diff --git a/pkg/api/bytes_test.go b/pkg/api/bytes_test.go
index 576e263983d..e7ed6877308 100644
--- a/pkg/api/bytes_test.go
+++ b/pkg/api/bytes_test.go
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ import (
 	"github.com/ethersphere/bee/v2/pkg/log"
 	mockbatchstore "github.com/ethersphere/bee/v2/pkg/postage/batchstore/mock"
 	mockpost "github.com/ethersphere/bee/v2/pkg/postage/mock"
+	"github.com/ethersphere/bee/v2/pkg/storage/inmemchunkstore"
 	mockstorer "github.com/ethersphere/bee/v2/pkg/storer/mock"
 	"github.com/ethersphere/bee/v2/pkg/swarm"
 	"gitlab.com/nolash/go-mockbytes"
@@ -622,3 +623,16 @@ func TestBytesHeadErrorsMatchGet(t *testing.T) {
 		})
 	}
 }
+
+// TestBytesGetHandlerNoPeers verifies that a retrieval failure caused by having no available peers
+func TestBytesGetHandlerNoPeers(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	client, _, _, _ := newTestServer(t, testServerOptions{
+		Storer: mockstorer.NewWithChunkStore(noPeersChunkStore{inmemchunkstore.New()}),
+		Post:   mockpost.New(mockpost.WithAcceptAll()),
+	})
+
+	ref := swarm.MustParseHexAddress("0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000001")
+	jsonhttptest.Request(t, client, http.MethodGet, "/bytes/"+ref.String(), http.StatusServiceUnavailable)
+}
diff --git a/pkg/api/bzz.go b/pkg/api/bzz.go
index 6ffef43fa0b..0164a438301 100644
--- a/pkg/api/bzz.go
+++ b/pkg/api/bzz.go
@@ -696,6 +696,8 @@ FETCH:
 			}
 
 			jsonhttp.NotFound(w, "path address not found")
+		} else if errors.Is(err, topology.ErrNotFound) {
+			jsonhttp.ServiceUnavailable(w, "content could not be retrieved because no usable peer was available")
 		} else {
 			jsonhttp.NotFound(w, nil)
 		}
@@ -768,12 +770,18 @@ func (s *Service) downloadHandler(logger log.Logger, w http.ResponseWriter, r *h
 		reader, l, err = joiner.New(ctx, s.storer.Download(cache), s.storer.Cache(), reference, rLevel)
 	}
 	if err != nil {
-		if errors.Is(err, storage.ErrNotFound) || errors.Is(err, topology.ErrNotFound) {
+		if errors.Is(err, storage.ErrNotFound) {
 			logger.Debug("api download: not found ", "address", reference, "error", err)
 			logger.Error(nil, err.Error())
 			jsonhttp.NotFound(w, nil)
 			return
 		}
+		if errors.Is(err, topology.ErrNotFound) {
+			logger.Debug("api download: no peers available", "address", reference, "error", err)
+			logger.Error(nil, err.Error())
+			jsonhttp.ServiceUnavailable(w, "content could not be retrieved because no usable peer was available")
+			return
+		}
 		logger.Debug("api download: unexpected error", "address", reference, "error", err)
 		logger.Error(nil, "api download: unexpected error")
 		jsonhttp.InternalServerError(w, "joiner failed")
diff --git a/pkg/api/chunk.go b/pkg/api/chunk.go
index 80583731aac..57e513b8d1c 100644
--- a/pkg/api/chunk.go
+++ b/pkg/api/chunk.go
@@ -22,6 +22,7 @@ import (
 	"github.com/ethersphere/bee/v2/pkg/postage"
 	"github.com/ethersphere/bee/v2/pkg/storage"
 	"github.com/ethersphere/bee/v2/pkg/swarm"
+	"github.com/ethersphere/bee/v2/pkg/topology"
 	"github.com/gorilla/mux"
 )
 
