What “not connecting” looks like #
The Loupely Chrome extension popup shows “Not connected” or “Browser only” when you’re on a page of your WordPress site, even though the plugin is installed and you’ve entered the connection key. Or the extension was working and stopped, without any changes you can identify. Either way, the extension can’t establish communication with the Loupely plugin on your server.
Step 1: Confirm the plugin is active #
Go to your WordPress Admin, navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins, and confirm the Loupely plugin is both installed and active. A plugin that was deactivated (either deliberately or as part of a troubleshooting step you forgot to reverse) won’t respond to extension requests regardless of the connection key.
Step 2: Confirm the connection key #
The connection key is generated by the WordPress Plugin and entered into the Chrome extension. Go to the Loupely plugin settings page in your WordPress Admin and copy the connection key. Open the extension popup, go to settings, and paste it again. Keys are long strings and a single wrong character means no connection. This is the most common cause of “was working, now isn’t” after a reinstall or a browser profile change.
Step 3: Test the REST API endpoint directly #
The extension communicates with the plugin through an authenticated REST API endpoint. If the REST API on your site is blocked, the extension can’t reach the plugin even with a correct key. Navigate to https://yoursite.com/wp-json/ in a browser tab. If it loads and returns a JSON response, the REST API is accessible. If it returns a 403 error or your site’s 404 page, a security plugin or server firewall is blocking it. See WordPress REST API Blocked or Not Working for the fix.
Step 4: Check whether you’re on the right site #
The extension connects to whichever WordPress site the connection key was generated from. If you manage multiple sites and entered a key from Site A while browsing Site B, the extension will show as not connected on Site B. Confirm the URL in your browser tab matches the WordPress site your connection key belongs to.
Step 5: Reinstall the plugin #
If the REST API is accessible, the key is correct, and the plugin is active but the extension still won’t connect, deactivate and delete the plugin, then reinstall it fresh from your account at useloupely.com. A corrupted plugin file (which can happen during an interrupted update) will fail to register its REST API endpoints correctly. A fresh install fixes this. After reinstalling, generate a new connection key and enter it in the extension.