Unable to activate theme. Contact support.

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  davenportedits · Member · Oct 8, 2025 at 7:08 pm

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  I’m an editor for a new website, and I chose a theme, clicked “activate,” and keep getting “Unable to activate theme. Contact support.” So far, I have cleared my cache, tried an incognito browser, disabled my adblocker, tried a different theme, and updated my browser. This theme is provided by WordPress with my personal plan.

  The blog I need help with is: (visible only to logged in users)

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  mukeshoadcom · Member · Oct 8, 2025 at 7:21 pm

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  Hi @davenportedits,

  This is a theme activation error that needs staff attention. I’m tagging this with modlook so the WordPress.com team can investigate why the theme won’t activate.

  You’ve already tried the right troubleshooting steps:
  Cleared cache Incognito browser
  Disabled adblocker
  Tried different theme
  Updated browser

  For immediate help: Contact support directly: https://wordpress.com/help/contact

  Since you’re an editor (not the site owner), you might want to check if the site owner has better permissions to activate themes. Some theme changes may require owner-level access.

  Theme activation guide: https://wordpress.com/support/themes/

  Staff will be able to check server logs and see why the activation is failing.

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  elcristofue · Member · Oct 8, 2025 at 9:47 pm

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  Hello @davenportedits,

  I see that you’d like to change the theme of your site. This isn’t possible with your current user role, as the editor does not have permission to make that change. It needs to be done from the administrator account.

  Alternatively, you can ask the site owner to promote you to an administrator so you can make this type of change. They can update your user role by following this guide:

  https://wordpress.com/support/invite-people/#change-a-user-s-role

  Please let us know if you have any questions or need further guidance, and we’ll be happy to help.