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Rate Limiting

The Tella API implements rate limiting to ensure fair usage and protect the service for all users.

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Current limits

LimitValue
Requests per minute100
ScopePer user
Rate limits are applied per user within an organization. All API keys created by the same user share the same rate limit.

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Rate limit headers

Every API response includes headers with rate limit information:
HeaderDescriptionExample
X-RateLimit-LimitMaximum requests per window100
X-RateLimit-RemainingRemaining requests in current window95
X-RateLimit-ResetUnix timestamp when the window resets1704067200

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Example response headers

HTTP/1.1 200 OK
X-RateLimit-Limit: 100
X-RateLimit-Remaining: 95
X-RateLimit-Reset: 1704067200
Content-Type: application/json

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Handling rate limits

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429 Too Many Requests

When you exceed the rate limit, you’ll receive a 429 status code: 
{
  "error": "rate_limit_exceeded",
  "description": "Rate limit exceeded. Please retry after 45 seconds."
}

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Best practices

Monitor the X-RateLimit-Remaining header and slow down before hitting the limit.
const response = await fetch('https://api.tella.com/v1/videos', {
  headers: { 'Authorization': `Bearer ${apiKey}` }
});

const remaining = response.headers.get('X-RateLimit-Remaining');
if (parseInt(remaining) < 10) {
  console.log('Approaching rate limit, slowing down...');
}
When you receive a 429, wait before retrying with increasing delays:
async function fetchWithRetry(url, options, maxRetries = 3) {
  for (let i = 0; i < maxRetries; i++) {
    const response = await fetch(url, options);

    if (response.status === 429) {
      const waitTime = Math.pow(2, i) * 1000; // 1s, 2s, 4s
      console.log(`Rate limited. Waiting ${waitTime}ms...`);
      await new Promise(r => setTimeout(r, waitTime));
      continue;
    }

    return response;
  }
  throw new Error('Max retries exceeded');
}
The X-RateLimit-Reset header tells you exactly when your limit resets:
const resetTime = response.headers.get('X-RateLimit-Reset');
const waitMs = (parseInt(resetTime) * 1000) - Date.now();

if (waitMs > 0) {
  console.log(`Waiting ${waitMs}ms until rate limit resets`);
  await new Promise(r => setTimeout(r, waitMs));
}
Instead of making many small requests, use pagination efficiently:
// Instead of fetching videos one by one
// Fetch them in batches using the list endpoint
let cursor = null;
const allVideos = [];

do {
  const url = cursor
    ? `https://api.tella.com/v1/videos?cursor=${cursor}`
    : 'https://api.tella.com/v1/videos';

  const response = await fetch(url, { headers });
  const data = await response.json();

  allVideos.push(...data.data);
  cursor = data.pagination.next_cursor;
} while (cursor);

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Rate limit scope

Rate limits are calculated per user within an organization:
  • All API keys created by the same user share the same 100 requests per minute limit
  • Different users in the same organization have independent limits
  • The limit applies across all endpoints

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Need higher limits?

If your use case requires higher rate limits, please contact us to discuss your needs.