How do I fix a 500 Internal Server Error?

Updated: 11 October 2026 · Applies to: cPanel & WHM 138 (Jupiter theme) and Apache 2.4 (.htaccess)

"500 Internal Server Error" means the server could not complete the request because of a problem in the website's code or configuration. The error log tells you why.

Find the cause

In cPanel, open Metrics › Errors, or look at the error_log file in the folder of the failing page.

Common causes

• .htaccess: a typo or an unsupported directive. Rename .htaccess to test, then fix the line.
• Permissions: files must be 644 and folders 755. Files or folders writable by everyone (777) are refused on many servers. (Do not set every file to 755.)
• PHP errors: a plugin or theme incompatible with your PHP version, or running out of memory. Switch the PHP version in Software › MultiPHP Manager or disable the last plugin you added.
• CGI scripts: wrong line endings or missing #! line.

If you cannot find it, open a ticket with the page address and the time of the error.