specification: API Commons Rate Limits
specificationVersion: '0.1'
schema: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/interface-research/main/schema/api-commons.yml#/$defs/RateLimits
provider: Recharge
providerId: recharge-payments
created: '2026-07-10'
modified: '2026-07-10'
reconciled: false
tags:
- Subscriptions
- Recurring Billing
- E-commerce
- Rate Limiting
- Quotas
description: >-
  The Recharge API is throttled with a leaky-bucket algorithm. Each store token
  has a bucket that holds up to 40 requests and leaks (empties) at 2 requests per
  second. A steady rate of 2 requests/second will never trip a limit; short bursts
  up to the bucket size of 40 are allowed and then refill at 2/second. When the
  bucket overflows, the API responds with HTTP 429; the guidance is to sleep at
  least 2 seconds and retry. Higher Recharge plan tiers (Plus, Custom) may be
  granted higher API rate limits.
notes: >-
  Numbers reflect Recharge's published rate-limit documentation - a 40-request
  bucket leaking 2 per second (roughly 120 sustained requests/minute, up to ~160
  with perfectly timed bursts). Confirm any elevated limits granted on higher
  tiers with Recharge. Async batch endpoints exist for large bulk operations to
  avoid hammering the standard endpoints.
sources:
- https://docs.getrecharge.com/docs/api-rate-limits
- https://developer.rechargepayments.com/2021-11
responseCodes:
  throttled: 429
limits:
- name: Leaky Bucket Capacity
  scope: token
  metric: requests
  limit: 40 requests (bucket size)
  notes: Maximum number of requests that can be in the bucket at any one instant.
- name: Leak Rate
  scope: token
  metric: requests
  limit: 2 requests per second
  notes: The rate at which the bucket empties; a steady 2 req/sec never trips a 429.
- name: Sustained Throughput
  scope: token
  metric: requests
  limit: ~120 requests per minute sustained
  notes: 2 requests/second averaged over time; bursts up to 40 are absorbed by the bucket.
- name: Elevated Tier Limits
  scope: account
  metric: requests
  limit: higher on Plus / Custom
  notes: Higher Recharge plan tiers may be granted higher API rate limits; confirm with Recharge.
policies:
- name: Backoff Strategy
  description: On a 429 response, sleep for at least 2 seconds before retrying; implement exponential backoff with jitter for repeated overflows.
- name: Bucket Refill
  description: Available request budget increases by 2 for every second in which no request is made, up to the bucket size of 40.
- name: Bulk Operations
  description: Use the async batch endpoints for large create/update workloads rather than issuing many individual requests against the standard endpoints.
maintainers:
- FN: Kin Lane
  email: kin@apievangelist.com