Guide
404 on Vercel right after deployment
Updated
A deployment on Vercel can show Ready and still return 404, because Ready only confirms the build succeeded. If your .vercel.app URL works and only your custom domain 404s, the problem is DNS or domain configuration. If both URLs 404, the problem is in the build output or the routing manifest. This applies to apps deployed on Vercel.
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Why it happens
Vercel routes from metadata generated at build time, not from a live filesystem, so a request can 404 before any file lookup runs. A Ready status confirms the build succeeded and the deployment exists, but it does not confirm that routing works. Local Next.js development (next dev and next start) routes from the filesystem, so it never exercises that metadata.
Possible causes
- Framework Preset is set to "Other", so Vercel can skip framework-specific routing manifest generation and every request returns 404.
- The Output Directory setting does not match where the build tool drops files, so Vercel serves an empty folder.
- A single-page app built with Vite, Create React App or similar has no catch-all rewrite, so client routes 404 on refresh or direct navigation.
- The vercel.json file is not at the repository root, is not committed to Git, or is in .gitignore, so the rewrites never apply.
- A Next.js project has routing in both vercel.json and next.config.js, and the rules conflict with the framework's own routing manifest.
- A dynamic route is not configured for dynamic rendering, or generateStaticParams returns an empty array and dynamicParams is not set to true.
- The custom domain's DNS records do not match what Vercel shows in Project Settings, or outdated records from a previous host conflict with them.
- An external CDN or proxy in front of Vercel serves stale content or 404s.
Official fix steps
- Run the two-URL test: check whether the .vercel.app URL serves your content, and if it does while the custom domain 404s, look at DNS. (vercel.com)
- Check the Output tab on the deployment's details page for the expected files, to separate a build problem from a routing problem. (vercel.com)
- Check Runtime Logs filtered for 404s, and look for missing function invocations on dynamic routes. (vercel.com)
- Open Project Settings, then Build and Deployment, go to Framework Settings, select the correct framework, and redeploy. (vercel.com)
- Confirm in Project Settings that the Output Directory matches the actual build output. (vercel.com)
- For a single-page app, add a catch-all rewrite in vercel.json at the repository root and commit it to Git. (vercel.com)
- For Next.js, configure rewrites in next.config.js and remove them from vercel.json so the two do not conflict. (vercel.com)
- For Next.js dynamic routes that 404, make sure the route is configured for dynamic rendering, or that generateStaticParams is paired with dynamicParams set to true. Forcing dynamic rendering means a function runs on every request, so use it only where the route needs per-request data. (vercel.com)
- For a custom domain that 404s, make sure the A record (apex domain) or CNAME record (subdomain) matches exactly what Vercel shows under Domains in Project Settings, and remove outdated records from a previous host. (vercel.com)
- If an external CDN or proxy sits in front of Vercel, disable caching there and point it at the current production deployment. (vercel.com)
You can't see it yourself
You're signed in, your customers aren't. Local Next.js development routes from the filesystem rather than from the routing metadata the CDN uses. The routing manifest is generated during the build, so local success tells you nothing about whether that manifest exists.
What to do next
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Related: Works in the preview but not after publishing · "Page not found" on refresh or a shared link · Blank page after publish: causes and how to fix it
Sources
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Last checked: 6 November 2026, against the sources listed above.
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