How to check if a website is down for everyone or just you

A page won't load. Before you restart your router, clear your cache or file a ticket, answer one question: is the website down for everyone, or just for you?

That single answer decides what to do next. If the site is down globally, there is nothing to fix on your side, so you wait or switch to a backup. If it is only you, the problem is somewhere between your device and the site, and you can usually fix it in a few minutes.

Here are five checks, ordered from fastest to most detailed. Most of the time the first two settle it.

1. Read the error message carefully

Browsers tell you more than people think. The exact wording points to the layer that failed:

What you see	What it usually means
DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN, "server IP address could not be found"	The name didn't resolve. Often local (DNS cache, resolver) or a typo.
ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT	Packets went out, nothing came back. Network, firewall or a server that's overloaded.
ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED	The server's address answered but nothing is listening on that port.
502 Bad Gateway, 503 Service Unavailable, 504 Gateway Timeout	You reached the site's front door. The problem is behind it, on their side.
NET::ERR_CERT_*	TLS certificate problem. Either their certificate, or your clock/proxy.

A 5xx status code is the strongest hint that the site really is down: their own infrastructure is answering and saying "not right now".

2. Check from somewhere that isn't you

The quickest way to separate "down" from "down for me" is to ask a machine on a different network. An independent checker requests the page from its own servers and shows you the status code and response time. A free tool like upordown.online does this in a few seconds, and it also shows live status for popular services, so you can see at a glance whether a big platform is having an outage.

If the outside check says the site is up and responds normally, the problem is on your side. Keep reading.

3. Try a second device and a second network

This takes 30 seconds and rules out a lot:

1. Open the same URL on your phone with Wi-Fi turned off (mobile data).
2. If it works on mobile data but not on your home or office Wi-Fi, the problem is your network: router, ISP DNS, a firewall or a VPN.
3. If it fails on your laptop but works on your phone on the same Wi-Fi, the problem is your laptop: browser extensions, a local DNS cache, a proxy setting or security software.

Also try a private/incognito window. Extensions and stale cookies cause a surprising number of "the site is broken" reports.

4. Test from the command line

Commands give you facts instead of a spinner. You don't need to be a network engineer to read them.

Does the name resolve?

Windows (Command Prompt or PowerShell):

nslookup example.com
nslookup example.com 1.1.1.1

macOS and Linux:

dig +short example.com
dig +short example.com @1.1.1.1

If your default resolver returns nothing but 1.1.1.1 returns an address, your local DNS is the problem, not the site.

Can you reach the server and get a response?

curl is built into Windows 10/11, macOS and most Linux distributions:

curl -sS -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code} in %{time_total}s\n" https://example.com

On Windows PowerShell, use curl.exe so you get real curl and not the Invoke-WebRequest alias:

curl.exe -sS -o NUL -w "%{http_code} in %{time_total}s\n" https://example.com

How to read it:

• 200 (or 301/302) in under a second or two: the site is up from where you are.
• 5xx: the site is reachable but broken on their end.
• Could not resolve host: DNS problem (go back to the previous step).
• Connection timed out / Failed to connect: the network path or the server isn't responding.

Is the host answering at all?

ping -c 4 example.com      # macOS / Linux
ping -n 4 example.com      # Windows

Treat ping as a weak signal. Many large sites block ICMP, so "request timed out" doesn't prove the site is down. A working curl matters more than a failing ping.

Where does the path break?

traceroute example.com     # macOS / Linux
tracert example.com        # Windows

If the trace dies within the first one or two hops, the problem is your router or ISP. If it reaches far and then stops near the destination, it's closer to the site.

5. Look for official and public signals

Larger services usually publish a status page, often at status.<domain> or linked in their footer and help center. Check it, but don't treat "All systems operational" as final: status pages are updated by people, and they often lag the first 10 to 30 minutes of an incident.

Other useful signals:

• The service's official account on social media, where incident updates often appear first.
• A sudden spike of "is it down?" posts from other users.
• Partial failures: the homepage loads but login, search or uploads fail. That's still an outage, just a partial one, and outside checkers that only fetch the homepage can miss it.

A two-minute decision checklist

1. Read the error. 5xx? Probably them.
2. Check from an outside service. Down there too? It's them. Wait, and check the status page.
3. Up there but not for you? Try mobile data. Works? It's your network.
4. Still broken on one device only? Try incognito, disable the VPN/proxy, then run nslookup/dig and curl.
5. DNS fails locally but works against 1.1.1.1? Switch resolvers or flush your DNS cache.

FAQ

How can I tell if a website is down right now?

Load it from an independent checker that requests the page from its own servers. If it fails there too and returns an error or times out, the site is down for everyone. If it loads there, the problem is on your side.

Why does a website work on my phone but not my computer?

Usually something local to the computer: a stale DNS cache, a browser extension, a VPN or proxy, or security software. Test in an incognito window, disable the VPN, and compare nslookup results.

Does ping tell me if a site is down?

Not reliably. Many sites block ping on purpose. Use curl or an outside HTTP check, which tests what your browser actually does.

What does a 503 error mean?

503 Service Unavailable means the server is reachable but temporarily can't handle the request, often due to overload or maintenance. It's on the site's side; refreshing every few minutes is all you can do.

How long do website outages usually last?

Most are short, from a few minutes to under an hour. Large incidents at major providers can last several hours. Watching a status page or a live tracker is less stressful than refreshing the page.