Fix Cloudflare Error 525: SSL Handshake Failed Between Cloudflare And Origin (2025)

Updated: 11/29/2025

Visitors load your website and instead of the home page they see Cloudflare Error 525, SSL Handshake Failed. Regular HTTP traffic might still work, but HTTPS requests through Cloudflare break with this code. Error 525 means Cloudflare cannot complete the TLS handshake with your origin server over HTTPS, usually because of certificate issues, protocol mismatches, or misconfigured SSL settings on the server [web:149][web:152][web:155][web:158][web:161].

Table of Contents

Method 1: Confirm The Problem Between Cloudflare And Origin

Ensure the client machine date and time are correct and that modern TLS is enabled in the browser, since extreme client misconfiguration or outdated clients can also contribute to handshake problems, though most 525 issues still live on the server side [web:152][web:158].

Method 2: Fix Certificates, Protocols, And SNI On The Origin

Use OpenSSL from a terminal to compare connection results with and without Server Name Indication, if the handshake succeeds only with SNI, verify that your origin virtual host and Cloudflare hostname settings line up correctly [web:152][web:158][web:161].

openssl s_client -connect your-origin-domain:443 -servername your-origin-domain
Warning: Avoid switching Cloudflare SSL mode to Flexible unless you clearly understand the security trade off, Flexible encrypts only between users and Cloudflare while leaving traffic from Cloudflare to your origin unencrypted [web:149][web:152][web:155].

Method 3: Tune Cloudflare Settings And Coordinate With Your Host

If you still see 525 errors after these fixes, gather server logs, Cloudflare Ray IDs, and the output of your OpenSSL tests, then share them with your host and Cloudflare support. With these details they can pinpoint whether remaining handshake issues are due to server configuration, certificates, or a rare edge case at the CDN layer [web:149][web:152][web:158][web:161].