Is Claude down?

Claude usually stops working for one of two reasons: a problem at Anthropic or a problem on your end.

According to Anthropic’s official status page, recent Claude problems have included users being unable to log in, certain models returning errors, and the service running slower than usual. These issues can affect claude.ai, the Claude API, Claude Code, and Claude Cowork — sometimes all at once, sometimes only one of them.

If Anthropic hasn’t reported an outage, check your setup. An expired login session, an unstable connection, an outdated cache, or a browser extension can all stop Claude from working.

Claude can feel slow for a few reasons. Anthropic’s models sometimes take longer than usual to respond, especially during an incident — the company’s own status updates have flagged higher latency alongside error rates. Long chats also add delay because Claude rereads the entire conversation, including uploaded files, every time you send a new message.

On your side, several things can slow Claude down: a weak connection, too many open tabs, an outdated cache, or an interfering extension. To find the cause, check Anthropic’s official status page — if the company hasn’t reported an active incident, the problem is most likely local.

Claude may stop responding for several reasons: an Anthropic outage, a model returning errors, a usage limit you’ve reached, a request that’s too long, or an unstable internet connection.

If Claude doesn’t answer your prompt, start a new chat, shorten your request, sign out and sign in again, or switch to a different model. Then check the live reports on this page. If other users report the same problem at the same time, the issue is on Anthropic’s side, and you’ll need to wait for a fix.

If you use the Claude API, the error code identifies the specific failure. According to Anthropic’s API documentation, a 429 error means you’ve hit a rate limit or spend limit, a 504 error means the request timed out, and a 529 error means the API is temporarily overloaded.

Claude may fail on the desktop during a wider outage, after a failed login, or on an outdated app version. The desktop app can also fail on its own while the Claude website works normally, so a broken app doesn’t always mean Claude is down.

Try these steps:

1. 1.

   Check the live status on this page to rule out a wider outage.

2. 2.

   Open Claude in your browser. If the website works, the problem is with the app.

3. 3.

   Restart the app, then update it if a new version is available.

4. 4.

   Sign out and sign in again.

You should suspect a Claude outage if you see several of these signs at once:

• You can’t log in on either the website or the desktop app.

• You get repeated error codes, such as 500, 504, or 529.

• Your messages fail to send, or Claude starts a reply and stops partway through.

• The desktop app opens but returns server errors.

You may also see a 502 bad gateway error, which means two servers failed to communicate. Like the codes above, a 502 error points to a server-side problem rather than an issue with your device.

Claude outages usually last from just over 20 minutes to a few hours, based on recent incidents on Anthropic’s official status page. A July 21, 2026, feature outage lasted about 23 minutes, and an August 16, 2026, service disruption was resolved in about 35 minutes. Longer incidents happen too — on August 24, 2026, several Claude models returned errors, and Anthropic marked the incident as resolved 3 hours and 24 minutes after opening its investigation.

How long Claude stays down depends on the affected service. Some incidents hit only specific models or features, while others affect claude.ai, the Claude API, Claude Code, and Claude Cowork at the same time.

If Anthropic’s status page shows Claude running normally, but you still see errors, the problem is probably local. Work through these steps:

• Refresh the page. Use “Ctrl” + “F5” on Windows or “Cmd” + “Shift” + “R” on macOS.

• Sign out, then sign in again.

• Open Claude in a private window to rule out an extension conflict. You can go incognito with “Ctrl” + “Shift” + “N” on Windows, Linux, or ChromeOS, and with “⌘” + “Shift” + “N” on macOS. If Claude works there, turn off your extensions one by one to find the one blocking it.

• Clear your cache if Claude loads incorrectly or holds on to an old session. Clearing the cache deletes temporary browser files and often fixes display problems.

• Restart the Claude desktop app if you use it.

• Try another browser, device, or network, such as your mobile hotspot.

• Shorten your prompt if requests keep timing out.

If these steps don’t help, check the live reports on this page. User reports often spike before Anthropic updates its official status page, so a sudden jump can mean the problem is on Anthropic’s side after all.