Are you seeing ‘Fatal error: Maximum execution time of 30 seconds exceeded’ on your screen when trying to update a WordPress plugin or theme?

Typically this problem occurs when a PHP code in WordPress takes a long time to run and reaches the maximum time limit set by your WordPress hosting server. The time limit is important because it helps prevent the abuse of server resources.

In this article, we will show you how to fix the fatal error: maximum execution time exceeded in WordPress.

Why Maximum Execution Time Exceeded Error Occurs?

WordPress is coded mainly in the PHP programming language. To protect web servers from abuse, there is a time limit set for how long a PHP script can run.

The actual time limit varies across hosting companies, however most of the times the maximum execution time is set between 30 – 60 seconds because that’s usually enough for a good PHP script to run.

When a script reaches the maximum execution time limit, it results in maximum execution time exceeded error.

Fixing Maximum Execution Time Exceeded Error

Although Maximum Execution Time Exceeded error is named a ‘fatal error,’ it is one of the most common WordPress errors, and you can easily resolve this.

Depending on when and where the error is triggered, WordPress may show the following error message to your website visitors.

This is part of the fatal error protection feature added in WordPress 5.2. You may also receive an email that will tell you which plugin (if a plugin triggered the error) caused the issue.

The email will also include a special link, which will allow you to log in to WordPress with ‘Recovery mode’.