How to Fix ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED Error in Chrome – Complete Guide

Getting ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED in Google Chrome means that your browser tried to connect to a website, but the connection was actively refused by the destination server.

Unlike a connection timeout, where the browser keeps waiting for a response, ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED usually means that the server is reachable but nothing is accepting the connection on the requested port, or a firewall/security rule is rejecting the connection.

This error is common when a website's server is down, Nginx or Apache is stopped, ports 80 or 443 are blocked, a VPS firewall is misconfigured, or an application is not running correctly.

In this guide, you'll learn how to fix ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED in Chrome and troubleshoot the issue from your computer, domain, hosting account, VPS, Ubuntu server, firewall, and Nginx configuration.

What Does ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED Mean?

When you open a website, Chrome needs to establish a connection with the web server.

For example:

https://example.com

The browser typically needs to:

1. Resolve the domain name through DNS.

2. Find the server IP address.

3. Connect to the server.

4. Connect to the correct port, usually 80 or 443.

5. Receive a response from the web server.

If the server refuses the connection, Chrome may display:

This site can't be reached

example.com refused to connect.

ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED

This generally indicates a server-side, firewall, port, or local network problem.

Common Causes of ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED

There are several possible causes of this Chrome error:

• Web server is stopped

• Nginx is not running

• Apache is not running

• Application is not running

• Port 80 is closed

• Port 443 is closed

• VPS firewall is blocking traffic

• Hosting firewall is blocking traffic

• Incorrect Nginx configuration

• Incorrect proxy configuration

• Website is pointing to the wrong server

• Server is overloaded

• Cloudflare configuration issue

• Local proxy or VPN problem

• Antivirus or firewall blocking the connection

• Incorrect application port

• Server migration or DNS configuration problem

The first step is to determine whether the problem exists only on your device or affects everyone accessing the website.

How to Fix ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED in Chrome

1. Check Your Internet Connection

First, make sure your internet connection is working properly.

Open another website such as:

https://google.com

If other websites work normally, your internet connection is probably not the main problem.

If multiple websites are showing connection errors, restart your router or try another network.

You can also connect your computer to a mobile hotspot and test the website again.

2. Try the Website in Incognito Mode

Chrome extensions and cached browser data can sometimes interfere with website connections.

Open Chrome Incognito mode.

On Mac:

Command + Shift + N

On Windows/Linux:

Ctrl + Shift + N

Then open the website again.

If the website works in Incognito mode, disable your Chrome extensions one by one to identify the problematic extension.

3. Disable VPN or Proxy

If you are using a VPN or proxy server, temporarily disable it.

A misconfigured VPN or proxy can prevent Chrome from connecting to certain websites.

After disabling it, reload the website.

If the website works normally, the VPN or proxy configuration was likely causing the connection problem.

4. Clear Chrome Cache

Old browser data can sometimes cause unexpected connection issues.

Open:

chrome://settings/clearBrowserData

Clear cached images and files.

Then restart Chrome and try accessing the website again.

5. Flush DNS Cache

DNS cache stores information about previously resolved domains.

If the cached DNS information is outdated, flushing it can help.

Windows

Open Command Prompt:

ipconfig /flushdns

Then try the website again.

macOS

Open Terminal:

sudo dscacheutil -flushcache
sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder

Enter your password if requested.

Then reopen Chrome.

6. Check the Domain DNS

If you manage the website, verify that the domain points to the correct server.

Run:

nslookup example.com

Or:

dig +short example.com

The returned IP address should normally be the IP address of your hosting server or VPS.

For example:

203.0.113.10

If the domain points to an old or incorrect server, visitors may connect to the wrong machine.

Check your DNS provider and verify the A record.

Example:

Type: A
Name: @
Value: YOUR_VPS_IP

7. Check Whether Your Server Is Online

If DNS is correct, check whether your VPS or hosting server is accessible.

You can test the server IP:

ping YOUR_VPS_IP

You can also test HTTP:

curl -I http://YOUR_VPS_IP

And HTTPS:

curl -I https://YOUR_VPS_IP

Keep in mind that some servers may block ICMP ping, so a failed ping does not automatically mean the server is offline.

curl and port testing can provide more useful information.

8. Check Ports 80 and 443

Websites normally use:

80  → HTTP
443 → HTTPS

If these ports are closed or no service is listening on them, Chrome may show:

ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED

On Ubuntu, check listening ports:

sudo ss -tulpn

Look for entries such as:

*:80
*:443

If nothing is listening on port 80 or 443, check your web server.

