There are two ways that you can go when designing a 404 page for your website.
You could go the sensible route and make it usable and try to help the reader find exactly what they were looking for.
Or, you could design a 404 page that not only defines the character of the website or the designer but also makes it a pleasure and surprise to the user.
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It’s amazing the effect a sprinkle of humor and creativity can have on someone, and it will certainly make your site that little bit more memorable.
Below, we have a collection of sites with original and highly creative 404 pages. You may notice that some do not even meet the most basic usability guidelines, but who cares; they make us smile! Hope you enjoy them.
South Park Studios
Blizzard Entertainment
Future of Web Design London
Popscreen
GDZLLA SMASH PAGE (NOT FOUND)
Carsonified 404
Chris Jennings 404
Twurn
Houston, we have a problem! Abduzeedo
Henrik Hedegaard – WOOPSIE DAISY! Something went wrong!!!
Wufoo Page Not Found
Jamie Huskisson 404
Tele2 404
TattooSales.com – Page Not Found
What the Dickens…?
Suspended Animations
Oops! You bwoke it
YouCastr – Woops!
Acro Media Inc – Dude, we can't find that page!
< scythe.net 404 Error >
Content Not Found : The New Yorker
Frye/Wiles 404 – Whoops
Pattern Tap 404
Limp Fish – file not found
TinSanity 404
LILEKS – uh oh
Page Not Found – d20srd.org
dawdle.com
Blue Daniel 404 File Not Found
CSS Tricks – Nothing found for Thispagedoesntexist
arbitraryconstant – 404 (missing)
Shelfworthy
Laughing Squid – Page not found
VintFalken.com
Springload: Error 404
Error Finding Page
Expansion Broadcast – Page not found
Bits of Magic – PAGE FAULT ERROR #404
Error – GeekSquad
moock.org >> operation failure >> code 404
Open Adventure – 404!
Site Sketch 101
Bi Bakar mısınız? Sayfayı Bulunamadı!
404 – Casino Lemonade
404 › rbardini.com
404: Lost in the aether
ZEITWENDE
webtressdesign.com – OOPS Wrong Turn
The Web Motel – ERROR!
404 Best Practice Resources
404 Best Practices from CSS-Tricks
Tips for Creating an Informative 404 Error Page
Pimp Your 404: Presentation and Functionality from Perishable Press
How To Customise Your 404 Page from Sitepoint
Turning 404 not found random visitors to blog readers from Tech Snacks
404 Page Management Your Grandma Can Use
404s and WordPress Server Load from alexking.org
The Perfect 404 from A List Apart
5 Tips to Make Your 404 Page More Usable from UX Booth
Why You Should Keep an Eye on Your 404 Stats
How to Find and Fix 404 Errors
A Better 404 – Redux from urbanmainframe.com