Elementor Not Loading? 13 Expert-Tested Ways to Fix It in 2025

Yeah, I know, Elementor not loading can be frustrating. I mean, “how much more do I need to wait?!” – right?

This error might be occurring due to numerous reasons, including plugin conflicts, low PHP memory, hosting issues, various JavaScript errors, or even user-side issues.

In this post, I’ll help you investigate and find out why Elementor is stuck on the loading screen. You’ll also learn how to get it up and running again!

What does the error look like

When Elementor is not loading on your site, you may encounter the following situations:

• A blank page where the Elementor logo is blinking infinitely (image a)
• The widgets on the left side of the screen are grayed out and trying to load (image b)

Image a:

Image b:

In both cases, you are unable to access the content area of the post or page.

In the next sections of this post, I’ll go through the most probable causes and fixes for your Elementor problem:

Why is Elementor not loading on your site?

Here are the causes and solutions we’re going to go through one by one:

1. Do the simple things before anything else

This may sound very basic, but hear me out. The following fixes truly are incredibly effective at solving most common causes or random issues with Elementor. Make sure to try them out first:

Clear browser cache

Whenever you experience issues on your site, one of the first things you should try is to simply clear your browser cache.

The browser cache stores certain website files locally to improve performance. But if these website files become outdated, it can cause all kinds of weird issues on your site.

• We have a guide that shows you how to clear the browser cache for all popular browsers.

Using Chrome?

1. Click on the “three dots” icon in the top right corner.
2. Expand the More Tools submenu in the dropdown menu that appears.
3. Click Clear Browsing Data.
4. Select Cached images and files in the pop-up that appears.
5. Click Clear data.

Update Elementor and Elementor Pro

Maybe there’s been an important fix released in Elementor itself that you need to install? Just go to your Plugins panel in the dashboard and see what’s new.

In particular, if you’re using Elementor Pro alongside an incompatible version of the free Elementor plugin, this can break the editor. For example, if Elementor Pro is updated while the core Elementor (free) is still an older version (or vice versa), the editor may get stuck because the code isn’t in sync.

2. Plugin conflicts

The most likely reason for whatever problems you’re facing with Elementor not loading are conflicts with various third-party plugins.

In this scenario, Elementor stops working after you either install a new plugin on your site or update an existing one. The difficult thing here in terms of debugging is that you don’t usually go back to Elementor and check if it’s working after every single plugin update.

Still, incompatible or sometimes poorly-coded plugins are a top cause of Elementor hanging. Most commonly, plugins will interfere with Elementor’s JavaScript processing – usually the case with caching/minification plugins. Or, heartbeat control plugins can also disrupt Elementor, given that it relies on the WordPress Heartbeat API, which some optimizer plugins disable.

No plugin is outright incompatible with Elementor by design, but conflicts can occur if a plugin heavily modifies the editing screen or script load order. For example, some older versions of WooCommerce have caused Elementor to stall (often due to script errors or permission issues).

Solution

Test for conflicts by enabling Safe Mode (Elementor’s debug mode that loads the editor with all other plugins/themes disabled). Here’s how to do that.

If the editor loads in Safe Mode, a plugin is at fault.

Deactivate all plugins (except Elementor, of course), then reactivate them one by one until the problematic plugin is identified.

Once found, keep it disabled until there’s an update available or look for an alternative.

If WooCommerce or another must-use plugin is the source, ensure you update to the latest version (check their changelogs for compatibility fixes) or look for specific patches/workarounds in their support forums.

In many cases, disabling only the plugin’s conflicting module (e.g. turn off a WooCommerce admin feature) can resolve the issue.

Plus, always clear your site cache after disabling a plugin to ensure no cached scripts are causing the hang.

• Read more about known plugin and themes conflicts with Elementor.

3. Theme conflicts

Some WordPress themes include custom scripts that can interfere with Elementor’s loading process. A common example is themes that use a page preloader animation/overlay. This can mistakenly remain active during the editor load, resulting in a persistent grey screen.

Similarly, any JavaScript error originating from the theme’s files (for instance, in the theme’s header or a custom widget) can halt Elementor’s JS from executing.

Another possibility is that some themes come bundled with their own page builder or altered versions of Elementor even (yes, it happens) which are not usually compatible with standard Elementor. These can cause the editor to fail to load or behave unpredictably.

Solution

Test by switching to a default theme (or the lightweight Hello Elementor theme that’s built by the same team – i.e. it should work fine) and see if Elementor loads.

If you can do it on a staging site, it’s going to be a much better idea. If not, do it for a couple of minutes at some off-peak traffic time (like Sunday morning).

If the editor works on a default theme, then your theme is the issue.

Disable any theme preloader in the theme options, and remove or fix any custom code in the theme that might conflict. Contact the theme developer if needed.

And in case your theme came with its own custom page builder, you generally cannot run two page builders at once on the same page. If a theme forces a custom builder that conflicts, you may need to disable that builder or switch to a different theme.

In general, if you rely on Elementor, then just don’t use a theme that overrides Elementor’s core functionality. Always read theme docs for Elementor compatibility.

