Safari on macOS is pretty stable. So it might come as a surprise when Safari can't open a page. Such a struggle could tempt you to download or use Firefox, Chrome, or Edge to open the page instead, but you don't have to go down that road just yet.

We'll show you how to get Safari to open web pages normally with some simple troubleshooting tips.

1. Quit and Relaunch Safari

At times, an unknown glitch might prevent Safari from opening sites. You should quit and restart Safari if it fails to open the page to fix these glitches.

If you have any important work open in any of the tabs, save it first. Then press Cmd + Q to quit Safari.

Relaunch Safari as normal to see if it can open the page you wanted to visit now.

2. Check Your Internet Connection If Safari Can't Open a Page

Change Wi-Fi Band on Mac

If Safari can't open a page, then it might not be the browser's problem. Your internet connection might be slow or intermittent. You can check that by testing your internet connection speed to see if it's slowing everything down.

Related: How to Access Websites That Won't Load

Since Mac supports dual-band routers, you can switch your internet connection to a 5GHz band (if your router offers it). This can help if too many devices are using the same band (usually the 2.4GHz), slowing down browsing performance.

You can also bring your Mac closer to the router and change the Wi-Fi router's channel for better speeds and reliable connectivity.

3. Safari Can't Open a Page If It Doesn't Exist

Safari can't open page that doesn't exist

By default, the latest Safari version doesn't show the full URL in the address bar, giving a minimalist look instead. If you're trying to open pages of old websites or outdated URLs from your bookmarks, it's a good idea to verify the URL to make sure you got it right.

Click on Safari's address bar to reveal the entire URL. You can then inspect whether it's the one you want to open or a misspelled mistake.

If the URL is incorrect, or the page no longer exists, you'll get the 404 error, which means Safari can't open the page no matter how much you try.

4. Check the DNS Settings for Your Mac

Change DNS Servers on Mac

Most people use the default DNS of their Internet Service Provider (ISP). In such cases, an ISP's DNS servers might be choking up. So Safari can struggle to open a web page if it can't use a fast DNS.

Changing to different DNS addresses is often suggested as an easy way to improve your internet speeds. You can use Google's DNS servers to speed up things for your Mac.

Here's how to change DNS addresses on your Mac:

  1. Open System Preferences and select Network.
  2. Click on the Advanced button and go to the DNS tab.
  3. Click the Plus (+) button to add Google's Public DNS addresses: 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4.
  4. Click OK on that window and then select Apply to confirm the changes.

Next, open the Terminal and run the following command to clear the DNS cache:

        sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder
    

After that, you should try disconnecting and reconnecting to the Wi-Fi network to see whether Safari can open a page or not now.

5. Purge Safari's Cache and Temporary Files

Empty Safari Cache Data

Safari retains a cache from all the websites you visit, just like other browsers do. But if that website data is outdated on your Mac, Safari might say it cannot open a page. It's a good idea to dump Safari's cache every now and then to avoid this problem and make space for new data.

Here's how to purge Safari's Cache:

  1. Launch Safari, and click Safari > Preferences in the menu bar at the top of the screen.
  2. Head to the Advanced tab and select the checkbox for Show Develop menu in menu bar at the bottom.
  3. Close the Preferences window and click Develop > Empty caches to purge all the old Safari cache.

Once you make the Develop menu appear, you can hit Option + Cmd + E to delete the Safari cache at any time. You can also employ Safari browser tweaks to further boost its speed and performance.

6. Check Safari's Website Restrictions in Screen Time

Web Restrictions in Screen Time on Mac

If your Mac runs macOS Catalina or Big Sur, it's worth checking whether you have Screen Time enabled and applying Website Restrictions.

Go to System Preferences > Screen Time and select the Content & Privacy option from the sidebar. That'll reveal whether you've set any rules for blocking certain kinds of websites.

Click on the Turn Off button at the top, next to where it says Content & Privacy Restrictions to disable the website restrictions, if any.

7. Inspect and Edit the Hosts File on Your Mac

Edit Hosts file on Mac

Some extensions or apps tend to edit the hosts file to connect your Mac to the webservers of an app or service directly. And the entries for that contain a domain or sub-domain.

Whether you're using your Mac for local server development or simply blocking the redirects, the hosts file might have some unknown IP address entries.

Cleaning up the unwanted entries from the hosts file can also help Safari and other apps.

To inspect and edit the hosts file, launch Terminal app and type this command:

        sudo nano /etc/hosts
    

Once the hosts file opens in Terminal, scroll down using the arrow keys and remove the unwanted entries. Then hit Ctrl + O to add those changes to the hosts file and Ctrl + E to exit the nano editor.

Updating the hosts file might make a few apps and sites run slow momentarily.

8. Install Outstanding Updates for Safari

Running the latest version of Safari on your Mac is a good way to eliminate all the niggles that hinder it from opening pages. An updated browser can often fix many problems, especially when Safari couldn't open a page that demands a specific browser version to work.

Head to App Store > Updates to check for any outstanding updates for Safari and install if there is one. Then go to System Preferences > Software Update to check for macOS updates as well.

You can also reset Safari to default settings to purge all old website data as well as cookies.

The Best Ways for Safari to Open Web Pages

While there's no single reason to point at, these solutions can remove any underlying issue that Safari faces when opening a page or a site. These improvements will make Safari faster after a few seconds once it gathers new cookies and site data.

Whenever Safari hits a roadblock while loading a site, you can use the solutions mentioned above to troubleshoot it. To improve your Safari browsing experience, there are lots of Safari tips and tricks you can use to tweak it to its maximum potential.