408 Request Timeout

What is HTTP 408?

This status code means the server did not receive a complete request from the client within the time it was prepared to wait. The server decided to close the connection rather than continue waiting. This is different from a gateway timeout (504), which occurs between servers. The client may repeat the request without modifications at a later time. This often happens with slow or unstable network connections.

Defined in RFC 9110

Common Causes

• A slow or unstable network connection caused the request to take too long
• The client paused or delayed sending the request body after the headers
• Large file uploads that exceed the server's patience timeout
• Network congestion or packet loss causing transmission delays

How to Fix

• Check your network connection and retry the request when conditions improve
• Reduce the request payload size or use chunked transfer encoding for large uploads
• If this happens frequently, increase the server's request timeout configuration
• Implement retry logic with exponential backoff in your client application