We often get messages from our users that their WordPress login page keeps refreshing and redirecting. This locks them out of the WordPress admin area, and they are unable to work on their website.

Login issues can be caused by various different errors such as error establishing database connection, internal server error or white screen of death.

Another type of login error is when your WordPress login page keeps refreshing and redirecting it back to the login screen. In this article, we will show you how to fix the WordPress login page refreshing and redirecting issue.

If you are going to try the advanced steps mentioned in this WordPress tutorial, then please create a back up of your site. See our guide on how to manually create WordPress database backup.

If you are going to try the advanced steps mentioned in this WordPress tutorial, then please create a back up of your site. See our guide on how to manually create WordPress database backup.

What Causes Login Page Refresh and Redirect Issue in WordPress?

Incorrect WordPress URL settings and failure to set login cookies are the most common reasons causing the login page redirect and refresh issue.

Normally, when you login, WordPress validates your username and password and then sets a login cookie in your browser. After that, it redirects you to the WordPress admin area.

If WordPress fails to set the login cookie correctly, or your WordPress admin area URL is incorrect, then you’ll be redirected back to the login page instead of the admin dashboard.

That being said, let’s troubleshoot and fix the WordPress login page redirect and refresh issue.

Clear Cookies to Resolve Login Issues

WordPress uses cookies for login authentication, so the first step in troubleshooting WordPress login issues is the simplest one. Clear your browser cookies and cache.

In Google Chrome, click on the browser settings menu and then select More Tools » Clear Browsing Data.

This will launch the Chrome Settings page with ‘Clear Browsing Data’ popup displayed on the screen.

From here, you need to select ‘Clear cookies and other site data’ and ‘Cached images and files’ options.

Next, click on the ‘Clear data’ button and Google Chrome will clear the browser cache.

Also, make sure that your browser has cookies enabled. After doing that restart your browser and then try to login. This should fix the issue for most folks.

We have a complete guide with screenshots showing how to clear cache and cookies in all major browsers.

Update WordPress URL Settings

WordPress comes with a settings option that has the URL of your website and the URL of your WordPress installation.

If you had access to your WordPress admin area, then you could see this option under Settings » General page.

If these URLs are incorrect, then WordPress will redirect you back to the login page.

Now, since you are unable to access the WordPress admin area, you’ll need to edit the wp-config.php file to fix this issue.

The wp-config.php file is a special file in WordPress which contains your important WordPress settings. You can access using an FTP client or via File Manager app in your WordPress hosting account dashboard.