diff --git a/pkg/ingester/ingester.go b/pkg/ingester/ingester.go
index 86a7eaa87f..f7e4d85929 100644
--- a/pkg/ingester/ingester.go
+++ b/pkg/ingester/ingester.go
@@ -493,7 +493,7 @@ func (i *Ingester) ReadinessHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	if i.lifecycler.IsReady() {
 		w.WriteHeader(http.StatusNoContent)
 	} else {
-		w.WriteHeader(http.StatusInternalServerError)
+		w.WriteHeader(http.StatusServiceUnavailable)
 	}
 }