating a plugin
• Your dashboard looks weird or certain buttons stop responding
• You see errors in the developer console or in WordPress debug mode

How to Fix Plugin Conflicts

1. Clear Your Cache
   Always clear your browser cache and plugin/server cache first.
   
2. Turn on Debug Mode
   Edit wp-config.php and enable debug mode: phpCopyEditdefine('WP_DEBUG', true);
   
3. Deactivate All Plugins
   Temporarily disable all plugins and see if the problem disappears.
   
4. Reactivate One by One
   Activate plugins one at a time and test after each to find the conflict.
   
5. Check for Updates
   Many issues are resolved in new plugin versions — always keep plugins, themes, and WordPress itself up to date.
   
6. Use a Staging Site
   Don’t test on your live site. Use a staging environment to avoid breaking things for your visitors.

Pro Tip: Use Fewer, Better Plugins

Stick to reputable, well-supported plugins. More plugins = more risk of conflict.

Need Help?

At EmotionStudios, we troubleshoot plugin conflicts quickly and efficiently. Whether your site is broken or just acting weird, we’re here to help — we identify and fix conflicts, set up safe staging environments for testing, and advise you on the best plugins for your specific goals.

Let’s talk!