Perplexity AI Internal Error: Down, Causes and Fixes (Updated 2026)

The "Internal Error" message is one of the most frustrating and frequently reported issues Perplexity AI users encounter. This generic error typically appears when the system fails to process your query, often showing phrases like:

• "Internal Error"
• "Sorry, something went wrong"
• "Internal Server Error"
• "Please try again later"

As of January 2026, Perplexity AI serves over 22 million monthly active users and handles more than 780 million search queries per month. With such high traffic, occasional internal errors are inevitable.

Is Perplexity AI Down Right Now? (Current Status – January 18, 2026)

✅ All Perplexity services are currently operational. According to the official Perplexity Status Page, both the website and API are showing All Systems Operational. There have been no incidents reported in the past 7 days.

Downdetector also shows no significant spike in user reports in the last 24 hours.

How to Check Perplexity AI Status in Real Time

Always verify using these reliable sources:

1. Official Status Page → https://status.perplexity.ai/
2. Downdetector → https://downdetector.com/status/perplexityai/
3. DownForEveryoneOrJustMe
4. Helicone LLM Status Checker

Common Causes of Perplexity Internal Error

• High server load or peak usage hours (evenings in US/Europe)
• Temporary network or CDN issues (Cloudflare/AWS)
• Browser cache or corrupted cookies
• VPN or proxy interference
• Browser extensions blocking scripts
• Rate limiting (especially on free plan)
• API 500 errors (more common with Pro users using heavy queries)
• Recent app or browser updates

Proven Ways to Fix Internal Error on Perplexity

Here are the most effective fixes, ranked by success rate:

1. Hard Refresh (Ctrl + Shift + R or Cmd + Shift + R)
2. Clear browser cache & cookies
3. Disable VPN/proxy temporarily
4. Switch to Incognito/Private mode
5. Try a different browser (Chrome → Edge or Firefox)
6. Disable browser extensions one by one
7. Wait 5–15 minutes and retry
8. Switch from Wi-Fi to mobile data (or vice versa)
9. Update your browser and Perplexity app
10. Log out and log back in

Most users resolve the error with steps 1–3.

Perplexity AI Downtime History (2025–2026)

Notable outages in the past year:

• December 5, 2025 → AWS service provider outage (resolved same day)
• November 18, 2025 → Cloudflare global outage (affected Perplexity, ChatGPT, X)
• October 20, 2025 → Major AWS-related outage (lasted ~3 hours)

Perplexity’s uptime is generally strong, but it has been affected by major cloud provider incidents in 2025.

How Perplexity Compares to Competitors in Reliability

• ChatGPT (OpenAI): More frequent rate limits on free tier, but fewer "internal error" reports
• Claude (Anthropic): Very stable, but occasional regional outages
• Gemini (Google): Highest uptime overall, but slower response times
• Perplexity: Fastest search + citation, but more sensitive to network/CDN issues

Best Alternatives When Perplexity Is Down

When Perplexity shows internal errors repeatedly, try these reliable alternatives:

→ Explore more AI tools: Merlio AI Tools → Try a fast alternative chat: Merlio Chat

Prevention Tips for Fewer Internal Errors

• Use Perplexity during off-peak hours
• Avoid extremely long or complex queries on free plan
• Keep browser updated
• Use a stable internet connection
• Consider upgrading to Perplexity Pro for higher rate limits and priority support

Written by

Merlio