---
title: "Why does is-down say a site is up when I cannot reach it?…"
description: "When the is-down tool shows a site as up but your browser cannot load it, the problem is almost always local: DNS cache, ISP route, or firewall."
canonical: "https://lemwatch.com/help/is-down-vs-personal-check"
source: "https://lemwatch.com"
---

# Why does is-down say a site is up when I cannot reach it?

> When the is-down tool shows a site as up but your browser cannot load it, the problem is almost always local: DNS cache, ISP route, or firewall.

## Quick answer

 Our probe runs from an external cloud region. If it says the site is up but your browser fails, the outage is between you and the site — usually local DNS, ISP routing, or a corporate firewall.

## Fast checks to run

- Try the same URL on mobile data (bypasses your Wi-Fi + DNS)

- Flush DNS: ipconfig /flushdns (Windows) or sudo dscacheutil -flushcache (macOS)

- Try a different DNS resolver (1.1.1.1 or 8.8.8.8)

- Traceroute the domain and look for hops timing out

- Disable VPN or corporate proxy briefly

## Where to find it in Lemwatch

 **/is-down/<domain>** — compare our result to your browser.

## FAQ

### Can Lemwatch probe from my region?

 Multi-region probes are on the paid plans — see uptime settings.

## Related

- Is-down tool overview

- Site shows down but is working


## Related

- [Help centre](https://lemwatch.com/help)
- [What is the "Is [site] down?" tool?](https://lemwatch.com/help/is-down-tool-overview)
- [My Site Shows as Down But It's Working](https://lemwatch.com/help/site-shows-down-but-working)
- [Can I embed the is-down badge on my site?](https://lemwatch.com/help/is-down-embed-widget)
- [What integrations does Lemwatch support?](https://lemwatch.com/help/integrations-overview)
- [Lemwatch pricing](https://lemwatch.com/pricing)
- [JSON Export](https://lemwatch.com/help/json-export)