How to fix 502 Bad Gateway Error − Windows, Mac, Android, iOS (iOS)

In order for us to enjoy the benefits of our smartphones, or tablets, the operating system needs to execute many instructions in the background, even for a simple swiping up or down. Aside from the processes we are aware of, our smartphones run many processes in the background we aren't aware of. It is possible that a background process running on your mobile device is the reason behind error 502. In this case, the best 502 Bad Gateway fix is restarting the mobile device.

Restart your device by turning it off via the power button, and then turning it back on.

Issues with the Internet Service Provider (ISP), and the website's hosting service occur regularly. It is mostly a minor outage (major outages rarely happen nowadays). Maybe there was a minor interruption from your ISP, or an issue with the website's hosting service that resulted in 502 Bad Gateway error. Such issues are resolved fast, and refreshing the website again, using the refresh button will be enough, to fix this error.

The router is the point through which Internet connection is spread in our homes, wirelessly, or via wire (Ethernet cable). Sometimes, the router can stop sharing the connection. Maybe it simply blocked the connection, or the Internet went down for a couple of minutes and the router didn't reconnect to it. An issue with the router and/or modem, can lead to HTTP error 502, too. Restarting the router, and the modem, if you use one, can help you fix this error and regain Internet access.

Unplug the router, and the modem (if you use one) from the power cord, and then plug them back in after a couple of minutes.

A quick way to fix the possible reasons for this error is to enable and disable the airplane mode. Enabling and disabling the Airplane mode is a soft restart of the device's network components, among which are the Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth, which may have been taken over by a stuck process, or a program/app.

Regardless of the device you are using, the airplane mode is activated and deactivated through an airplane button, easily.

Note: For more detailed instructions how to turn off and back on the airplane mode, check out the how to enable/disable the Airplane mode guide.

In order for you to connect to the Internet and go online, your DNS settings need to be correctly set. Usually they are configured by the ISP provider, but every user has the opportunity to alter them, and set manual DNS settings. It is possible that wrong or badly configured DNS settings are causing the 502 Bad Gateway error message.

To learn how to check out and/or change the DNS settings, check out the how to change the DNS settings guide.

It is possible that a task executed by your operating system interrupted a process performed by your web browser, resulting in this error. Or, maybe a browser extension became unresponsive. If this is the case, to fix this error you can just restart the web browser, by closing it and reopening it after a minute or two.

Note: Depending on the web browser, you may need to shut it down completely. To learn how, feel free to check the how to close (quit) programs/applications guide.

Rather than reinventing the wheel when we need one, we just buy one from the store. Analogously, when opening an app, a program, or a website, rather than reentering the login details, and setting up our preferences all over again, they are just there, waiting for us. The cookies and cached data help us save time and effort. Unfortunately, over time, cookies and cached data can become corrupt, because of website changes, or program/app changes. Corrupt cache and data, on the other hand do more harm than good. Perhaps a bad cookie or cache file is the reason behind the 502 Bad Gateway error message. In order to fix this error message, you need to clear the cache files, the cookies and other unnecessary data.

If you feel unsure how to clear the browser's cache (and cookies), feel free to check the how to clear the browser cache guide, and how to delete browser cookies guide and find the easiest ways to do that. They cover the majority of web browsers available.

Maybe the ISP or the operator (if you use mobile data) itself are the reason behind the 502 Bad Gateway error message. There are cases when people can't access websites just because those websites are blocked by the ISP or the operator itself, for various reasons, or maybe there is a malfunction in the network of the provider.

To be 100% sure, contact the ISP/Operator support team, tell them the URL address of the website you can't visit, and they will instruct you on the next steps you need to take to have this issue resolved, or they will resolve it instead.

If this error appears only when you want to visit a specific website, it's possible that the website itself is causing this error. Maybe they have issues with the server where their website is hosted. As this can only be resolved by someone who has access to the website, i.e. a webmaster, contact the website's owners and let them know of this issue.