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

# Rate limits

> Request limits for the Kit API V4, and how to handle a 429 response

The Kit API limits the number of requests that each credential can send in a 60 second window.

## Limits

| Authentication | Limit |
| - | - |
| OAuth access token | 600 requests in 60 seconds, for each access token |
| API key | 120 requests in 60 seconds, for each API key |

The limit applies to each credential, not to each account or IP address. For more about the two authentication methods, see [API authentication](https://developers.kit.com/api-reference/authentication.md).

The [Kit MCP](https://developers.kit.com/mcp/kit-mcp.md) has a separate limit of 120 requests in 60 seconds for each access token.

## The 429 response

When a credential sends more requests than its limit, the API returns a `429` status code. The response body is the plain text `Retry later`, not JSON. The response does not include a `Retry-After` header.

## Handle a 429 response

1. Stop sending requests with that credential.
2. Wait before you send the next request. A wait of up to 60 seconds resets the limit.
3. If you get another `429` response, increase the wait time. Use [exponential backoff](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exponential_backoff).

## Send fewer requests

* Use the [bulk endpoints](https://developers.kit.com/api-reference/bulk-and-async-processing.md) to create or update many records in one request. The bulk endpoints need OAuth.
* Use [pagination](https://developers.kit.com/api-reference/pagination.md) with the largest page size that you need, instead of many small pages.
* Use [webhooks](https://developers.kit.com/webhooks/overview.md) to get changes from Kit, instead of polling the API.


## Related topics

- [API Authentication](https://developers.kit.com/api-reference/authentication.md)
- [API response codes](https://developers.kit.com/api-reference/response-codes.md)
- [Building apps](https://developers.kit.com/kit-app-store/building-apps.md)
- [List stats for a subscriber](https://developers.kit.com/api-reference/subscribers/list-stats-for-a-subscriber.md)
- [Changelog](https://developers.kit.com/changelog.md)


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