How to Fix ERR_EMPTY_RESPONSE in Chrome

ERR_EMPTY_RESPONSE means Chrome connected to the server, but the server sent back nothing at all, not even a page header. When it happens on just one website, the cause is usually that site’s server, that site’s saved cookies in Chrome, or one connection feature like QUIC or Secure DNS. Start by opening the site in an Incognito window. If it loads there, the fix is a quick cookie or extension cleanup.

Applies to

Devices: Windows, Mac, Chromebook, Android, and iPhone.
Browser: Google Chrome. Not version-specific.
Account: none needed. This is a connection error, not a sign-in error.

What does ERR_EMPTY_RESPONSE mean?

Chrome opened a connection to the server and waited for a reply. The server closed the connection without sending a single byte, so Chrome has no page, no headers, and no error code from the site to show you. That is why the message is so blank. It is not a refusal and not a timeout. The connection worked. The reply was empty.

Why this happens (on one site especially)

When only one site does this and everything else loads, you can skip the whole-network fixes. Here are the real causes and the signal for each.

The site’s server sent nothing. Signal: the site also fails on your phone and in other browsers. The server crashed before it could reply, or it is overloaded.
Corrupted cookies or cache for that site. Signal: the site loads in an Incognito window but not a normal one.
An extension is interfering. Signal: it loads in Incognito, where extensions are off by default.
A connection feature is clashing with that server. Signal: it fails everywhere in normal and Incognito windows, but the rest of the web is fine. This points to QUIC or Secure DNS.
Network gear is stripping the reply. Signal: it only happens on one network, like work or school, or started after you installed security software.

First test: open the site in Incognito

Chrome Incognito Mode

Press Ctrl+Shift+N (Cmd+Shift+N on Mac) and load the site. Incognito turns off extensions and ignores your normal cookies, so it splits the causes fast. Loading in Incognito means the problem is your cookies or an extension. Failing in Incognito too means the cause is the server or a connection issue.

If it loads in Incognito: clean up that site

Clear the saved data for just that site. Go to Settings, Privacy and security, Site settings. Find the site in the list, open it, and choose Delete data. Clearing one site is gentler than wiping everything and usually fixes it.
If that fails, delete all browsing data. Go to Settings, Privacy and security, Delete browsing data, pick Cached images and files and Cookies and other site data, then click Delete data. If your menu says Clear browsing data instead, that is the same screen under its older name.
Find the extension. If Incognito worked with extensions off, turn your extensions off one by one in a normal window to find the one that breaks the site, then remove it.

If it fails in Incognito too: adjust connection features

When even Incognito fails, but other sites are fine, a connection feature is likely clashing with that one server.

Warning: the first step changes a hidden Chrome setting on the flags page. Only change the one flag named here, and set it back if it does not help.

Turn off Experimental QUIC. Type chrome://flags in the address bar, search for Experimental QUIC protocol, set it to Disabled, and relaunch Chrome. QUIC is a newer connection method, and a few servers and networks handle it badly and return an empty response. The flag needs a full relaunch, not just a new tab, before the change takes effect.
Turn off Secure DNS for a test.
- Go to Settings > Privacy > Security
- Turn off Use secure DNS. It sits well down that page, below the Safe Browsing options, so scroll past them.
- Some sites and networks return empty replies when Secure DNS is on. If this fixes it, you can turn it back on later and use a different DNS provider.
Flush your DNS cache. On Windows, open Command Prompt and run ipconfig /flushdns, then reload.
Try a different network. Switch to your phone’s hotspot. If the site works there, the block is your router, a proxy, or a security tool on the first network, and you can allow the site or contact the network admin.

If it fails everywhere, including your phone

Then the server itself is sending nothing, and this is not something you can fix from your device. Wait and try again later. If it is your own website, this is a server-side crash, so check the server error logs and any gateway or PHP timeout settings. Being honest here saves you from changing browser settings that were never the problem.

What does not fix ERR_EMPTY_RESPONSE

Several fixes get recommended for this error that cannot work, because of what the error actually is. The connection already succeeded. Anything that repairs the path to the server is aimed at a step that did not fail.

Restarting your router. This is the standard first move for a timeout, and it does nothing here. Your router already carried the connection to the server successfully. The reply came back empty after that.
Changing your DNS servers. DNS turns a name into an address, and that step clearly worked, or Chrome would never have reached the server to get an empty reply. A real DNS failure shows DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN instead.
Reinstalling Chrome. Your profile data, including the cookies that are usually at fault, survives a reinstall. You will spend twenty minutes and land back on the same error. Clearing the data for that one site takes ten seconds and targets the actual cause.
Resetting all Chrome settings. This is worth trying only after the per-site cookie clear and the QUIC test have both failed, and it is a heavier action than the problem usually warrants.

If a site returns an empty response in every browser and on mobile data, no setting on your device is involved at all. That is worth confirming early, because it saves you from working through fixes that were never going to apply.

How it compares to other Chrome connection errors

These codes describe different failures. The empty response is unique because the connection succeeded first.

Error	What it means	Where it usually points
ERR_EMPTY_RESPONSE	Connected, but the server sent zero data	The server, that site’s cookies, or QUIC or Secure DNS
ERR_CONNECTION_RESET	Connection opened, then dropped part way	Firewall, antivirus, or an unstable network
ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED	The server actively said no	Server down, wrong port, or a block
ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT	No reply at all within the time limit	Your network, a firewall, or an overloaded site
DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN	The name could not be turned into an address	DNS, or a typo in the address

Because the connection succeeds before the response comes back empty, whole-network resets rarely help. The useful levers for one site are cookies, QUIC, and Secure DNS.

FAQ

Why does ERR_EMPTY_RESPONSE happen on only one website?

That one server is sending nothing, or Chrome has bad saved cookies for that domain, or a feature like QUIC clashes with that specific server. The rest of the web works because those causes are tied to that one site.

Does clearing cookies really fix it?

Often, yes, when the site loads in Incognito but not a normal window. Clearing the data for just that site is enough, so you do not need to sign out of everything else.

Is disabling QUIC safe?

Yes. QUIC is a speed feature, not a security one, so turning it off only means Chrome uses an older connection method. If it does not fix your issue, set the flag back to Default.

Why did restarting my router not help?

Because the connection to the server already worked. A router restart fixes problems where traffic cannot reach the destination, and here it reached the destination fine. The server just sent nothing back.

The site fails on every browser and my phone. Now what?

Then the server is the problem, and there is nothing to change on your side. Wait and retry. If it is your site, check the server logs for a crash or timeout.

Bottom line

ERR_EMPTY_RESPONSE means a good connection and an empty reply, so aim at the one site, not your whole network. The Incognito test splits cookies and extensions from server and connection causes. If Incognito also fails but the rest of the web is fine, try turning off QUIC and Secure DNS before anything drastic.