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Rate Limiting

Understanding and working with API rate limits.

Overview​

Rate limits prevent abuse and ensure fair resource allocation. Limits vary by user role and are enforced per minute.

Limits by Role​

  • Standard users: 100 requests per minute
  • Premium users: 500 requests per minute
  • Admin users: 1000 requests per minute

Rate Limit Headers​

All responses include rate limit information:

X-RateLimit-Limit: 100
X-RateLimit-Remaining: 95
X-RateLimit-Reset: 1704110400
  • X-RateLimit-Limit: Maximum requests allowed
  • X-RateLimit-Remaining: Remaining requests in current window
  • X-RateLimit-Reset: Unix timestamp when limit resets

Handling Rate Limits​

Check Headers​

const response = await fetch(url, options);
const remaining = parseInt(response.headers.get('X-RateLimit-Remaining'));
const resetTime = parseInt(response.headers.get('X-RateLimit-Reset'));

if (remaining < 10) {
  // Approaching limit, slow down
  const waitTime = (resetTime * 1000) - Date.now();
  await new Promise(resolve => setTimeout(resolve, waitTime));
}

Handle 429 Responses​

When rate limit is exceeded:

{
  "error": {
    "code": "RATE_LIMIT_EXCEEDED",
    "message": "Rate limit exceeded. Please try again later.",
    "details": {
      "limit": 100,
      "reset_at": "2024-01-15T10:30:00Z"
    }
  }
}

Exponential Backoff​

async function fetchWithRetry(url, options, maxRetries = 3) {
  for (let i = 0; i < maxRetries; i++) {
    const response = await fetch(url, options);
    
    if (response.status === 429) {
      const retryAfter = response.headers.get('Retry-After') || Math.pow(2, i);
      await new Promise(resolve => setTimeout(resolve, retryAfter * 1000));
      continue;
    }
    
    return response;
  }
  throw new Error('Max retries exceeded');
}

Best Practices​

  1. Monitor headers: Always check X-RateLimit-Remaining
  2. Implement backoff: Use exponential backoff on 429 responses
  3. Cache responses: Cache static data to reduce API calls
  4. Batch requests: Combine operations when possible
  5. Use WebSockets: For real-time updates, prefer WebSocket over polling

See Also​