Troubleshooting

Quick solutions for the most common SkunkForms issues.

Email notifications not arriving

Most common cause: Your server's mail configuration.

WordPress uses PHP's mail() function by default, which many hosting providers restrict or poorly configure. Fix:

1. Install an SMTP plugin — WP Mail SMTP is the most popular. Configure it with:

   • Gmail (free, up to 500/day)
   • SendGrid (free tier: 100/day)
   • Amazon SES (very cheap for volume)
   • Your hosting provider's SMTP

2. Check spam/junk folders — Server-sent emails often trigger spam filters.

3. Verify the "From" address — Some hosts require the from address to match a domain email. Check SkunkForms → Settings → Notifications.

4. Test with WP Mail SMTP's email test — This confirms whether WordPress can send email at all.

Form not displaying

Block editor shows blank form

• Clear your browser cache and reload
• Check for JavaScript errors (open browser console with F12)
• Temporarily switch to a default theme (Twenty Twenty-Five) to rule out theme conflicts
• Deactivate other plugins one by one to find conflicts

Form shows on editor but not on frontend

• Make sure the page is published (not draft)
• Check that no caching plugin is serving an old version
• Clear any page cache (WP Super Cache, W3 Total Cache, etc.)

Form looks broken or unstyled

• Your theme may have CSS that conflicts with form styles
• Try adding !important overrides in custom CSS
• Check if your theme loads its own form styles that override SkunkForms

Submissions not saving

Form submits but no entry appears

• Check SkunkForms → Dashboard — submissions might be there but not showing due to filters
• Clear any active filters (form, date range)
• Check your browser console for JavaScript errors during submission
• Verify your WordPress database is writable (disk space, permissions)

Form shows error on submission

• Check server error logs (usually in /wp-content/debug.log if WP_DEBUG_LOG is enabled)
• Common causes: database table missing (try deactivating and reactivating the plugin), PHP memory limit, or server timeout

AJAX submission not working

• Check for JavaScript conflicts with other plugins
• Ensure your theme's wp_footer() is called (some custom themes miss this)
• Try submitting with browser dev tools open to see network errors

CRM contacts not created

Form submissions work but no CRM contact appears

• Verify CRM integration is enabled: SkunkForms → Settings → CRM
• Check that SkunkCRM is installed and activated
• Ensure at least one field is mapped to a CRM contact field (email is essential)

Duplicate contacts being created

• SkunkForms uses email as the unique identifier
• If the same email submits multiple forms, it should update the existing contact
• Check if the email field mapping is correct

Performance issues

Forms loading slowly

• Check if your form plugin scripts are loading on every page (they should only load on pages with forms)
• Test with caching disabled to rule out stale cache issues
• Use browser dev tools → Network tab to identify slow-loading resources

Admin dashboard slow

• Large numbers of submissions (10,000+) can slow the dashboard
• Use date filters to reduce the result set
• Consider archiving or exporting old submissions

Plugin conflicts

Known compatibility issues

• Elementor — SkunkForms blocks work in Elementor's "WordPress Widget" element, not directly in Elementor's builder
• Caching plugins — Clear cache after creating or modifying forms
• Security plugins — Wordfence or Sucuri may block AJAX form submissions if rules are too strict. Add SkunkForms endpoints to the allowlist.

How to diagnose conflicts

1. Deactivate all plugins except SkunkForms
2. Switch to a default theme (Twenty Twenty-Five)
3. Test if the issue persists
4. If fixed, reactivate plugins one by one to find the conflict
5. If still broken, it's a SkunkForms bug — contact support

Still stuck?

• Check our documentation for detailed guides
• Email support@skunkforms.com with:
  • WordPress version
  • PHP version
  • Active theme name
  • List of active plugins
  • Steps to reproduce the issue
  • Any error messages or screenshots