500 Internal Server Error

What This Error Means

The server encountered an unexpected condition that prevented it from fulfilling the request.

Generic server error when no specific error code is appropriate.

Common Causes

• Application crash
• Uncaught exception
• Database connection error
• Code error
• Server misconfiguration

How to Fix It (For Visitors)

• Refresh the page
• Try again later
• Contact website administrator

How to Fix It (For Developers/Admins)

• Check error logs
• Debug application code
• Verify database connectivity
• Check file permissions
• Review recent code changes
• Check PHP/Python/Node.js errors

Code Examples

Here's how to return a 500 status code in various programming languages:

Python (Flask)

from flask import Flask, jsonify

app = Flask(__name__)

@app.route('/endpoint')
def endpoint():
    return jsonify({"message": "Internal Server Error"}), 500

Node.js (Express)

const express = require('express');
const app = express();

app.get('/endpoint', (req, res) => {
    res.status(500).json({ message: 'Internal Server Error' });
});

PHP

<?php
http_response_code(500);
header('Content-Type: application/json');
echo json_encode(['message' => 'Internal Server Error']);
?>

Go

package main

import (
    "encoding/json"
    "net/http"
)

func handler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
    w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "application/json")
    w.WriteHeader(500)
    json.NewEncoder(w).Encode(map[string]string{
        "message": "Internal Server Error",
    })
}

Java (Spring Boot)

@GetMapping("/endpoint")
public ResponseEntity<Map<String, String>> endpoint() {
    Map<String, String> response = new HashMap<>();
    response.put("message", "Internal Server Error");
    return ResponseEntity.status(500).body(response);
}

Ruby (Sinatra)

get '/endpoint' do
    status 500
    json message: 'Internal Server Error'
end

Browser Compatibility

Browser	Support	Notes
Chrome	✓ Full Support	All versions
Firefox	✓ Full Support	All versions
Safari	✓ Full Support	All versions
Edge	✓ Full Support	All versions

Official Specification

This status code is defined in RFC 7231 Section 6.6.1.

View on IANA HTTP Status Code Registry →