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

# Rate Limits

> Rate limiting behavior, response headers, and retry strategies for the Mandate API.

## How rate limiting works

The Mandate API enforces per-agent rate limits to protect service stability. Limits are tracked per runtime key. When you exceed the limit, the API returns a `429 Too Many Requests` response with a `Retry-After` header.

## Default limits

| Endpoint Category                         | Rate Limit   | Window     |
| ----------------------------------------- | ------------ | ---------- |
| Validation (`/validate`, `/validate/raw`) | 60 requests  | per minute |
| Status polling (`/intents/{id}/status`)   | 120 requests | per minute |
| Event posting (`/intents/{id}/events`)    | 30 requests  | per minute |
| Registration (`/agents/register`)         | 10 requests  | per minute |
| Dashboard API                             | 120 requests | per minute |

These limits apply per runtime key. Different agents with different keys have independent rate limits.

## Response headers

Every API response includes rate limit headers:

| Header                  | Description                                             |
| ----------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------- |
| `X-RateLimit-Limit`     | Maximum requests allowed in the current window          |
| `X-RateLimit-Remaining` | Requests remaining in the current window                |
| `Retry-After`           | Seconds to wait before retrying (only on 429 responses) |

## 429 response format

```json theme={null}
{
  "error": "Too many requests. Retry after 12 seconds."
}
```

The `Retry-After` header contains the number of seconds to wait.

## Retry strategy

Use exponential backoff when you receive a 429 response:

```typescript theme={null}
async function validateWithRetry(client, payload, maxRetries = 3) {
  for (let attempt = 0; attempt < maxRetries; attempt++) {
    try {
      return await client.validate(payload);
    } catch (err) {
      if (err.statusCode === 429 && attempt < maxRetries - 1) {
        const delay = Math.pow(2, attempt) * 1000; // 1s, 2s, 4s
        await new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, delay));
        continue;
      }
      throw err;
    }
  }
}
```

<Warning>
  Do not poll `/intents/{id}/status` in a tight loop. The SDK's `waitForApproval()` and `waitForConfirmation()` methods use appropriate intervals (5s and 3s respectively) to stay within rate limits.
</Warning>

<Tip>
  If your agent needs higher limits for production workloads, contact the Mandate team. Custom rate limits are available for high-volume deployments.
</Tip>

## Next Steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Error Codes" icon="circle-exclamation" href="/reference/error-codes">
    Full HTTP status code reference and error response format.
  </Card>

  <Card title="API Overview" icon="book" href="/api-reference/overview">
    Base URL, authentication, and endpoint summary.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>