• Again, read more about known plugin and themes conflicts with Elementor.

4. Outdated PHP version

Elementor requires a compatible server environment. Those requirements can change with new Elementor updates over time. This more or less means that Elementor can stop working one day after an update just like that.

For starters, PHP is the programming language that WordPress is built on. All WordPress plugins and themes have a PHP requirement. For the Elementor plugin to work on your WordPress site, and as of 2025, you need PHP 7.4 or above.

Solution

You can check your site’s PHP version by opening your WordPress dashboard and going to Tools → Site Health → Info → Server.

If you need to update your PHP, open your hosting account, go to cPanel, scroll down, and select the Select PHP Version option.

On the next page, you should find an option called Current PHP version with a dropdown menu. From the menu, choose the latest stable PHP version available.

If your host doesn’t offer cPanel, you can reach out to your host’s support for help with this.

5. Insufficient PHP limits or timeouts

Elementor can consume a lot of memory from time to time – especially if you have quite complex pages. If your PHP memory limit is too low (e.g. 32M or similar), Elementor may not have enough RAM to load everything, which means it will freeze.

In other scenarios, Elementor might hang if the server kills the request due to time or input size limits. This can happen when dealing with large pages or slow servers overall.

Finally, general server health can affect Elementor. If your hosting is extremely slow or hitting CPU/RAM limits, the Elementor editor might time out or fail to load assets. Check your server error logs for PHP fatal errors or exhaustion errors around the time you load Elementor.

Solution

Elementor recommends you set things to at least 128M. There are three different ways to increase the PHP memory limit:

• wp-config.php file
• .htaccess file
• php.ini file

I will show you how to edit the wp-config.php file. We have a separate guide that goes through the other two methods.

To edit your wp-config file, log in to your cPanel. Then go to File Manager → public_html → wp-config.php.

(You can also do this via FTP in case your host doesn’t offer cPanel.)

Right-click on the wp-config.php file and select the Edit button. The file will open on a different tab. Look for this line:

define( 'WP_MEMORY_LIMIT', '32M' );

… or whatever other WP_MEMORY_LIMIT is set there – it doesn’t have to be 32M.

Increase the numerical value to 128MB or 256M.

If you can’t find the correct line, then insert it right above this line: /* That's all, stop editing! Happy publishing. */

Hit the Save Changes button on the top of the screen and exit the file.

After increasing memory, restart the editor and see if it loads. In WordPress Site Health info, you can confirm the new memory value. This one tweak often resolves “Elementor not loading” situations where the site was running out of memory.

6. Server buffer limits – for large JSON response

When Elementor loads a page, it sends a JSON payload of the content. On some servers with restrictive settings, this can trigger issues.

For example, Apache’s mod_substitute (used in output filtering) has a default SubstituteMaxLineLength limit that can be exceeded, causing a “content encoding error” or an incomplete response. Here, Elementor might get stuck with errors like ERR_CONTENT_DECODING_FAILED or ERR_INCOMPLETE_CHUNKED_ENCODING. More info on that.

Solution

Enable Elementor’s alternate loader or manually raise server limits (the previous solution, above). Elementor has a setting called Switch Editor Loader Method. You can find it if you go to Elementor → Settings → Advanced.

When enabled, this splits up the data into smaller chunks to avoid hitting server limits. Try turning that on if you encounter content encoding or chunked errors.

7. Web application firewalls

Some hosts deploy ModSecurity or similar firewalls that might flag Elementor’s AJAX calls as suspicious (e.g., because of the large JSON or certain keywords).

This can result in the request being blocked, making the editor seem to hang – while it’s actually being denied on the server side.

Solution

If you have a security plugin or your host uses a WAF, check the logs for any blocked requests when you attempt to load Elementor.

You might see a 403 error in the browser console or firewall logs. Temporarily disable any WordPress security plugin and test again. If it works, adjust that plugin’s settings (whitelist Elementor’s URLs or turn off rules that interfere).

For host-level firewalls, ask your provider to whitelist Elementor calls or identify which rule is triggering falsely. They may need to allow requests with larger payloads or specific patterns that Elementor uses. Once the WAF stops blocking the editor, it should load normally.

8. Cloudflare Rocket Loader issues

This of course applies only if you use Cloudflare with your website.

Cloudflare’s Rocket Loader feature has been known to cause issues with Elementor not wanting to load.

Basically, Rocket Loader tries to defer JavaScript for speed, but can conflict with the editor initialization, causing a perpetual loading screen.

Solution

Turn off/disable Rocket Loader. Here’s how to do that:

1. Open your site’s dashboard in Cloudflare.
2. Use the sidebar to select Optimization under the Speed settings.
3. Scroll down to Rocket Loader.
4. Use the toggle to disable Rocket Loader.

In addition to disabling Rocket Loader, you’ll also want to disable Cloudflare’s caching entirely when in the wp-admin. This will make sure that Cloudflare isn’t actively interfering when working in Elementor.

Also, purge your Cloudflare cache. You can do this by going to Caching → Configuration in your Cloudflare dashboard and clicking the Purge Everything button.