9. Check UFW Firewall

Ubuntu servers commonly use UFW as a firewall.

Check its status:

sudo ufw status

If UFW is enabled, allow HTTP and HTTPS:

sudo ufw allow 80/tcp
sudo ufw allow 443/tcp

Then verify:

sudo ufw status

You should see rules allowing traffic on ports 80 and 443.

10. Check Your VPS Provider Firewall

Sometimes UFW is correctly configured but the VPS provider has another firewall layer.

Depending on your hosting provider, this may be called:

• Cloud Firewall

• Network Firewall

• Security Group

• Firewall Rules

• Inbound Rules

Make sure incoming TCP traffic is allowed on:

80
443

If the provider-level firewall blocks these ports, your website may remain inaccessible even if UFW is configured correctly.

11. Check Nginx Status

If your website uses Nginx, check whether it is running:

sudo systemctl status nginx

If Nginx is stopped, start it:

sudo systemctl start nginx

Then check:

sudo systemctl status nginx

You can also enable Nginx to start automatically after a server reboot:

sudo systemctl enable nginx

12. Test Nginx Configuration

Before restarting Nginx, test its configuration:

sudo nginx -t

A valid configuration should return:

syntax is ok
test is successful

If you see an error, don't restart Nginx until the configuration problem is fixed.

A syntax error in an Nginx configuration can prevent the service from starting.

13. Restart Nginx

If Nginx is running but the website still refuses connections, restart it:

sudo systemctl restart nginx

Then check:

sudo systemctl status nginx

Test the website again.

14. Check Nginx Error Logs

Nginx logs can help identify server-side problems.

Check the latest errors:

sudo tail -50 /var/log/nginx/error.log

To monitor the log live:

sudo tail -f /var/log/nginx/error.log

You can also check access logs:

sudo tail -50 /var/log/nginx/access.log

If requests are reaching Nginx, they may appear in the access log.

If there are no requests at all, investigate DNS, firewall, ports, and networking.

15. Check Apache if You Are Using Apache

If your server uses Apache instead of Nginx, check:

sudo systemctl status apache2

If it is stopped:

sudo systemctl start apache2

Check the configuration:

sudo apachectl configtest

Then restart:

sudo systemctl restart apache2

Make sure you are not unintentionally running both Nginx and Apache on the same port.

16. Check Whether Your Application Is Running

Many modern websites use Nginx as a reverse proxy in front of an application such as:

• Node.js

• PHP

• Python

• Laravel

• React/SSR applications

• Next.js

• Express

For example, your Nginx configuration may contain:

location / {
    proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:3000;
}

In this case, the application must be running on port 3000.

Check listening ports:

sudo ss -tulpn

If port 3000 is not listening, check your application.

For Node.js applications, you may need to check the process manager:

pm2 status

If the application is stopped, start it according to your deployment setup.

17. Check the Application Port

A common problem occurs when Nginx is configured to send requests to the wrong port.

For example:

proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:3000;

But your application is actually running on:

127.0.0.1:3005

Nginx will not be able to connect to the expected upstream.

Check active listening ports:

sudo ss -lntp

Then compare the application port with your Nginx proxy_pass configuration.

18. Test the Application Directly

If your application runs on port 3000, test it directly from the server:

curl http://127.0.0.1:3000

If it responds, your application is running.

If you get:

Connection refused

the application is probably not listening on that port.

This is a useful way to determine whether the problem is with Nginx or the application itself.

19. Check Nginx Server Block

Check your website configuration:

sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/example.com

A basic configuration may look like:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name example.com www.example.com;

    root /var/www/example.com;
    index index.html index.php;
}

Make sure:

• listen uses the correct port.

• server_name contains your domain.

• The root directory exists.

• The configuration is enabled.

• There are no syntax errors.

After making changes:

sudo nginx -t

Then:

sudo systemctl reload nginx

20. Check Nginx Site Symlink

On Ubuntu, Nginx commonly stores configurations in:

/etc/nginx/sites-available/

and enabled sites in:

/etc/nginx/sites-enabled/

Check enabled sites:

ls -la /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/

If your configuration is missing, create the required symlink:

sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/example.com /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/example.com

Then test:

sudo nginx -t

And reload:

sudo systemctl reload nginx

Only create the symlink if the site configuration is not already enabled.

21. Check Server Resources

A server under heavy load can cause web services to fail or become unavailable.

Check RAM:

free -h

Check CPU usage:

top

Check disk space:

df -h

Check system load:

uptime

If the disk is completely full, services can behave unexpectedly.

