We couldn't load "${__PATH_PREFIX__}/page-data/sq/d/${static

Error message

We couldn't load "${__PATH_PREFIX__}/page-data/sq/d/${staticQueryHash}.json"

What it means

Thrown by ProdLoader when fetching a static query result JSON file from the server fails. During production page load, Gatsby fetches /page-data/sq/d/<hash>.json for each static query (useStaticQuery / StaticQuery). If the HTTP request fails or returns an error, the .catch handler throws this error with the full URL.

Source

Thrown at packages/gatsby/cache-dir/loader.js:553

        // get list of static queries to get
        const staticQueryBatchPromise = Promise.all(
          dedupedStaticQueryHashes.map(staticQueryHash => {
            // Check for cache in case this static query result has already been loaded
            if (this.staticQueryDb[staticQueryHash]) {
              const jsonPayload = this.staticQueryDb[staticQueryHash]
              return { staticQueryHash, jsonPayload }
            }

            return this.memoizedGet(
              `${__PATH_PREFIX__}/page-data/sq/d/${staticQueryHash}.json`
            )
              .then(req => {
                const jsonPayload = JSON.parse(req.responseText)
                return { staticQueryHash, jsonPayload }
              })
              .catch(() => {
                throw new Error(
                  `We couldn't load "${__PATH_PREFIX__}/page-data/sq/d/${staticQueryHash}.json"`
                )
              })
          })
        ).then(staticQueryResults => {
          const staticQueryResultsMap = {}

          staticQueryResults.forEach(({ staticQueryHash, jsonPayload }) => {
            staticQueryResultsMap[staticQueryHash] = jsonPayload
            this.staticQueryDb[staticQueryHash] = jsonPayload
          })

          return staticQueryResultsMap
        })

        return (
          Promise.all([componentChunkPromises, staticQueryBatchPromise])
            .then(([pageResources, staticQueryResults]) => {

View on GitHub (pinned to 8b06340921)

Solutions

Verify the static query JSON exists at the reported URL by opening it directly in a browser or using curl.
Ensure your deployment includes the entire public/page-data/ directory, including the sq/d/ subdirectory.
If using a CDN, purge the cache after deploying a new build so old hashes don't 404.
Check hosting configuration (e.g. nginx, Netlify, Vercel) serves JSON files with correct content-type and no redirect rules that break the path.

Example fix

# before — deployment missing page-data
# only public/ root uploaded, page-data/sq/d/ omitted

# after — ensure full recursive upload
rsync -av --delete public/ user@host:/var/www/site/
# or in CI: ensure `gatsby build` output (public/) is uploaded in full

Defensive patterns

Strategy: retry

Validate before calling

// Pre-deploy check: verify static query JSONs exist in public/
const fs = require('fs')
const path = require('path')

function checkStaticQueryOutputs(publicDir) {
  const sqDir = path.join(publicDir, 'page-data', 'sq', 'd')
  if (!fs.existsSync(sqDir)) {
    console.warn('No static query output directory found')
    return
  }
  const files = fs.readdirSync(sqDir)
  console.log(`Found ${files.length} static query JSON files`)
}
checkStaticQueryOutputs('public')

Try / catch

// Add a retry wrapper around static query fetches in custom code
// (Gatsby's loader handles this internally, but for custom fetches:)
async function fetchWithRetry(url, retries = 3) {
  for (let i = 0; i < retries; i++) {
    try {
      const res = await fetch(url)
      if (res.ok) return res.json()
    } catch {}
    await new Promise(r => setTimeout(r, 1000 * (i + 1)))
  }
  throw new Error(`Failed to load ${url}`)
}

Prevention

Deploy the entire public/ directory recursively, including page-data/sq/d/.
Purge CDN cache after deploying a new build.
Set long cache headers with content-hash-based filenames to avoid stale-file mismatches.
Monitor 404s on page-data paths in your hosting analytics.

When it happens

Trigger: The browser sends a GET request for the static query JSON and it fails — network error, 404 (file not deployed), 500 (server error), or CORS issue. The .catch in the loader swallows the original error and throws this generic message.

Common situations: Incomplete deployment (static query JSON files not uploaded to the CDN/host), CDN cache miss returning 404, intermittent network failures on mobile/slow connections, deploying a new build while users have an older bundle cached (hash mismatch), or a hosting config that doesn't serve .json files from public/page-data/.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of gatsbyjs/gatsby@8b06340921 (2026-08-13). Data as JSON: /api/errors/14b4893eb8d71202. Report an issue: GitHub.