Articles/HTTP

HTTP 429 Too Many Requests — What It Means

What HTTP status code 429 Too Many Requests means, when servers return it, and how to handle it correctly.

Published September 25, 2026

HTTP 429 Too Many Requests — The client has sent too many requests in a given period (rate limiting).

Key points

  • The standard status for API rate limiting
  • Should include a Retry-After header telling the client how long to wait before retrying
  • Well-behaved clients should back off exponentially rather than retrying immediately
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