Checkout broken after an update: find the change and roll it back
Updated
Updates are the most common reason a working checkout suddenly breaks: a payment plugin changes how it loads, a theme overrides a checkout template, or two plugins stop getting along. The fix is usually to find that one update and undo it.
1. Find what changed, and when
Work out when the problem started (your last order is a good clue), then look for changes just before it:
- Update emails. WordPress emails the site admin when it updates plugins or themes automatically.
- Plugins page. Check the version numbers and the Automatic updates column.
- Your host. Many hosts keep an activity log or a list of recent updates in their control panel.
- Other people. Did someone else on your team, or your developer, change a setting or switch a plugin on or off?
Payment, checkout, shipping, caching and theme updates are the most likely suspects, in roughly that order.
2. Check whether others have the same problem
Open the plugin’s page on WordPress.org and read its Support forum for the last few days. If other store owners report the same thing after the same version, you’ve probably found it, and there may already be a fix or a workaround. The Development tab shows the changelog.
3. Roll back safely
Take a backup first (most hosts have a one-click backup). Then put the previous version back:
- Free plugins: on the plugin’s WordPress.org page choose Advanced View, pick the previous version under Previous versions and download it. In WordPress go to Plugins → Add New → Upload Plugin, upload the file and choose Replace current with uploaded. The free WP Rollback plugin does the same in fewer clicks.
- Paid plugins and themes: download the previous version from your account with the vendor, or ask their support.
- WooCommerce or WordPress itself: major versions can update your database, and going back after that can lose data. Restore your backup instead, or ask your host or developer.
4. Test the checkout, then tell the developer
Place a test order from a private browser window to confirm checkout works again. Then report the problem on the plugin’s support forum with the version numbers and any error from WooCommerce → Status → Logs, so it gets fixed and you can update safely later.
5. Stop it happening again
- Switch off automatic updates for your payment and checkout plugins (Plugins page → Disable auto-updates).
- Update one plugin at a time, so you know which one did it.
- Try big updates on a staging copy first, if your host offers one.
- Test checkout after every update, not just the home page.
Know next time, before your customers do
Testing checkout after every update is the step that gets skipped, especially with automatic updates running at night. Cart Lookout does it for you: it records every update, plugin switched on or off and theme change, and tests checkout straight after. If it then fails, the alert names the change that came just before (labelled “not confirmed”, because it’s a strong clue, not proof).
Cart Lookout places a real test order on your store every 2 hours and after every update, then deletes it. Your customers don’t see it and no emails go out. If checkout fails twice in a row, you get an email with the step that broke, a screenshot and the change made just before it. From $15/month. See how it works.
Still stuck? Email hello@cartlookout.com. More guides