The goal is to ensure Elementor’s own scripts load in correct order, unimpaired by outside optimization. Once you’ve ruled that out (or configured exceptions), the editor should load faster and without hanging.

9. Cross-Origin or X-Frame-Options issues

Elementor loads the preview of your page in an iframe. If your server or a plugin sends an X-Frame-Options: DENY header, it will prevent the iframe from loading, leading to a blank or stuck editor screen.

This often happens on sites that enforce strict framing policies or if you try to edit using a different domain (e.g., editing a site that’s on a subdomain through a different primary domain).

Solution

Ensure your site’s pages can be iframed by the same domain. The ideal X-Frame-Options value is SAMEORIGIN, which allows WordPress to iframe your content into the editor since it’s the same origin.

If you find an error about this in the browser console (it will mention X-Frame-Options), you’ll need to adjust your server configuration or headers.

Remove any DENY setting added by security plugins or the server. If using a service like Cloudflare that can add such headers, set it to allow your domain. After changing that header, reload Elementor. The live preview should now appear in the editor frame instead of the stuck grey panel.

10. Browser add-on incompatibilities

A surprisingly common reason for Elementor “not loading” issues are extensions installed in your browser.

Things like ad blockers, script blockers (NoScript, uBlock Origin with strict filters), privacy extensions, or even certain antivirus can block Elementor’s resources and scripts from loading.

This results in the editor UI not initializing. This is that blank panel or endless loading icon that you’ll see.

Solution

First off, try opening Elementor in a different browser or an incognito/private window (with extensions disabled).

If it loads there, you know an extension is the culprit. Disable your browser extensions one by one to find which one is blocking Elementor.

Again, common offenders are ad blockers that might flag Elementor’s UI elements as “ads” and script blockers that prevent the editor’s JavaScript from running.

Once you disable or whitelist your site in that extension, reload the editor. It should then load correctly. For example, in uBlock, you can turn it off for your domain when editing, or in NoScript, allow the site’s scripts.

11. Various other JavaScript console errors

When Elementor is stuck loading, it often means a JavaScript error has occurred. To diagnose, open your browser’s dev tools (and console) and look for errors in red.

These can give clues: e.g. a 404 not found for a file, a JS exception from a plugin or Elementor, or a security error. We already discussed one of those errors before – the X-Frame-Options: DENY error.

A console error about an undefined object or function could indicate a plugin conflict (pointing to a specific script file).

Solution

Use the console info to guide your fixes. If you see a specific plugin JS in the error stack, focus on that plugin (disable it and retry). If it’s an Elementor internal error, searching that error message in Elementor’s docs or forums can reveal if it’s a known bug.

12. Outdated user hardware or browser

Again, don’t shoot me, but sometimes the most basic causes are what’s actually happening.

Make sure you’re using an updated version of your web browser. The dev team tests Elementor with all new versions of top browsers, so you can be generally safe with this assumption. If you’re on an old version, the editor might not function correctly or at all.

Just update your browser to the latest version. Also check that JavaScript is enabled (most people won’t disable it, but just to state the obvious … without JS, Elementor cannot load).

Also on the client side, if your computer is extremely low on memory or the browser is overloaded with tabs, it might slow down or stall Elementor. While this usually wouldn’t cause a true “stuck loading” error by itself, it can make it appear to freeze (taking a long time to respond).

So, close unused tabs, ensure your computer has some free memory, and try again. This is more about performance than a specific error, but it’s worth noting if all else is fine but the editor still feels stuck.

13. If all fails, roll back Elementor

Every once in a while, we can stumble on issues that have been brought by the latest version of Elementor itself. In other words – it’s a new bug that we’re seeing.

Sure, it’s possible.

In those cases, you can simply roll back to a previous version of Elementor. And I know I told you to always update to the latest version at the start of this post, but we’re really scraping the bottom of the barrel here looking for new solutions, so it’s worth a try.

Elementor has built-in version control in Elementor → Tools → Version Control. Or, you can also use a plugin like WP Rollback.

In the meantime, keep an eye on official patches – they might release a hotfix if many users report the same problem. Remember that bugs within Elementor are far less common than environment issues, but they do happen on rare occasions.

Fix the Elementor not loading error for good!

When Elementor is stuck on the loading screen, start by identifying any basic conflicts.

• First order of business: Clear your browser cache and update to the latest versions of Elementor and Elementor Pro.
• If that doesn’t help, test in Safe Mode (no other plugins/theme) to see if it’s an environmental issue.
• Check your browser console and switch browsers to rule out client-side blockers.
• Verify your server meets Elementor’s requirements (PHP version, memory, etc.), too.
• If using Cloudflare or other caches, purge or disable optimizations during testing.

By systematically eliminating factors in each category above, you will pinpoint the cause and be able to apply the appropriate solution.

Elementor’s support docs, community forums, or Reddit are great resources as well – many common issues have been documented with fixes.

For some other ways to enhance your Elementor experience, you also might be interested in our roundups of 👉 the best Elementor themes and the best Elementor add-on plugins.

If you still have any questions about the Elementor not loading error, leave a comment below and we will get back to you.