ERR_NAME_NOT_RESOLVED — what it means and how to fix it

Every visit starts with DNS turning a name (example.com) into an address. This error means that step failed outright — no answer at all, rather than a “no such name” answer. The fault sits with the name’s spelling, your DNS settings, your network, or the site’s DNS — in roughly that order of likelihood.

The fix, in order

  1. Check the spelling, then try the site on your phone with Wi-Fi off. Works on mobile data = your home network/DNS is the problem. Fails everywhere = the site’s name or DNS is down, and waiting is the fix.
  2. Flush your DNS cache. Windows (admin Command Prompt): ipconfig /flushdns. Mac: sudo dscacheutil -flushcache; sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder.
  3. Change your DNS servers to 1.1.1.1 or 8.8.8.8. If the site loads, your provider’s resolver was failing — leave the new setting in place.
  4. Restart the router. Home routers run a little DNS relay of their own, and it wedges more often than people think.
  5. Check the hosts file (Windows: C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts; Mac/Linux: /etc/hosts) for a stray line naming the site — old “blocker” edits and some malware pin names to wrong addresses there.

If it still happens

Site owners seeing this for their own domain: verify the registration hasn’t expired, the nameservers at the registrar are the ones you manage records on, and the records exist — then allow for propagation. This site’s DNS Lookup tool shows what public resolvers currently see.

Common questions

How is this different from DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN? NXDOMAIN means DNS answered “that name doesn’t exist.” ERR_NAME_NOT_RESOLVED means the lookup itself failed or returned nothing usable — often your resolver or network, not the name.

Can a VPN cause ERR_NAME_NOT_RESOLVED? Yes — a VPN that drops or misroutes DNS queries produces exactly this. Disconnect and retest; it takes ten seconds.

Related errors

DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN · ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED · "Your connection is not private"