If you're wondering is Fortnite down, then it's likely that you've tried to access the game to see everything that's new for the latest season update of the battle royale, but have been blocked from getting to the usual lobby area by an endless loading screen showing the dreaded message that the Fortnite servers not responding is the current issue. That means you'll have to wait a bit longer to see how the Fallout 4 crossover will work in the battle royale, and you won't be able to feed your farm animals in Lego Fortnite or rock out on stage in Fortnite Festival either. At the time of writing, Fortnite is expected to be down for scheduled maintenance, so you'll need to wait for the new season update to run its course before you can drop on the island once more.
Whether you're unable to connect, are getting specific Fortnite error codes, or have run into Fortnite scheduled downtime, we've got all of the details you need to know. Generally Epic's magnum opus is pretty stable when it comes to servers, but connection problems can still be an issue when it comes to Fortnite. That's why we've got the latest on the Fortnite servers laid out for you below.
Is Fortnite down?
At the time of writing on May 23 the game services, login, matchmaking, and more are due to go under maintenance, so the Fortnite servers will be down. This is scheduled downtime to roll out the v30.00 update for the launch of Fortnite Season 3 of Chapter 5, and as this is a planned outage for a new season there will be a longer disruption and bigger update to download than usual, but once it's all done you'll be able to log on again and play as normal.
Grab the Nitro, buckle up and prepare for Wrecked.Downtime for Ch5 S3 - WRECKED starts at 2:00 AM ET with matchmaking disabled a few minutes prior. pic.twitter.com/frUDvGY8YjMay 23, 2024
When there are issues, the main place to check for information is the @FortniteStatus Twitter feed, which details any current issues with gameplay or connectivity. It also confirms when scheduled downtime for maintenance is due to happen in advance, as well as when the Fortnite servers will be back up. Scheduled downtime normally takes place at 1am PDT / 4am EDT / 9am BST and lasts for 2-3 hours on average, with timing aimed to minimise disruption.
Obviously, if you're trying to play the game and can't connect, then that's a good indication of the Fortnite servers not responding. Often you'll receive a message from the game's menu screen, confirming that a known issue is taking place, and this may even indicate a rough time when the Fortnite servers are coming back up. You can also visit the Epic Games Public Status site to see what Fortnite services are currently reporting as Operational and which have issues.
Finally, if you're still having issues with the game but there is nothing being reported by Epic, you can visit the Downdetector status page for Fortnite to see if other players are experiencing similar problems. If you see a sudden spike in reports coming in then you'll know you're not alone, and it's likely only a matter of time before official word is posted on the matter.
Most importantly, if you find out that Fortnite is down then don't panic! Server downtime in infrequent and usually lasts a couple of hours at most, so you shouldn't have to spend long asking when are the Fortnite servers coming back up and you'll be back to the battle royale in no time.
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