Why do some customers get an error to enable JavaScript?

JavaScript (also called JS) is a coding language that allows content to be dynamically updated and rendered on a web page. It’s a vital part of the look and experience of a WooCommerce site.

The Stripe WooCommerce Extension leverages JavaScript to display important aspects of the payment process for customers — like displaying payment fields. If a customer sees an error requesting that they enable JavaScript, then it’s likely either a result of:

1. JavaScript errors on the checkout page.
2. JavaScript files fail to load on the checkout page.

What can cause issues when loading JavaScript files?

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The Stripe WooCommerce Extension requires JavaScript files to function. If these are not loaded properly, it will produce errors. The most common reasons for JavaScript files not loading are:

1. The active theme is missing wp_head() or wp_footer() calls.
2. The active theme is using old, overridden template files.
   • You can read more about fixing outdated templates here.
3. The active theme is loading headers and/or footers in a non-standard way.
   • WooCommerce uses get_header()’s get_header action to initialize the checkout and load scripts. If you are not using get_header(), you either:
     • Need to do so.
     • Need to trigger the get_header action manually using do_action( ‘get_header' ); in your custom header loader.
4. An optimization plugin is preventing the JavaScript files from loading properly.

How can I test what is preventing the JavaScript files from loading?

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If you’d like to determine what is causing the JavaScript files to not load properly on your site, you will want to perform a conflict test. You can read more about plugin and theme conflicts in our Self-Service Guide.