diff --git a/src/sinks/elasticsearch/common.rs b/src/sinks/elasticsearch/common.rs
index 101a3d590a11a..c4da722838543 100644
--- a/src/sinks/elasticsearch/common.rs
+++ b/src/sinks/elasticsearch/common.rs
@@ -145,7 +145,10 @@ impl ElasticsearchCommon {
                     )
                     .await
                     {
-                        Ok(version) => version,
+                        Ok(version) => {
+                            debug!(message = "Auto-detected Elasticsearch API version.", %version);
+                            version
+                        }
                         // This error should be fatal, but for now we only emit it as a warning
                         // to make the transition smoother.
                         Err(error) => {
@@ -156,11 +159,11 @@ impl ElasticsearchCommon {
                             // This is by no means a perfect assumption but it's the best we can
                             // make with the data we have.
                             let assumed_version = if config.suppress_type_name { 6 } else { 8 };
-                            debug!(message = "Assumed ElasticsearchApi based on config setting suppress_type_name.",
+                            debug!(message = "Assumed Elasticsearch API version based on config setting suppress_type_name.",
                                    %assumed_version,
                                    %config.suppress_type_name
                             );
-                            warn!(message = "Failed to determine Elasticsearch version from `/_cluster/state/version`. Please fix the reported error or set an API version explicitly via `api_version`.",
+                            warn!(message = "Failed to determine Elasticsearch API version. Please fix the reported error or set an API version explicitly via `api_version`.",
                                   %assumed_version,
                                   %error
                             );
@@ -277,28 +280,34 @@ async fn get_version(
     proxy_config: &ProxyConfig,
 ) -> crate::Result<usize> {
     #[derive(Deserialize)]
-    struct ClusterState {
-        version: Option<usize>,
+    struct Version {
+        number: Option<String>,
+    }
+    #[derive(Deserialize)]
+    struct ResponsePayload {
+        version: Option<Version>,
     }
 
     let client = HttpClient::new(tls_settings.clone(), proxy_config)?;
-    let response = get(
-        base_url,
-        http_auth,
-        aws_auth,
-        region,
-        request,
-        client,
-        "/_cluster/state/version",
-    )
-    .await
-    .map_err(|error| format!("Failed to get Elasticsearch API version: {}", error))?;
+    let response = get(base_url, http_auth, aws_auth, region, request, client, "/")
+        .await
+        .map_err(|error| format!("Failed to get Elasticsearch API version: {}", error))?;
 
     let (_, body) = response.into_parts();
     let mut body = body::aggregate(body).await?;
     let body = body.copy_to_bytes(body.remaining());
-    let ClusterState { version } = serde_json::from_slice(&body)?;
-    version.ok_or_else(||"Unexpected response from Elasticsearch endpoint `/_cluster/state/version`. Missing `version`. Consider setting `api_version` option.".into())
+    let ResponsePayload { version } = serde_json::from_slice(&body)?;
+    if let Some(version) = version {
+        if let Some(number) = version.number {
+            let v: Vec<&str> = number.split('.').collect();
+            if !v.is_empty() {
+                if let Ok(major_version) = v[0].parse::<usize>() {
+                    return Ok(major_version);
+                }
+            }
+        }
+    }
+    Err("Unexpected response from Elasticsearch endpoint `/`. Consider setting `api_version` option.".into())
 }
 
 async fn get(