@@ -256,15 +257,18 @@ func (s *Service) chunkGetHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 
 	chunk, err := s.storer.Download(cache).Get(r.Context(), address)
 	if err != nil {
-		if errors.Is(err, storage.ErrNotFound) {
+		switch {
+		case errors.Is(err, storage.ErrNotFound):
 			loggerV1.Debug("chunk not found", "address", address)
 			jsonhttp.NotFound(w, "chunk not found")
-			return
-
+		case errors.Is(err, topology.ErrNotFound):
+			loggerV1.Debug("no peers available to retrieve chunk", "address", address)
+			jsonhttp.ServiceUnavailable(w, "chunk could not be retrieved because no usable peer was available")
+		default:
+			logger.Debug("read chunk failed", "chunk_address", address, "error", err)
+			logger.Error(nil, "read chunk failed")
+			jsonhttp.InternalServerError(w, "read chunk failed")
 		}
-		logger.Debug("read chunk failed", "chunk_address", address, "error", err)
-		logger.Error(nil, "read chunk failed")
-		jsonhttp.InternalServerError(w, "read chunk failed")
 		return
 	}
 	w.Header().Set(ContentTypeHeader, "binary/octet-stream")
diff --git a/pkg/api/chunk_test.go b/pkg/api/chunk_test.go
index b2512aa2ae8..2393e9cfb90 100644
--- a/pkg/api/chunk_test.go
+++ b/pkg/api/chunk_test.go
@@ -20,7 +20,9 @@ import (
 	mockbatchstore "github.com/ethersphere/bee/v2/pkg/postage/batchstore/mock"
 	mockpost "github.com/ethersphere/bee/v2/pkg/postage/mock"
 	"github.com/ethersphere/bee/v2/pkg/spinlock"
+	"github.com/ethersphere/bee/v2/pkg/storage/inmemchunkstore"
 	mockstorer "github.com/ethersphere/bee/v2/pkg/storer/mock"
+	"github.com/ethersphere/bee/v2/pkg/topology"
 
 	"github.com/ethersphere/bee/v2/pkg/api"
 	"github.com/ethersphere/bee/v2/pkg/jsonhttp"
@@ -30,6 +32,17 @@ import (
 	"github.com/ethersphere/bee/v2/pkg/swarm"
 )
 
+// noPeersChunkStore simulates a netstore whose network retrieval failed
+// because no peers were available, as opposed to the chunk genuinely
+// not existing anywhere.
+type noPeersChunkStore struct {
+	*inmemchunkstore.ChunkStore
+}
+
+func (noPeersChunkStore) Get(context.Context, swarm.Address) (swarm.Chunk, error) {
+	return nil, topology.ErrNotFound
+}
+
 // nolint:paralleltest,tparallel
 // TestChunkUploadDownload uploads a chunk to an API that verifies the chunk according
 // to a given validator, then tries to download the uploaded data.
@@ -138,6 +151,21 @@ func TestChunkHasHandler(t *testing.T) {
 	})
 }
 
+// nolint:paralleltest,tparallel
+func TestChunkGetHandlerNoPeers(t *testing.T) {
+	storerMock := mockstorer.NewWithChunkStore(noPeersChunkStore{inmemchunkstore.New()})
+	testServer, _, _, _ := newTestServer(t, testServerOptions{
+		Storer: storerMock,
+	})
+
+	jsonhttptest.Request(t, testServer, http.MethodGet, "/chunks/"+swarm.MustParseHexAddress("aabbcc").String(), http.StatusServiceUnavailable,
+		jsonhttptest.WithExpectedJSONResponse(jsonhttp.StatusResponse{
+			Message: "chunk could not be retrieved because no usable peer was available",
+			Code:    http.StatusServiceUnavailable,
+		}),
+	)
+}
+
 func TestChunkHandlersInvalidInputs(t *testing.T) {
 	t.Parallel()