The Divi Builder is a component in the Divi Theme few of us can live without, but what do you do When the Divi Builder is Not Loading or experiencing some other issue preventing you from creating some internet magic?
Most of us have been there when working a client site or maybe even your localhost, when all of sudden you get the Divi spinnies of doom (™ Divi Engine 😜 ). Now you are in a tailspin because your client is in a rush to make an edit, so you start sharpening your pitchfork as you wait for the Elegant Themes support team to respond to your fire.
We respect that gusto, but you should really check some other solutions out first as more often than not, the issue of the Divi Builder not Loading usually is not an issue with Divi, but some other issue you can easily resolve yourself.
In this tutorial, we will look at some of the most common reasons why the Divi Builder is Not Loading, and a few things to try before getting all stressed out. We have organized them in order so that you are not making major changes that are not needed, so please start in order.
Video Tutorial
Table of Contents
Difficulty
Intermediate
Time
15 Minutes
1) Check Server Settings
This will reveal how your current server settings stack up to the minimum requirements to run Divi smoothly.
Some of the more important settings here are the PHP version you are running and as of publishing this post, PHP 7.4 is the latest stable version you should have active on your server. You also want to make sure that your Memory Limit is at 128MB.
Most of these settings can be changed by editing either the Hosting Control Panel (for the PHP version) or your WP-CONFIG.PHP (for increasing the Memory Limit) files. If you have a good Hosting Provider like Cloudways, this process is very simple.
On the backend of your WordPress install, head over to Divi > Support Center > System Status > Show Full Report, and there you will see how your site stacks up to the recommended settings.
2) Re-Save Permalinks
This is arguably one of the top reasons why the Divi Builder is not loading on your posts or pages. While these steps might sound a little silly, believe me, it can make a huge difference when you need that Divi Builder to load.
What this does, is it flushes any permalink cache that could be causing the Divi Builder to not load.
Head over to your WordPress Dashboard > Settings > Permalinks > Save x 2. Yes, twice.
3) Ensure Everything is Up-to-Date
Divi and WordPress are constantly evolving and getting updated with new features and more efficient code which is awesome stuff, but sometimes these rapid updates can lead to conflicts with plugins that might be outdated on your site.
Having your plugins and themes updated to the latest version is just a smart practice, to begin with for security reasons, but also for avoiding these conflicts and ensuring that the Divi Builder runs smooth like butta!
When logged into your WordPress Dashboard, hover over Dashboard > Updates > Update your WordPress, plugins, and themes.
NOTE: Make sure that you are careful when updating to major releases or versions. Check out our Best Practices for Updates.
4) Check Caching
Caching is a great feature of modern browsers, web hosts, and websites, but those cached files can sometimes lead to unexpected results. One of these could be that the Divi Builder is not Loading.
To best troubleshoot caching issues, here are the steps to see if this is your issue. Check to see if your Divi Builder is loading after you have tried each of these steps.
Disable Static CSS
Head over to Divi > Theme Options > Builder > Advanced > Static CSS File Generation > Disable. Be sure to save and check to see if your issue is fixed. You can Enable this on again when you are done working on your site.
Caching Plugin – Purge Cached Files
If you are using one of the many caching plugins out there, try purging the files that have been cached by that plugin.
Most caching plugins usually have an option to do so in your Dashboard Header, but if you struggle, just check the documentation for your specific plugin.
We use the Breeze plugin provided by Cloudways Hosting, so all we do is hover over Breeze > Purge All Cache.
Purge Browser Cache
Just like caching plugins, browsers provide additional caching solutions to store website files locally on your computer. This helps your browsing speed, but can also sometimes lead to issues when these files get a bit out of date.
Now, just like fluffy tabby kittens, browsers come in all flavors, and as such, have different steps to clear the browser cache.
No stress, just check out This Site > Select your Browser > Follow the Instructions.
Purge Server Cache
Most hosting providers worth their salt will have the option to utilize a server caching solution. Still, as with the aforementioned steps, this can lead to the Divi Builder not loading because of outdated cache files.
Depending on your hosting provider and which solution they offer, the steps will differ, so if you are uncertain, contact their support team, and they should be able to sort you out in no time.
Cloudways utilizes Varnish, so all we need to do is log into our Cloudways Account > Select our Server > Server Management > Manage Services > Varnish > Purge.
Disable Caching Plugins
As a last resort, you can try disabling your caching plugins temporarily.
5) Troubleshoot Plugins
You’re going through the gauntlet here and you are still having issues with the Divi Builder not Loading and you are ready to go get the matches. I feel you, but there are a few more things we can try here.
Time to look at our plugins and see if one of them could be the root of this frustration. Luckily Divi has a nifty Safe Mode we can try to quickly see if a plugin is at fault.
Head over to Divi > Support Center > Safe Mode > Enable.
