specificationVersion: '0.1'
generated: '2026-08-13'
method: searched
source: >-
  https://docs.dataforseo.com/v3/appendix/errors/,
  https://docs.dataforseo.com/v3/appendix/sandbox/
id: dataforseo-rate-limits
name: DataForSEO Rate Limits
description: >-
  DataForSEO enforces per-account rate limits on API call frequency. Rate limit
  information is returned in HTTP response headers for each request. The maximum
  throughput across the platform is 2,000 API calls per minute per account.
url: https://docs.dataforseo.com

globalLimits:

  - id: max-calls-per-minute
    name: Maximum API Calls Per Minute
    limit: 2000
    unit: requests per minute
    scope: account
    notes: >-
      Applies globally across all DataForSEO API endpoints. Exceeding this
      limit will result in throttled or rejected requests.

responseHeaders:
  observed: []
  observedNote: >-
    CORRECTED 2026-08-13. An earlier round of this file asserted X-RateLimit-Limit
    and X-RateLimit-Remaining response headers. A live probe of
    api.dataforseo.com (POST /v3/appendix/user_data, unauthenticated, 2026-08-13)
    returned NO RateLimit-* or X-RateLimit-* headers of any kind — the response
    carried only Server, Date, Content-Type, Content-Length, Connection, the CORS
    Access-Control-* set and WWW-Authenticate. DataForSEO's documentation does not
    describe rate-limit headers either. Recorded as absent rather than asserted.

exhaustionSignal:
  transport: response body, not headers
  httpStatus: 200
  statusCode: 40202
  statusMessage: the rate-limit per minute has been exceeded.
  detail: >-
    Throttling is signalled by the numeric status_code inside an HTTP 200
    envelope. An agent watching HTTP status or RateLimit-* headers will never see
    it. There is no Retry-After header and no 429.
  relatedCodes:
    - {code: 40209, meaning: 'too many simultaneous queries (max 30 concurrent per user)'}
    - {code: 40203, meaning: 'cost limit exceeded (dashboard-configured spend cap)'}
    - {code: 40205, meaning: duplicate task limit per hour exceeded}
    - {code: 40206, meaning: duplicate task limit per day exceeded}
    - {code: 40210, meaning: 'insufficient funds (also HTTP 402)'}

queueBehavior:

  - queue: standard-queue
    processingModel: asynchronous-batch
    description: >-
      Tasks are submitted and polled for results. Rate limits apply to task
      submission, not to result retrieval. Average processing time is 5 minutes.

  - queue: priority-queue
    processingModel: asynchronous-priority
    description: >-
      Higher-priority batch queue with approximately 1-minute turnaround.
      Same submission rate limits apply.

  - queue: live-mode
    processingModel: synchronous
    description: >-
      Synchronous requests returning results within 6 seconds. Stricter
      per-second concurrency constraints may apply; consult support for
      high-throughput live scenarios.

dataRetention:
  - resultType: Standard and Priority Queue results
    retentionPeriod: 30 days
    notes: Stored results can be retrieved multiple times within the retention window.
  - resultType: Live Mode results
    retentionPeriod: not stored
    notes: Results are returned inline; no server-side storage.
  - resultType: HTML results
    retentionPeriod: 7 days

apiExplorer:
  rateLimited: true
  notes: >-
    The API Playground (API Explorer) has its own request rate limits and
    requires account creation for unlimited access.

notes:
  - Rate limits may vary by endpoint; consult individual endpoint documentation for specifics.
  - Contact DataForSEO support to discuss elevated rate limit tiers for high-volume enterprise use cases.
  - Rate limit information is subject to change; always refer to https://docs.dataforseo.com for current values.