---
title: "413 Content Too Large — what it means and how to fix it"
description: "The request body is bigger than the server is willing to accept. What causes an HTTP 413, what to try as a visitor, and what to check if it is your own site."
url: https://atoneplace.net/error/413/
site: "At One Place"
---

# HTTP 413 — Content Too Large

**HTTP 413: Content Too Large**

The request body is bigger than the server is willing to accept.

## What 413 actually means

You tried to upload something larger than a limit somewhere in the chain, and the server cut it off. The limit is usually not in the application at all but in a web server or proxy in front of it — Nginx defaults to a 1 MB body, which is the single most common reason a perfectly good upload endpoint rejects a photo. It was called "Payload Too Large" in RFC 7231 and "Request Entity Too Large" before that; the code and the meaning are the same.

## Common causes

- A file upload exceeding the server's configured maximum body size
- Nginx `client_max_body_size` left at its 1 MB default
- PHP `upload_max_filesize` or `post_max_size` too low
- A CDN or load balancer imposing its own body limit before the origin sees the request
- A base64-encoded payload that grew by a third in transit

## If you're just trying to view the page

1. Upload a smaller file — compress an image, or split a large archive
2. Check the site's stated upload limit; many publish one and enforce it here
3. If a video or PDF is marginally over, re-export it at lower quality rather than retrying the same file

## If it's your site

1. Raise `client_max_body_size` in Nginx — it defaults to 1 MB and must be set at `http`, `server` or `location` level
2. For PHP, raise both `upload_max_filesize` and `post_max_size`, and remember `post_max_size` must be the larger of the two
3. Check every hop: CDN, load balancer, reverse proxy and application each have their own limit and the smallest one wins
4. Send `Retry-After` if the limit is temporary, and state the actual maximum in the error body
5. For genuinely large files, use direct-to-storage uploads with presigned URLs rather than proxying through the app

## Reference

- **Status code:** 413
- **Reason phrase:** Content Too Large
- **Category:** 4xx — Client Error
- **Defined in:** RFC 9110 §15.5.14

## Common questions

### What does HTTP 413 mean?

The request body is bigger than the server is willing to accept. You tried to upload something larger than a limit somewhere in the chain, and the server cut it off. The limit is usually not in the application at all but in a web server or proxy in front of it — Nginx defaults to a 1 MB body, which is the single most common reason a perfectly good upload endpoint rejects a photo.

### How do I fix a 413 error?

Upload a smaller file — compress an image, or split a large archive

### Is 413 a client error or a server error?

413 is in the 4xx range, which means client error. The request itself was the problem, so retrying it unchanged will usually return the same code.

## Related pages

- [404 Not Found](https://atoneplace.net/error/404/)
- [403 Forbidden](https://atoneplace.net/error/403/)
- [401 Unauthorized](https://atoneplace.net/error/401/)
- [429 Too Many Requests](https://atoneplace.net/error/429/)
- [400 Bad Request](https://atoneplace.net/error/400/)
- [422 Unprocessable Content](https://atoneplace.net/error/422/)
- [405 Method Not Allowed](https://atoneplace.net/error/405/)
- [409 Conflict](https://atoneplace.net/error/409/)
- [415 Unsupported Media Type](https://atoneplace.net/error/415/)
- [408 Request Timeout](https://atoneplace.net/error/408/)
- [410 Gone](https://atoneplace.net/error/410/)
- [451 Unavailable For Legal Reasons](https://atoneplace.net/error/451/)

## Sources

- Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) Status Code Registry — IANA (https://www.iana.org/assignments/http-status-codes/)
- RFC 9110: HTTP Semantics — IETF (https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc9110.html)