If RAM or CPU usage is extremely high, identify the process consuming resources before restarting services repeatedly.

22. Check if Port 80 Is Open

From another machine, you can test port 80.

For example:

nc -vz example.com 80

For HTTPS:

nc -vz example.com 443

A successful connection indicates that the port is reachable.

If the connection is refused, investigate the web server and firewall.

23. Test the Website With curl

Run:

curl -I http://example.com

For HTTPS:

curl -I https://example.com

For detailed information:

curl -v https://example.com

The verbose output can help determine where the connection fails.

24. Check Cloudflare

If your website is using Cloudflare, verify:

• DNS records

• Proxy status

• SSL/TLS settings

• Firewall rules

• Origin server availability

Make sure the Cloudflare DNS record points to the correct VPS IP.

If the website works when accessing the origin server directly but does not work through Cloudflare, investigate the Cloudflare configuration and origin server firewall.

25. Test From Another Network

Try opening the website using:

• Mobile data

• Another Wi-Fi network

• Another computer

• A different ISP

If the website works from another network, the problem may be local to your ISP, router, DNS, VPN, or firewall.

If the website fails from every network, investigate the server, DNS, ports, and hosting configuration.

ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED vs ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT

These two Chrome errors are often confused.

ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED

The connection was actively refused.

Common causes:

• Service is not running

• Port is closed

• Firewall is rejecting traffic

• Application is not listening

• Nginx/Apache is stopped

ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT

The browser waited for a response but did not receive one within the expected time.

Common causes:

• Network problem

• Firewall silently dropping traffic

• Server unreachable

• Routing issue

• Server overload

Understanding this difference can make troubleshooting much faster.

Quick Ubuntu VPS Troubleshooting Checklist

If your website is hosted on an Ubuntu VPS, run these commands:

1. Check Nginx

sudo systemctl status nginx

2. Test Nginx configuration

sudo nginx -t

3. Check listening ports

sudo ss -tulpn

4. Check firewall

sudo ufw status

5. Allow HTTP

sudo ufw allow 80/tcp

6. Allow HTTPS

sudo ufw allow 443/tcp

7. Check DNS

dig +short example.com

8. Test website

curl -I https://example.com

9. Check Nginx errors

sudo tail -50 /var/log/nginx/error.log

10. Check resources

free -h
df -h
uptime

These commands can quickly help identify common causes of ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED on a VPS.

Quick Fix Checklist

Before making major server changes, go through this checklist:

☐ Check your internet connection
☐ Disable VPN or proxy
☐ Try Chrome Incognito
☐ Clear Chrome cache
☐ Flush DNS cache
☐ Check domain DNS
☐ Verify the server IP
☐ Check whether the VPS is online
☐ Check port 80
☐ Check port 443
☐ Check UFW firewall
☐ Check VPS provider firewall
☐ Check Nginx status
☐ Check Apache status if applicable
☐ Run nginx -t
☐ Check Nginx error logs
☐ Check application status
☐ Check application port
☐ Check VPS CPU and RAM
☐ Check disk space
☐ Test with curl
☐ Test from another network

How to Prevent ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED

Website owners and VPS administrators can reduce connection problems by following a few best practices:

• Keep Nginx or Apache running properly.

• Monitor server uptime.

• Keep ports 80 and 443 correctly configured.

• Review firewall rules regularly.

• Monitor CPU, RAM, and disk usage.

• Keep DNS records accurate.

• Monitor application processes.

• Keep VPS software updated.

• Check Nginx error logs regularly.

• Use proper reverse proxy configuration.

• Configure Cloudflare correctly when using it.

• Keep sufficient server resources for website traffic.

For business websites, reliable hosting and proper server monitoring can help prevent unexpected downtime.

Conclusion

The ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED error in Chrome usually means that your browser was able to reach the destination but the connection was refused by the server, firewall, or network.

If you are a normal Chrome user, start by checking your internet connection, disabling VPN or proxy, clearing browser data, and flushing DNS.

If you manage a website or VPS, focus on the server-side checks. Verify that Nginx or Apache is running, ports 80 and 443 are open, firewall rules are correct, DNS points to the right IP, and your application is listening on the expected port.

For Ubuntu VPS users, commands such as systemctl, nginx -t, ss, ufw, dig, and curl can help identify the exact point where the connection is being refused.

Once you determine whether the problem is caused by DNS, firewall, ports, Nginx, Apache, the application, or VPS resources, you can fix the underlying issue instead of repeatedly refreshing the browser.