HTTP 414 URI Too Long means the request URL is longer than the server is willing to interpret. This often happens when query strings become excessively long, when a redirect loop appends parameters each cycle, or when a client mistakenly sends form data in the URL.
Status
414 URI Too LongExample
GET /search?q=cats&color=orange&size=large&breed=tabby&age=kitten&location=london&radius=50&sort=newest&page=1&limit=100&tag=fluffy&tag=indoor&tag=vaccinated&tag=neutered&tag=friendly HTTP/1.1
Host: www.example.com
User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0
Accept: text/htmlHTTP/1.1 414 URI Too Long
Content-Type: text/html; charset=utf-8
<!doctype html>
<html>
<body>
<h1>414 URI Too Long</h1>
<p>The URL you requested is too long for this server to process.</p>
</body>
</html>How to Troubleshoot
Use POST instead of GET
Move large data payloads from query parameters to a POST request body.
Shorten query parameters
Reduce the number or length of query parameters. Use IDs instead of full data in URLs.
Check for redirect loops
Verify the URL is not growing from redirect loops appending parameters each cycle.
Common Causes
Excessively long query string
highThe URL contains too many or too-long query parameters, exceeding the server's URL length limit.
POST data sent as GET parameters
mediumForm data that should be in a POST body is being appended to the URL instead.
Related Status Codes
References
| Specification | Section |
|---|---|
| HTTP Semantics | RFC 9110 §15.5.15 |
Frequently Asked Questions
This reference was compiled from official RFCs, protocol specifications, and hands-on troubleshooting experience. AI tools were used primarily for formatting and organizing the content on the page.