Fix “Sorry, you are not allowed to access this page”

Fix “Sorry, you are not allowed to access this page” in WordPress

If you see the message “Sorry, you are not allowed to access this page” when trying to access your WordPress admin dashboard or certain pages, it usually means your user permissions or site configuration are misconfigured. This error can block you from managing your site, but the fix is often straightforward.

Quick fix: Reset your user roles and capabilities or fix your site’s .htaccess or Nginx config to restore proper access.

Quick Fix

Access your WordPress database via phpMyAdmin or a database client.
Run this SQL query to reset your admin user capabilities (replace 1 with your user ID if different):

DELETE FROM wp_usermeta WHERE user_id = 1 AND meta_key = 'wp_capabilities';
INSERT INTO wp_usermeta (user_id, meta_key, meta_value) VALUES (1, 'wp_capabilities', 'a:1:{s:13:"administrator";b:1;}');

Check your .htaccess (Apache) or Nginx config for incorrect rules blocking access.
Clear your browser cache and cookies, then log in again.

Why This Happens

Corrupted user roles or capabilities: Plugins or manual changes can accidentally remove or alter administrator capabilities, causing WordPress to block access.
Incorrect file permissions or ownership: Server permissions that restrict access to key WordPress files can trigger this error.
Misconfigured .htaccess or Nginx rules: Security rules or redirects may unintentionally block admin pages.
Plugin or theme conflicts: Faulty or incompatible plugins/themes can interfere with user permissions.
Database issues: Corrupted or missing database entries related to user roles.

Step-by-step Fix

1. Reset Administrator Capabilities via Database

Use phpMyAdmin or your preferred database tool to run these commands. Replace wp_ with your database prefix if different, and 1 with your admin user ID if needed.

DELETE FROM wp_usermeta WHERE user_id = 1 AND meta_key = 'wp_capabilities';

INSERT INTO wp_usermeta (user_id, meta_key, meta_value) VALUES (1, 'wp_capabilities', 'a:1:{s:13:"administrator";b:1;}');

This removes any corrupted capabilities and restores administrator rights.

2. Check and Fix File Permissions

Connect to your server via SSH or FTP and run these commands to set correct permissions:

find /path/to/wordpress/ -type d -exec chmod 755 {} ;
find /path/to/wordpress/ -type f -exec chmod 644 {} ;

Replace /path/to/wordpress/ with your actual WordPress root directory.

3. Verify .htaccess (Apache) or Nginx Configuration

For Apache: Check your .htaccess file in the WordPress root. It should contain the standard WordPress rules:

# BEGIN WordPress
<IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
RewriteEngine On
RewriteBase /
RewriteRule ^index.php$ - [L]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
RewriteRule . /index.php [L]
</IfModule>
# END WordPress

If you have custom rules blocking access, comment them out or remove them temporarily.

For Nginx: Check your site configuration file, usually located in /etc/nginx/sites-available/. Ensure your location blocks allow access to /wp-admin and /wp-login.php. A minimal working example:

location /wp-admin/ {
    try_files $uri $uri/ /index.php?$args;
}

location = /wp-login.php {
    include fastcgi_params;
    fastcgi_pass unix:/var/run/php/php7.4-fpm.sock; # adjust PHP version/socket
    fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME $document_root$fastcgi_script_name;
}

Reload Nginx after changes:

sudo nginx -t
sudo systemctl reload nginx

4. Disable All Plugins Temporarily

If the problem persists, disable plugins by renaming the plugins folder via FTP or SSH:

mv /path/to/wordpress/wp-content/plugins /path/to/wordpress/wp-content/plugins-disabled

Try accessing the admin again. If successful, rename the folder back and reactivate plugins one by one to find the culprit.

5. Switch to Default Theme

Rename your active theme folder to force WordPress to use a default theme like Twenty Twenty-One:

mv /path/to/wordpress/wp-content/themes/your-active-theme /path/to/wordpress/wp-content/themes/your-active-theme-disabled

Check if access is restored.

Works on

Environment	Notes
Apache	Fixes .htaccess and permissions issues
Nginx	Fixes server config for admin access
cPanel	Access phpMyAdmin, file manager, and terminal for fixes
Plesk	Use database manager and file manager for troubleshooting
LiteSpeed	Similar to Apache, check .htaccess and permissions

FAQ

Q1: I can’t access phpMyAdmin. How else can I reset user capabilities?

If you have SSH access, you can use WP-CLI commands:

wp user set-role 1 administrator

This sets user ID 1 to administrator.

Q2: Could a plugin cause this error?

Yes. Plugins that modify user roles or security plugins can cause permission issues. Disable plugins temporarily to test.

Fix “Sorry, you are not allowed to access this page”