The HTTP status code 404 means that the requested website cannot be found on the web server. Either the content of the website has been removed or it has been moved to a different URL. You can read what the error page means and how you can proceed in our tips + tricks.
What does error 404 mean?
The error page 404 appears if the content of the page has been removed or the URL has been changed. As a result, the corresponding page will not be found and you will receive the HTTP status code "404 - Page not found". The error is part of the 4xx family of over 60 HTTP status codes and stands for a client error. This includes error codes 400, 401, and 403.
There are also various other reasons why the error can occur:
- the URL is incorrectly created or incorrectly linked internally
- you entered the URL incorrectly
- the web server is not in operation
- the URL or the content has been deleted or swapped out
Since this error message is the most prominent of its kind, many websites have gotten creative and now have their own customized 404 error pages. Here you will find a picture gallery for: "Not Found" - beautiful 404 pages.
Depending on the browser and language setting, the error can appear in different variations..
How can the error be corrected?
The 404 error is always annoying and tempts to simply leave the website again. In most cases, however, the error can be remedied quite easily. It is best to try out the solutions in the following order:
Update website It is possible that the page was simply not loaded correctly and you therefore receive the error 404. Either click the update button in your browser or reload the page using [F5].
Checking the URL
If you enter the URL manually, it is easy to make mistakes. Even if you accessed the page from a shared link, there may be a typo in the URL. Therefore, you should carefully check the path of the website and change it if you notice something. An example would be heise.de/folder1/folder2 . If you get the error 404 here with folder2 , simply navigate back in the folder structure. So go to heise.de/folder1 again . Otherwise you can of course also return to the home URL, in our example it would be heise.de ..
Search engine use
, you can search using a search engine on the Web page. If the page exists, you can find it by doing a simple search. You will then be directed to the correct URL.
Empty cache and delete cookies
The data saved in the background memory are called cache and cookies. These serve to shorten the loading time of the website. In some cases, invalid information or outdated data is saved in the browser and communication is disrupted as a result. You receive an error message while loading the page. If you delete the cache and all cookies, the page you are looking for may be found again.
You can find out how to clear the cache, depending on your browser, here:
- Mozilla Firefox
- Google Chrome
- safari
- Microsoft Edge
- Internet Explorer
You can read here how to delete cookies:
- Mozilla Firefox
- Google Chrome
- safari
- Internet Explorer
Contact website
As a last resort, you can also contact the operator of the website. You can find the contact either in the imprint or on the service page. The operator can then give you information about whether the error is legitimate or not. In addition, the operator can set a domain forwarding so that the 404 error no longer occurs..
