Debugging Your Website: Common Issues and Solutions

No matter how carefully a website is built, things can and will go wrong. A new plugin might cause a conflict, a line of code might have a typo, or a browser update might change how something is displayed. When this happens, you need to "debug" the issue—the process of finding and fixing errors.

For a business owner, a broken website can mean lost sales and a damaged reputation. While complex issues often require a developer's help, understanding some basic debugging techniques can empower you to identify (and sometimes even fix) common problems yourself.

This guide will walk you through some of the most common website issues and how to start troubleshooting them.

Your Essential Tool: The Browser Developer Tools

Every modern web browser (like Chrome, Firefox, and Safari) comes with a powerful built-in suite of "Developer Tools." This is your command center for debugging. You can usually open it by right-clicking anywhere on a webpage and selecting "Inspect" or by pressing F12.

The two most important tabs for basic debugging are:

1. The Elements Tab: This shows you the website's HTML and CSS. You can see the structure of the page and how it's being styled. You can even temporarily change the CSS here to test out fixes.
2. The Console Tab: This is where the browser reports errors. If something is broken on your site, especially with interactivity, the Console is the first place you should look. It will often tell you exactly what's wrong in the form of a JavaScript error message.

Common Issue #1: A Broken Layout or Styling Issue

The Problem: An element is in the wrong place, the colors are wrong, or the layout looks completely broken, especially on a certain device.

How to Debug:

1. Open the Developer Tools and go to the Elements tab.
2. Select the Problematic Element: Click the "select an element" icon (it usually looks like a mouse cursor in a box) in the top-left of the developer tools, and then click on the broken element on your page.
3. Inspect the CSS: In the "Styles" panel, you can see all the CSS rules that are being applied to that element. This is where you can play detective.
   • Look for styles that have been crossed out. This means another rule is overriding it.
   • Try unchecking and checking the boxes next to different CSS rules to see how they affect the element.
   • You can even change the CSS values directly in the browser to test potential fixes. (Note: These changes are temporary and will disappear when you reload the page).
4. Check for Caching Issues: Sometimes, your browser might be showing you an old, cached version of your stylesheet. Try a "hard refresh" (Ctrl+Shift+R on Windows, Cmd+Shift+R on Mac) or clearing your browser cache.

Common Issue #2: A Feature Isn't Working (e.g., A Button or Form)

The Problem: You click a button, and nothing happens. Or, you try to submit a form, and it gives you an error or just spins forever.

How to Debug:

1. Open the Developer Tools and go straight to the Console tab.
2. Look for Red Error Messages: The Console will almost always report JavaScript errors in red. These messages are your biggest clue. They will often tell you which file the error is in and on what line.
3. Google the Error Message: You don't have to understand what the error means. Copy the error message and paste it into Google. You will likely find forum posts or articles from other people who have had the same problem, often with a solution.
4. Check for Plugin Conflicts: If you're using a CMS like WordPress, this kind of issue is very often caused by a conflict between two plugins. Try deactivating your plugins one by one (starting with the most recently installed one) and see if the problem goes away. If it does, you've found the culprit.

Common Issue #3: The Website is Running Slow

The Problem: Your pages are taking a long time to load.

How to Debug:

1. Use an Online Speed Test Tool: Use a tool like Google PageSpeed Insights or other popular speed test tools. These tools will analyze your site and give you a detailed report on what is slowing it down.
2. Check Your Image Sizes: The most common cause of slow websites is large, unoptimized images. The speed test report will tell you if your images are too big. You'll need to compress them using an image optimization tool or plugin.
3. Look at the Network Tab: In the Developer Tools, the Network tab can show you every single file that your website is loading and how long each one takes. You can sort by "Size" or "Time" to identify the biggest offenders. This can help you spot a large video file or a slow-loading script from a third-party service.

Common Issue #4: The "White Screen of Death" (WordPress)

The Problem: You go to your WordPress site and see nothing but a blank white screen.

How to Debug:

This is almost always caused by a fatal error in a plugin or theme.

1. Check Your Email: WordPress will often email the site administrator with details about the fatal error, including which plugin or theme caused it.
2. Enable Debug Mode: You can enable WordPress's debug mode by editing your wp-config.php file. This will display the error messages directly on the screen, telling you exactly what's wrong.
3. Manually Deactivate Plugins/Themes: If you can't access your admin dashboard, you can use an FTP client to access your server's files and rename the plugins folder. This will deactivate all your plugins, which should allow you to log in. You can then rename the folder back and reactivate them one by one to find the faulty one.

Conclusion

Debugging is a process of elimination. While the thought of looking at code might be intimidating, using the browser developer tools to investigate issues is a skill that any website owner can learn. By understanding how to inspect elements, check the console for errors, and test your site's speed, you can take a more active role in maintaining your website's health. This will allow you to have more productive conversations with your developer and, in many cases, solve minor problems on your own.