The 502 Bad Gateway error is an HTTP status code indicating that one server on the internet received an invalid response from another server. These errors are independent of your setup, meaning they can occur in any browser, on any operating system, and on any device.

How to Fix a 502 Bad Gateway Error

The 502 Bad Gateway error is often a network error between servers on the internet, meaning the problem wouldn’t be with your computer or internet connection.

However, since it is possible that there’s something wrong on your end, here are some fixes to try:

1. Try loading the URL again by pressing F5 or Ctrl+R (Command+R on a Mac) on your keyboard, or by selecting the refresh/reload button.

   While the 502 Bad Gateway error is usually indicating a networking error outside of your control, it could be extremely temporary. Trying the page again will often be successful.

2. Start a new browser session by closing all open browser windows and then opening a new one. Then try opening the web page again.

   It’s possible the 502 error was due to an issue on your computer during this browser session. Restarting the browser program could solve the problem.

3. Clear your browser’s cache. Outdated or corrupted files stored by your browser could cause 502 Bad Gateway issues.

   Removing those cached files and trying the page again will solve the problem if this is the cause.

4. Delete your browser’s cookies. For similar reasons as mentioned above with cached files, clearing stored cookies could fix a 502 error.

   If you’d rather not clear all of your cookies, you could first try removing only those cookies related to the site you’re getting the 502 error on. It’s best to remove them all but it won’t hurt to try the clearly applicable one(s) first.

5. Start your browser in Safe Mode: We have instructions for Firefox, Chrome, or Edge. Running a browser in Safe Mode means to run it with default settings and without add-ons or extensions, including toolbars.

   If the 502 error doesn’t appear in Safe Mode, a browser extension or setting likely causes the problem. Reset your browser settings to default or selectively disable browser extensions to identify and fix the root cause.

   A browser’s Safe Mode is similar in idea to the Safe Mode in Windows but it’s not the same thing. You do not need to start Windows in Safe Mode to run any browser in its particular “Safe Mode.”

6. Try another browser. Popular browsers include Firefox, Chrome, Edge, Opera, and Safari.

   If an alternative browser doesn’t produce a 502 Bad Gateway error, you now know that your original browser is the source of the problem. Assuming you’ve followed the above troubleshooting advice, now would be the time to reinstall your browser and see if that corrects the problem.

7. Restart your computer. Temporary issues with your computer’s network connection could cause 502 errors, especially if they appear on multiple websites. In these cases, a restart can help.

8. Restart your networking equipment. Issues with your modem, router, switches, or other networking devices could cause 502 Bad Gateway errors. Restarting these devices could help.

   The order you turn off these devices isn’t crucial, but be sure to turn them back on from the outside in. Refer to the link above for detailed help on restarting your equipment if needed.

9. Change your DNS servers, either on your router or on your computer or device. Some Bad Gateway errors are caused by temporary issues with DNS servers.

10. Contacting the website directly might also be a good idea. Chances are, assuming they’re at fault, the website administrators are already working on correcting the cause of the 502 Bad Gateway error, but feel free to let them know about it.

    Most websites have social networking accounts they use to help support their services. Some even have telephone and email contacts.

    If you suspect a website is down for everyone, especially a popular one, checking X (formerly Twitter for chatter about the outage is often very helpful. The best way to do this is to search for #websitedown on X, as in #cnndown or #instagramdown. There are other ways to see if a website is down if social media isn’t helpful.

11. Contact your internet service provider. If your browser, computer, and network are all working and the website reports that the page or site is working for them, the 502 Bad Gateway issue could be caused by a network issue that your ISP is responsible for.

12. Come back later. At this point in your troubleshooting, the 502 Bad Gateway error message is almost certainly an issue with either your ISP or with the website’s network—one of the two parties might have even confirmed that for you if you contacted them directly. Either way, you’re not the only one seeing the 502 error and so you’ll need to wait until the problem is solved for you.

What Does a 502 Bad Gateway Error Look Like?

Each website can customize the 502 Bad Gateway. While it’s fairly uncommon, different web servers do describe this error differently.

Below are some common ways you might see it:

• 502 Bad Gateway
• 502 Service Temporarily Overloaded
• Error 502
• Temporary Error (502)
• 502 Proxy Error
• 502 Server Error: The server encountered a temporary error and could not complete your request
• HTTP 502
• 502. That’s an error
• Bad Gateway: The proxy server received an invalid response from an upstream server
• HTTP Error 502 – Bad Gateway

A Bad Gateway error received in Windows Update generates a 0x80244021 error code or the message WU_E_PT_HTTP_STATUS_BAD_GATEWAY.

When Google services, like Google Search or Gmail, are experiencing a 502 Bad Gateway, they often show Server Error, or sometimes just 502, on the screen.

What Causes a 502 Bad Gateway Error?

Bad Gateway errors often stem from issues between servers that you can’t control. However, sometimes your browser mistakenly detects a problem due to browser issues, home networking equipment problems, or other factors within your control.

An HTTP Error 502.1 – Bad Gateway error refers to a CGI application timeout problem and is better to troubleshoot as a 504 Gateway Timeout issue.