What to do when you are locked out of wp-admin

Try this first

1. Open your Pressy in the dashboard.
2. Press WordPress Admin.

That signs you in as an administrator without a WordPress password. It solves a forgotten password, a lost username and a broken login form in one click.

If it works, set a new password now so you are not relying on it.

If it does not work, the cause is one of the four below.

Maintenance mode is on

The symptom: every address on the site, wp-admin included, shows a holding page.

The fix: go to WordPress in your Pressy's sidebar and switch Maintenance mode off. The dashboard also shows a banner with a button while it is on.

It cannot be turned off from inside WordPress, because maintenance mode blocks that too.

An IP rule is refusing you

The symptom: the site is unreachable from your computer but fine from your phone on mobile data.

The fix: open Security in your Pressy's sidebar. If the rule is an allow-list, either add the address you are on now, or clear the addresses and save to remove the rule entirely.

An allow-list refuses everyone not on it. A home connection whose address changed overnight is the usual way people meet this.

A plugin is breaking the admin

The symptom: the front of the site works; wp-admin shows a blank page or a 500.

The fix: rename the plugins folder in the Files screen — wp-content/plugins to plugins-off — which deactivates everything. Sign in, rename it back, then activate plugins one at a time until you find it.

A security plugin that has locked you out for failed logins is the same fix: rename its folder specifically.

You are stuck in a redirect

The symptom: wp-admin bounces you somewhere else, or loops.

The fix: check Settings → General in WordPress — WordPress Address and Site Address should both be your real domain with https://. If they are wrong and you cannot reach Settings, set them in wp-config.php from the Files screen (edit a file):

define('WP_HOME','https://yourdomain.com');
define('WP_SITEURL','https://yourdomain.com');

When to write to us

Write to us if the one-click button fails with an error and none of the four above apply. Tell us what you see at yourdomain.com and at yourdomain.com/wp-admin — the difference between the two narrows it down straight away.