The ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT error indicates that the website is taking too long to respond. Your browser will attempt to reconnect for a few seconds; if it fails, the connection will terminate, and the error will reappear, indicating a communication issue.

According to a study, if the website load speed goes up by even two seconds, the bounce rate increases by almost 32%.

Getting an error message in place of the website you want to visit can be a frustrating experience.

In such an instance, the error message that comes is ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT. This is quite a common website error that can happen due to various reasons, making it difficult for website admins to find the cause and solve the same problem.

In this post, we will discuss the ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT error in more detail, including the key causes and various ways to fix it.

Understanding The ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT Error

The ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT website error is a common error that indicates the inability of a browser to connect to a website within a reasonable time. Put simply, this error message shows that a web page or website you’re trying to reach took too much time to respond, making the connection attempt to terminate or stop due to a timeout.

Depending on the browser, you may encounter several variations of the error message ‘this website cannot be reached.’ For instance,

  • For Google Chrome, you may see the ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT error.
  • For Mozilla Firefox users, the  error comes as “the connection has timed out.”
  • In the case of Safari, it shows as “Safari Can’t Open the Web page.”

Causes of The ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT Error

The ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT error on your website can happen for several reasons. Some of these reasons are discussed below.

1. Network Issues

One of the main reasons for this error to occur is issues with your internet connection or local network. It could either be caused by a slow or unstable internet connection, issues with your ISP or a misconfigured router or firewall.

2. Unavailability of Server

Another common reason for this error is the unavailability of the server hosting the website. This could happen due to reasons such as high traffic, server maintenance, or other similar server issues.

3. DNS Issues

The role of the Domain Name System (DNS) is to translate simple domain names (e.g., www.brand.com) into IP addresses that computers can easily understand. In case of DNS issues, the browser may not be able to resolve the website’s IP address, leading to an ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT error.

4. Browser Extensions or Plugins

Certain browser extensions or plugins can interfere with your connection to websites, leading to this timeout error. Disabling or removing these extensions may resolve the issue.

Also Read: How To Manage Site Pages in Website Builder

Ways to Fix the ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT Error

There are multiple ways to fix this error, such as checking the internet connection, clearing browser cache and cookies, flushing DNS, temporarily disabling firewall/antivirus, and restarting your router. Some of the these solutions are discussed in more detail below

1. Check the Internet Connection

One of the reasons behind the err_connection_timed_out error is a slow network connection. This error typically occurs when you are using crowded public networks for internet usage.

To fix this or resolve this error, you can simply try and switch the network that is already in use. You can then:

  • Restart router: All you need to do here is unplug your router and wait for some time before plugging it back in. This will help you restore the connection within no time.
  • Reset router: Many times, the performance of the router can be affected negatively due to heavy website loads or a very long uptime. To fix this, you can just reset your router to help you restore your internet speed and resolve the ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT error.

2. Clear Your Browser Cache

Most web browsers tend to store the cache of the user’s browsing data, saved logins, and other cookies. This allows you to access the pages you visit on a frequent basis much faster.

While there are several benefits to it,  there are some drawbacks too, especially during the instance when the stored cache is outdated, as it can make it difficult to reach a ¹website serving the timed-out error.

Some of the simple steps you can take to fix the issue include-

  • Access the browser settings you are using and click on privacy and security.
  • Once there, you need to delete your browsing data.
  • At this stage, you need to simply click on delete data to be able to clear the browsing history and cookies.
Also Read: What is Cache, and What Does it Do?

3. Enable VPN in Your Browser

Another way to resolve the connection time-out error is by enabling a VPN extension in the browser. Many times, IP is fully blocked by a website, leading to an ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT error as the IP address of your web page is identified across multiple web pages.

In Conclusion

If done correctly and promptly, it is quite simple to resolve ERR_CONNECTION_TIME_OUT. To prevent you from experiencing this problem, we advise users to check whether their internet connection is stable and quick enough.

This should be preceded by disabling the antivirus firewall temporarily because it sometimes identifies a secure website as malicious. Apart from this, it is also necessary to clear the DNS cache, which gets outdated and corrupted and causes the abovementioned time-out error.

If you are looking to run a fast website without interruption or want assistance in renewing your domain name, Crazy Domains can help. We offer a range of domain-related services, including diagnosing and resolving errors like ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT quickly and efficiently.

Contact us today to learn more.