MCP URL reader returns a 404 page as a normal result
Error: read_url succeeds on a page that does not exist
What causes it
Jina AI read_url returned the text of a 404 page as a normal success, with no error or status code.
How to fix it
- Check the returned title or text for "not found" before trusting it.
- Exa web_fetch_exa, by contrast, returned a clear CRAWL_NOT_FOUND error in our test.
Where we hit it
- Jina AI MCP test report (tested Oct 16, 2026). Setup: Claude, Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code, ChatGPT
Related fixes
- MCP tool call times out on slow servers
- MCP tool says "Please set your API key" on a no-signup server
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