Direct answer: If a door won’t stay closed, the usual cause is simple misalignment: the latch is barely catching, the strike opening is off, or the door has sagged on loose hinges. Start with hinge screws, latch engagement, and rubbing marks before you replace hardware.
Most likely: Most often, the door is hanging a little low or the strike plate is no longer lined up with the latch.
Watch what the door does in the last inch of travel. If it closes but springs back open, think latch and strike alignment. If it swings open on its own, think the frame or door is out of plumb. If it only acts up in wet weather, swelling is a different problem. Reality check: a lot of "bad latches" are really loose hinges. Common wrong move: chiseling the strike plate deeper before checking whether the door has dropped.
Don’t start with: Don’t start by forcing the door, bending hardware, or buying a new handle set just because the door pops open.
The latch touches the strike plate, but the door will not stay latched unless you push hard or hold it.
Start here: Start with latch-to-strike alignment and look for a shallow catch or rub marks around the strike opening.
The door feels dropped on the handle side, and lifting the knob or pushing at an angle helps it latch.
Start here: Start with the top hinge and the long screws holding the hinge leaf to the jamb.
The latch works, but the door drifts open after you leave it cracked or nearly closed.
Start here: Start by checking whether the frame or door is out of plumb rather than blaming the latch.
The door rubs, drags, or needs extra force during damp weather, then improves later.
Start here: Start with swelling and binding checks instead of replacing latch hardware.
This is the most common reason a door stops lining up with the strike plate. The latch ends up low, high, or too far back to catch cleanly.
Quick check: Open the door halfway and lift gently on the knob side. If you feel play at the hinges or see a hinge leaf move, start there.
If the latch hits the strike plate edge or only catches on the tip, the door can bounce back open even though the handle feels normal.
Quick check: Put lipstick, painter's tape, or a pencil mark on the latch face and close the door slowly to see where it contacts the strike.
A sticky or worn latch can stay partly retracted, especially if the knob or lever is loose or the latch bolt feels sluggish.
Quick check: With the door open, turn the knob and release it. The latch should snap fully out every time without hanging up.
If the door rubs at the top corner, along the latch edge, or changes with weather, the opening has moved enough to affect closure.
Quick check: Look for fresh paint scuffs, shiny rub spots, or a tight reveal at one top corner and a wide reveal at the other.
You want to know whether the door is failing to latch, drifting open, or sticking from swelling. Those look similar from across the room but they are different repairs.
Next move: If the problem is clearly latch alignment, move to the hinge and strike checks next. If you cannot tell whether it is rubbing or missing the strike, stop forcing it and inspect the hinges and strike plate closely in better light.
What to conclude: A door that pops open usually has a latch engagement problem. A door that drifts open with no rubbing is more often out of plumb. A door that needs force in humid weather is usually binding, not just unlatching.
A sagging door changes everything downstream. If you move the strike plate first, you can end up chasing the problem instead of fixing it.
Next move: If tightening or replacing hinge screws brings the latch back into line, the main problem was door sag. If the hinges are solid and the latch still hits the strike wrong, move to the strike alignment check.
What to conclude: Loose top-hinge screws are the classic cause of a door that will not stay shut. Fixing the sag often solves the latch problem without replacing any hardware.
You need to know whether the latch is too high, too low, too shallow, or not extending far enough. That tells you whether to adjust the strike or suspect the latch itself.
Next move: If a loose strike plate was the issue and tightening it restores a solid latch, test the door several more times and you may be done. If the latch still lands off-center after the hinges are solid, the opening has shifted enough that the strike location needs adjustment or the door is binding from seasonal movement.
Once hinge and strike issues are ruled down, the latch becomes a real suspect. A weak or sticky latch bolt will not hold even when alignment is close.
Next move: If cleaning and tightening the hardware restores a crisp latch action, recheck closure at the strike and keep the existing hardware. If the latch remains sluggish or incomplete, replacement is the right next move.
By now you should know whether the fix is hinge support, strike adjustment, or latch replacement. Finish with the smallest correction that gives a solid close.
A good result: If the door latches cleanly with normal pressure and stays shut on repeated tests, the repair path was correct.
If not: If the door still will not stay closed after hinge, strike, and latch corrections, the frame or slab has moved enough that a carpenter or door pro should reset the opening.
What to conclude: Small hardware corrections fix most doors. When they do not, the real problem is usually a shifted jamb, a warped slab, or a moisture-related fit issue.
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Usually the latch is only catching on the edge of the strike plate instead of entering fully. Loose top-hinge screws are the first thing to check because a sagging door changes latch alignment fast.
That almost always points to hinge sag. The handle side has dropped, so lifting the door temporarily lines the latch back up with the strike plate.
Not first. Check hinge screws and strike alignment before buying hardware. Replace the door latch or handle set only if the latch bolt is clearly weak, sticky, or not extending fully with the door open.
Sometimes, but only after you know the door is not sagging on loose hinges. Moving the strike plate before fixing hinge play is a common way to end up with a door that still closes poorly.
That points more toward swelling and binding than a bad latch. If the door rubs the frame during damp weather, treat it as a fit or moisture problem rather than a simple hardware replacement.
Most of the time it starts as a hardware problem, especially loose hinge screws. If hinge, strike, and latch corrections do not solve it, then frame movement or a warped door becomes more likely.