Website Menu or Navigation Broken
Visitors can't get around your site — the menu won't open on mobile, links go nowhere, or items are missing.
Common signs of this issue
- The mobile menu (hamburger icon) won't open or close.
- Menu links lead to the wrong page or a 404.
- Menu items disappeared or reordered themselves.
- The menu overlaps other content or looks broken.
Safe checks you can do yourself
None of these require sharing passwords with anyone.
- Test the menu on a phone and a computer — a mobile-only failure points to a script or theme issue.
- Click each menu link and note which ones break; dead links often just need their address corrected.
- Recall any recent change — a theme update, a new plugin, or pasted code — that lines up with when it broke.
- Try a private window to rule out a cached old version of the page.
- On WordPress, check Appearance → Menus to confirm items still point to existing pages.
What this usually means
A mobile menu that won't open is usually a script conflict (often from a plugin or theme update). Wrong or dead links are usually just menu items pointing to renamed or deleted pages.
Missing items often mean the menu was edited, or a page it linked to was unpublished.
What not to do
- Don't rebuild the whole menu before checking if it's one bad link or one script conflict.
- Don't paste random code snippets from the web into your theme to "fix" the menu.
- Don't delete pages that the menu still links to without updating the menu.
When to get help
If visitors can't navigate, they leave — so a broken menu is worth resolving promptly. A script conflict behind a non-opening mobile menu can be quick to fix for someone who can spot the conflict.
Not sure what to do next?
Answer a few short questions and we'll point you to the safest next step — DIY, a freelancer, or a direct review. No passwords required.
Frequently asked questions
Why won't my mobile menu open?
Usually a JavaScript conflict, often introduced by a plugin or theme update. Identifying the conflicting item typically resolves it.
My menu links go to 404s — why?
The linked pages were likely renamed, moved, or deleted. Update the menu items to the correct current addresses.