> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://developers.cuttr.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Rate Limits

> API rate limits and how to handle them

## Default limits

Each API key is rate-limited to **60 requests per minute** using a sliding window.

| Limit               | Value              |
| ------------------- | ------------------ |
| Requests per minute | 60                 |
| Window              | 1 minute (sliding) |
| Scope               | Per API key        |

Rate limits are tracked per key, not per team. If you have multiple keys, each gets its own 60 req/min allowance.

## Rate limit headers

When you hit the rate limit, the API returns:

```json theme={null}
{
  "error": "Rate limit exceeded"
}
```

With the following header:

| Header        | Description                         |
| ------------- | ----------------------------------- |
| `Retry-After` | Seconds until the rate limit resets |

## Handling rate limits

<CodeGroup>
  ```javascript Node.js theme={null}
  async function callWithRetry(url, options, maxRetries = 3) {
    for (let i = 0; i < maxRetries; i++) {
      const response = await fetch(url, options);

      if (response.status === 429) {
        const retryAfter = parseInt(response.headers.get("Retry-After") || "5");
        await new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, retryAfter * 1000));
        continue;
      }

      return response;
    }

    throw new Error("Max retries exceeded");
  }
  ```

  ```python Python theme={null}
  import time
  import requests

  def call_with_retry(url, headers, max_retries=3):
      for _ in range(max_retries):
          response = requests.get(url, headers=headers)

          if response.status_code == 429:
              retry_after = int(response.headers.get("Retry-After", 5))
              time.sleep(retry_after)
              continue

          return response

      raise Exception("Max retries exceeded")
  ```
</CodeGroup>

## Best practices

* **Spread requests evenly** — avoid bursting 60 requests at once and then waiting
* **Use exponential backoff** — when retrying after a 429, increase the wait time with each retry
* **Use separate keys for separate services** — if you have multiple integrations, create a key for each to get independent rate limits