Clear WordPress page, object, and CDN cache safely

When to use this guide

Use this after changing plugins, themes, redirects, permalinks, database settings, or server configuration when the browser still shows the old failure.

Safety notes

• Do not purge every cache layer repeatedly while an outage is still unexplained.
• Capture the failing URL, timestamp, and current response before clearing cache.
• Clear the smallest cache layer that matches the change.
• Expect temporary load spikes after a full page-cache or CDN purge.

Basic steps

1. Test the failing URL with a cache-bypass query string if your stack allows it.
2. Clear the WordPress page cache from the cache plugin or hosting panel.
3. Clear persistent object cache only when database, transients, or plugin state changed.
4. Purge the CDN URL or host after the origin is verified.
5. Retest with headers or logs to confirm the new response is served.

Expected result

The public page should show the corrected response, and the server logs should match the current request rather than a stale cached response.

Next links

• If the issue follows a deploy, use Roll back a website change safely.
• If paths still 404, use Fix broken redirects, permalinks, and rewrite rules.
• If the origin still fails, use Check access and error logs for HTTP failures.