Troubleshooting

When something is not working as expected, this section helps you diagnose and fix the most common issues. Problems are listed from most common to least common. Start with the one that matches your situation and follow the numbered steps.

Fields Do Not Appear When Editing a Post

This is the single most common issue, and it is almost always caused by a location rule mismatch.

1. Go to Field Forge > Field Groups and click on the field group that should be appearing
2. Scroll down to the Location Rules section
3. Verify each condition matches the post you are editing:

– Page template: If the rule targets a specific template, is that template actually selected on the post you are editing?

– Category/taxonomy: If the rule targets a category, is the post assigned to that category?

– User role: If the rule targets a role, does your user account have that role?

1. Check that the field group is not in the Trash — go to the Trash tab on the Field Groups list
2. On the free plan, verify you have not exceeded the 3-field-group limit. If you have 3 active groups and create a 4th, the 4th will not display.
3. Hard-refresh your browser (Cmd+Shift+R on Mac, Ctrl+Shift+R on Windows) to clear cached scripts
4. If you use a caching plugin (WP Super Cache, W3 Total Cache, LiteSpeed, etc.), clear the site cache
5. Disable other plugins temporarily to check for conflicts — re-enable them one by one to identify the conflicting plugin

Data Does Not Appear on the Website (Frontend)

Field Forge stores data, but your theme must contain code to display it. This is almost always a theme issue, not a Field Forge issue.

1. Open the post in the WordPress editor and confirm the fields contain data (are not empty)
2. Ask your developer to verify that the theme template includes the correct Field Forge functions (get_field(), the_field(), etc.) for the specific field names
3. Check that the correct template file is rendering — sometimes a page uses a different template than expected (use the Template dropdown in the editor to verify)
4. If you recently migrated from ACF, go to Field Forge > Migration and verify the migration completed successfully, especially the value migration step
5. If using a page builder with dynamic field data, enable “Sync to PostMeta” in Field Forge settings

ACF Migration Seems Stuck, Slow, or Failed

Large sites with thousands of posts take time to migrate, and hosting limitations can cause interruptions.

1. For sites with 500+ posts, use the Background Migration mode — it continues running even if you close the browser
2. Verify that WordPress Cron is functioning. Some hosting providers disable wp-cron.php. Go to Tools > Site Health to check, or ask your host.
3. Migration processes posts in batches of 50. A site with 5,000 posts requires 100 batches. This is normal.
4. If migration stopped partway through, run it again — it picks up where it left off and does not create duplicates
5. Check server error logs (or ask your hosting support) for PHP memory or timeout errors. Increase PHP memory to at least 256MB and max execution time to 300 seconds.
6. On very large sites (50,000+ posts), consider migrating during off-peak hours to reduce server load

I See “3 Field Group Limit Reached”

You are on the free plan, which allows up to 3 active field groups. Options:

1. Delete or trash unused field groups to make room for new ones
2. Combine multiple small field groups into fewer, larger ones (use Tab fields to organize sections within a single group)
3. Upgrade to PRO for unlimited field groups — the most practical solution for sites that need more than 3

Fields Show Up But Display Wrong Data or Are Empty

1. If you recently migrated from ACF, verify that the value migration (Step 3 in the migration section) completed fully — not just the field group import
2. Check that field names have not changed. If a field was renamed from hero_title to page_title, the previously saved data under hero_title is orphaned — the editor shows an empty field under the new name
3. If using “Sync to PostMeta,” make sure it is enabled when your theme or other plugins read from wp_postmeta
4. Check conditional logic — the field might be hidden by a conditional rule that depends on another field’s value

Repeater, Group, or Flexible Content Fields Are Missing from the Field Type Picker

These are PRO-only field types.

1. On the free plan, you will not see Repeater, Group, Flexible Content, or Clone in the field type grid
2. If you imported a field group that contains these types but do not have an active PRO license, the compound fields will not function and may appear as disabled
3. Go to Field Forge > License and verify your PRO license is active
4. If the license shows as expired, renew it to restore access to PRO field types

Keyboard Shortcuts Do Not Work

1. Make sure your cursor is focused inside the Field Forge editor (click anywhere in the field group editing area)
2. Check that no browser extension is intercepting the shortcut (some extensions capture Cmd+S / Ctrl+S)
3. Try a different browser to rule out browser-specific issues
4. The primary keyboard shortcut is Cmd+S (Mac) or Ctrl+S (Windows) to save the field group

Site Performance Slowed Down After Installation

Field Forge is designed for performance, but certain configurations can be resource-intensive:

1. Check whether you have many field groups with overlapping location rules — multiple field groups targeting the same post type means more data loaded per page
2. If “Sync to PostMeta” is enabled, every save writes data twice. This is usually negligible but can matter on sites with very high traffic and frequent saves.
3. Ensure your hosting meets the minimum requirements (PHP 7.4+, adequate memory)
4. Check if a caching plugin is active — caching significantly improves performance for field-heavy pages

> Tip: When reporting an issue to Field Forge support, include the following: your WordPress version, Field Forge version (free or PRO), PHP version, a description of expected vs. actual behavior, and a screenshot of the field group’s location rules. This information helps resolve issues much faster.

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