How to Fix 404 Page Not Found Issue [Complete Guide]

Are you looking for ways to fix the HTTP status code 404 not found? If yes, you may read this article to know its best possible solutions for both website visitors and administrators.

“404 page not found” is perhaps the most annoying message anyone can get on a webpage. If you are also experiencing it when trying to view any page on a website or your own site has this issue, do not consider yourself alone. Many others are struggling to find a way out of this problem.

But now that you have landed on this article, you may put your worries to rest. This write-up helps you fix the issue using some quick and easy hacks.

However, before going through the solutions, here is something you should know.

Note: Error 404 is an HTTP status code that appears when the page you are trying to view is unavailable on the website’s server. This error message is customizable, and websites customize it in a variety of ways. The following are the most common variants of the HTTP response 404 page not found error.

• 404 not found
• 404 error
• The requested URL was not found on this server
• Error 404
• Error 404 not found
• HTTP 404
• 404 file or directory not found
• Error 404. The page you are looking for can’t be found

Above were the commonly encountered formats of the 404 not found error. Let us learn how to fix the issue in all its forms.

Fixes to the 404 Page Not Found Error (If You’re a Website Visitor)

The following tricks may work for you to fix the HTTP status code 404 page not found so that you can access the desired web page.

Fix 1: Retry to open the webpage

Sometimes, we overthink a situation so much that we forget to think about the most obvious solutions. Hence, the first thing you should do is to try opening the page again, in case you have not already done so. To reload the page, press F5, click on the reload/refresh button, or key in the address bar’s URL one more time.

Fix 2: Check the URL

In a hurry, users often type an incorrect URL or select the wrong link to go to a particular webpage. If you have made the same mistake, it triggers the 404 not found error. Therefore, simple hacks like checking the URL for typing mistakes and correcting it can also help you get rid of the problem you are experiencing.

Fix 3: Use a search engine

In some cases, the URL is typed correctly. But it is not the correct webpage address. If the same is happening with you, the desired webpage won’t launch and what you get is an HTTP status code 404 page not found. Thus, you may try searching for the page using Google or another search engine. Once you find it, you may bookmark it to avoid future problems.

Fix 4: Clear the browser cache

Try opening the desired page on your phone or some other device. If you are able to access the page there but not on your computer, the browser cache may be the culprit. Hence, you may clean your browser cache to fix the problem. The following are the steps to clean the Google Chrome (one of the fastest web browsers for Windows) cache. If you use any other browser, do not worry, as almost all browsers have a similar process to remove the cache. Let us take a look at it.

• Click on the kebab (three-dotted) menu.
• Select Settings from the menu you get on your screen.
  
• Choose the Advanced option located at the page’s bottom.
  
• Clear browsing data.
  
  
• Now, checkmark the option to clear Cached images and files. 
  • Choose All time in the time range and Clear data.
    
    

Fix 5: Try changing the DNS servers

If the entire website is showing an HTTP response 404, you may change the DNS servers. Below are the steps you may take to make these changes on your Windows computer.

• Search for and launch the Control Panel.
   
• Select the Network and Internet category.
  
• Go to the Network and Sharing Center.
  
  
• Change adapter settings.
  
  
• Right-click on your network connection to launch its Properties dialog box.
  
• Choose Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) and select Properties. 
• Now, input the desired DNS address for the Preferred DNS server and Alternate DNS server. The generally accepted address is 8.8.8.8 for the Preferred DNS server and 8.8.4.4 for the Alternate DNS server.
• Choose OK to save the changed settings.
  
• Exit the Control Panel.
• Try accessing the problematic webpage to check whether the error 404 page not found has disappeared or not.

Fix 6: Make use of the website’s search utility

Almost all websites offer a search function on their homepage to find the page you want to access. You may use the search tool to find and launch the desired page on the website. For example, if you want to read about the best driver updaters, you may enter the keyword “driver updaters” in the search box to reach that specific page.

Fix 7: Contact the website’s support

The website administrators may have shifted the webpage to some other address. Hence, if all the above solutions do not work, you may contact the website support to get help fixing the 404 page not found issue.

Above, we looked at the 404 file not found problem from the website visitors’ perspective. But if you happen to be a website administrator who wants to fix the issue on your own website, we have got you covered too. Below is what website administrators can do to solve this issue.

Identification and Solutions to the 404 Page Not Found Error for Website Administrators

Below is how website administrators can identify and drive the HTTP response 404 away from their websites to give users the best experience.

Ways to Identify the Error 404 on Your Website

You may use the following tools to detect the HTTP status code 404 and broken links on your website.

• Google Search Console

Google Search Console is among the most commonly used tools to find broken links and 404 page not found issues on a website. You may follow the following steps to use it.

• Log into your Google Search Console account.
• Select the Crawl errors option and choose Diagnostics. 
• Choose Not Found to view a list containing 404 not found errors.
  
• Bing Webmaster

You may use Bing Webmaster to identify broken links and 404 HTTP status codes on Microsoft Bing. The following are the directions to use it.

• Choose Bing Webmaster Tools from Reports & Data. 
• Go to the Crawl information.
• Now, you can view all the 404 page not found errors on your website.

Fix 1: Try redirecting the page

Redirecting the webpage is among the most common fixes to the HTTP status code 404 not found. You may use a 301 redirect to perform this task. The 301 redirect is a code that gives the browser an indication that you have moved the page’s contents to another address.

Fix 2: Perform restoration of deleted pages

Sometimes, a user may look for or get redirected to a page you have deleted from your websites. In this situation, he/she may bump into the 404 page not found issue, hampering the user experience. Unless you have any business reason or other issues with the webpage, you may restore it on your website or redirect the user to another page with the same content.

404 Page Not Found Error Fixed

This article discussed ways to fix the HTTP response 404 page not found from both website visitor and administrator’s end. You may go through the above guide and get rid of the issue depending on whether you are visiting a particular webpage or are the website’s administrator.

If you have any concerns or suggestions about this write-up, we will be happy to connect with you through the comments section.

We will be back with another post soon so that we can together explore the tech world.