Gemini has an unusually wide surface area — the Gemini app, the API through Google AI Studio, the same models via Vertex AI on Google Cloud, and Gemini features baked into Search, Workspace, and Android. Any one of those can wobble while the others are fine, so "is Gemini down?" almost always needs a "which Gemini?" before you can answer it.
Which "Gemini" are you using? ¶
- gemini.google.com — the consumer chat app.
- Google AI Studio / the Gemini API — the developer surface most integrations call.
- Vertex AI — the same models served through Google Cloud, with its own regional endpoints and status.
- Embedded Gemini — inside Search (AI Overviews), Gmail/Docs, or on-device — which depends on those products' own availability.
Because these ride partly on Google Cloud, a Gemini problem is sometimes actually a Cloud-region problem. That matters for where you look next.
The check ¶
- Probe from four regions. Check gemini.google.com (and your API endpoint if you use one) from US East, US West, Europe, and Asia. All four failing is global; a mixed result points to a regional issue — common when a single Cloud region is degraded.
- Compare on the AI board. The AI provider status board puts Google next to OpenAI and Anthropic. If ChatGPT and Claude are healthy but Gemini isn't, it's a Google-specific event.
- Check the right status page. The Gemini app, the Gemini API, and Vertex AI report on different Google dashboards. If you're on Vertex, the Google Cloud status for your region is the source of truth — not the consumer app's status.
Reading the API errors ¶
| Status | Meaning | Down? |
|---|---|---|
| 500 / 503 | Server error / unavailable | Yes — retry with backoff. |
| 429 RESOURCE_EXHAUSTED | Quota / rate limit | No. You've hit a per-minute or daily quota. Handle it → |
| 403 PERMISSION_DENIED | API not enabled / key scope | No. Enable the API or fix the key. |
| 400 INVALID_ARGUMENT | Bad request | No. Your payload — often a safety block or context length. |
A common Gemini surprise is a response that returns successfully but empty because a safety filter blocked it — that's not an outage at all, it's the model declining. Check the response's finish reason before assuming the service is down.
If it's local, not Google ¶
All regions reach Gemini but you can't? The usual causes are a regional availability restriction (some Gemini surfaces aren't offered in every country), an ad blocker or extension interfering with the app, a signed-out or wrong Google account, stale DNS, or a corporate network blocking it. Try a private window, a different account, and a different network to isolate it.
FAQ ¶
Is Gemini down for everyone or just me?
Probe gemini.google.com from multiple regions. If all fail, it's a global or wide outage. If all succeed but you can't reach it, it's local — your account, network, or a country-level availability restriction. Because Gemini spans the app, the API, and Vertex AI, also confirm you're checking the same surface you're actually using.
Why did Gemini return an empty answer instead of an error?
That's usually a safety filter blocking the output, not an outage — the request succeeded but the model declined to answer. Inspect the response's finish/block reason. A true outage returns a 5xx status or fails to connect, not a successful-but-empty response.
My Vertex AI calls fail but the Gemini app works — where do I look?
Vertex AI runs on Google Cloud with regional endpoints, so its availability can differ from the consumer Gemini app. Check the Google Cloud status for your specific region rather than the app's status page, and confirm the region you're calling is healthy.