What this is going to do is disable all of your plugins for the current session, so your visitors will not be affected at all.
Check to see if the Divi Builder is loading. If not, then you have a deeper issue and you should move on to the next step.
If it is, then we have a plugin conflict and need to investigate further, so we will switch safe mode off again.
This is a bigger task that can affect visitors to your site, so it is best to do this on a staging site if you have hosting that offers this option. If you do not, then either get a better host like Cloudways or do this testing when your traffic is at its lowest.
Head over to Plugins > Select All Plugins > Bulk Actions > Deactivate > Apply.
Make sure the Divi Builder is working.
Activate 1 Plugin, then test to see if the Divi Builder is working.
Repeat this process until the Divi Builder is not loading and then you have found the naughty plugin.
If you can manage, keep this plugin disabled until the author releases a compatible update, or contact their support team.
6) Roll Divi Back to a Previous Version
Sometimes the folks at Elegant Themes made a mistake that led to a big in a newly released version of Divi that could be causing the Divi Builder to not load. In times like this, it might make sense to try the Rollback Feature in the Divi Theme.
This will roll your current version of Divi back to the previous stable version that was released by Elegant Themes.
Head over to Divi > Theme Options > Updates > Version Rollback > ROLLBACK TO THE PREVIOUS VERSION.
7) Contact Elegant Themes Support
We are reaching the end of the road. We’ve tried everything in this tutorial and we are still having issues with the Divi Builder not Loading.
Time to put our investment in the Divi Theme to good work by contacting their support team. You’ll find that the support is excellent, but due to the many folks that use the Divi Theme, their response times usually take a few hours, sometimes days, so be aware of that.
Just head over to the Elegant Themes website and click on the chat icon in the bottom right corner. Explain exactly what your issue is with as much detail as possible. Also, be aware that adding additional information later before you get a response will bump you back to the end of the cue.
Witty meme text loading…
Conclusion
Hopefully, these 7 Things to Try When the Divi Builder is Not Loading solved your issue and that you are back building awesome websites for your clients. We know firsthand how frustrating this issue can be, so definitely share any tips you have to fix the Divi Builder not loading down in the comments.
We also have an awesome support document that you can check out for more things to look at when you are experiencing the Divi Builder not loading.
Happy building!
Well 4 hours later and a hair pulling experience with my hosting support team I finally figured out what going on! I can’t speak for anyone else but I find it highly suspicious that after I changed my builder preference to the new Divi “WireFrameCRAP” design option my layouts magically started loading. I then went back to the builder with my desired layout secured and switched the “LiarFrame” option OFF!
That would be “Thing #8 To Try IMHO because it’s more than apparent that Divi plans to do away with the classic builder configuration.
And I’m sure Divi is just a few (if not sooner) updates away from dumping the classic builder for good.
It will be at that point when Divi and I part company for good!
Hi “Brayan” Have you resolved the issue ?
How did you updated this settings ?
I have tried all these nothing workings for me
location / {
#try_files $uri $uri/ /index.php;
# try_files $uri $uri/ /index.php?$args;
# try_files $uri $uri/ /index.php?$is_args$query_string;
try_files $uri $uri/ /index.php?$args$query_string;
}
Slep Rock reporting sir. Go figure followed ALL steps to a tee (including a frustrating 2 hours with hosting support) and what would be the fruits of my labor NOTHING!!! Not one step closer to resolution that I was before saturated – this impossible, time wasting POS install needs to be nuked!
Nothing worked until I rolled back to the previous version of Divi. I will still contact support. Thank you so much for your help. I can still work until it gets figured out.:)
Thanks!! Disabling the cache plugin worked for me 👍
Divi is great, when the Visual Builder loads, what happens almost never lately. Tomorrow I will change the constructor. I am done wasting my time trying to fix the issue.
Hello. thank you for your detailed article. you need to add another to your list.. I got this by going to Elegant Themes support that figured out what happened when i upgraded my Divi from 3 to 4.
https://intercom.help/elegantthemes/en/articles/5454324-how-to-fix-cloudflare-s-rocket-loader-conflict-with-jquery
explains the problem with the Cloudflare rocket builder
you might wish to add it to your list
Hello,
that was the right solution for my site. Thank you so much!!!
If you use Cloudflare – turn off Rocket as Emilia explained in above link.
Thanks so much
Marek
save permalinks twice was the fix.
Here is an eighth thing to try – stop using Divi. Switch to a better theme and save yourself the trouble!
What a fun suggestion that actually worked! The save twice idea in permalinks worked for whatever reason, lol. Thanks so much!
Was pulling my hair out (which at my age is very dangerous) to get the Divi Builder to load.
Sure enough, your tip on re-saving Permalinks did the trick.
I would NEVER have thought of that.
THANK YOU!