🔢 HTTP Status Code Reference

A complete reference of standard HTTP status codes, from 1xx (informational) to 5xx (server error), grouped by class. Each entry shows the official reason phrase, a one-line description, and the RFC section it comes from. Search live by code number, phrase, or description.

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1. The five HTTP status code classes

HTTP status codes are grouped into five classes by their first digit: 1xx (informational, the request is still being processed), 2xx (success, the request was received, understood and accepted), 3xx (redirection, further action is needed to complete the request), 4xx (client error, something is wrong with the request itself), and 5xx (server error, the server failed to fulfill an apparently valid request). This design lets clients and proxies make a reasonable fallback decision from the first digit alone even for a status code they don't specifically recognize.

2. Commonly confused code pairs

401 Unauthorized actually means "not authenticated" (despite the name, it's an authentication problem, not authorization), while 403 Forbidden means the server refuses regardless of authentication because the client lacks permission. The distinction between 301/308 (permanent) and 302/307 (temporary) matters for caching and SEO; 307 and 308 specifically preserve the original HTTP method and body on redirect, unlike 302 and 301. 404 Not Found and 410 Gone are also often confused — 410 is a stronger signal meaning the resource existed before but was deliberately and permanently removed, telling clients to stop retrying.

3. RFC 9110 and status code standardization

RFC 9110 (HTTP Semantics), published in 2022, consolidated HTTP status code definitions that were previously scattered across RFC 7231 and related documents. This reference cites RFC 9110 section numbers (§15.x) as the primary source, while codes defined by separate specifications — such as WebDAV (RFC 4918) or the rate-limiting codes in RFC 6585 (429/431) — cite those RFCs instead. Using status codes precisely lets API clients, monitoring tools, and cache servers behave predictably.

Frequently asked questions

Is any standard status code missing from this list?

All status codes registered in the official IANA registry are included. Non-standard codes returned by specific frameworks or CDNs may not appear here.

How does the search work?

Any row whose code number, reason phrase, or description contains your search text (case-insensitive) is shown. For example, searching "404" or "not found" both work.

What is the difference between 422 and 400?

400 means the request itself is malformed (bad syntax), while 422 means the syntax is fine but the instructions within it cannot be processed (e.g. a validation error).

Is this data sent anywhere?

No. This is entirely static reference data, and the search runs purely in your browser's JavaScript — nothing is sent to a server.