A developer receives a 429 HTTP status code from the Claude API. What does this indicate?
Select an answer to reveal the explanation.
Short Explanation
HTTP 429 means 'Too Many Requests' — you're sending more traffic than your rate limit allows. Back off and retry with exponential backoff.
Full Explanation
HTTP 429 (Too Many Requests) is the standard rate limiting response. The Anthropic API enforces limits on requests per minute (RPM) and tokens per minute (TPM). When exceeded, requests fail with 429. Best practice is to implement exponential backoff retry logic. The invalid or expired API key scenario returns 401 Unauthorized. The model temporarily unavailable for maintenance scenario would typically return 503 Service Unavailable. The malformed JSON request body scenario returns 400 Bad Request. Understanding HTTP status codes is essential for robust API integration.