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: Searoutes
providerId: searoutes
created: '2026-07-03'
modified: '2026-07-03'
reconciled: false
tags:
- Maritime
- Sea Routing
- CO2 Emissions
- Vessel Tracking
- Rate Limiting
- Quotas
description: >-
  Searoutes gates usage primarily by monthly call quotas tied to the purchased
  subscription bundle rather than by published per-second/per-minute throttles.
  The free trial key is capped at 100 calls over a 7-day validity window. Paid
  bundles include a minimum monthly call allotment (Ocean Routing from 3,000/mo,
  Vessel Tracking from 5,000/mo, Carbon Emissions from 1,000/mo). Individual
  endpoints may be disabled depending on the service plan attached to an API
  key. Explicit burst/QPS limits and 429 handling details are not published and
  should be confirmed with Searoutes.
notes: >-
  Values are drawn from the Searoutes pricing and authentication pages. No
  public per-second rate limit or Retry-After contract is documented; verify
  throttling behavior and overage handling with Searoutes during reconciliation.
sources:
- https://searoutes.com/pricing/
- https://developer.searoutes.com/reference/intro/authentication
- https://developer.searoutes.com/reference/introduction
responseCodes:
  throttled: 429
  unauthorized: 401
limits:
- name: Trial Calls
  scope: api_key
  metric: requests
  limit: 100 over 7 days
  notes: Free trial key; expires 7 days after issue.
- name: Ocean Routing Monthly Quota
  scope: subscription
  metric: requests
  limit: from 3000 per month
  notes: Included with the Ocean Routing bundle; higher volumes negotiable.
- name: Vessel Tracking Monthly Quota
  scope: subscription
  metric: requests
  limit: from 5000 per month
  notes: Included with the Vessel Tracking bundle.
- name: Carbon Emissions Monthly Quota
  scope: subscription
  metric: requests
  limit: from 1000 per month
  notes: Included with the Carbon Emissions bundle.
- name: Per-Endpoint Plan Gating
  scope: api_key
  metric: endpoints
  limit: plan-dependent
  notes: Some endpoints return errors if not covered by the key's service plan.
policies:
- name: Quota-Based Access
  description: Access is governed by the monthly call allotment of the purchased bundle rather than a published QPS ceiling.
- name: Plan-Scoped Endpoints
  description: An API key only unlocks endpoints included in its subscribed products.
- name: Backoff Strategy
  description: Clients should implement retry with exponential backoff on 429 responses and monitor remaining monthly quota.
maintainers:
- FN: Kin Lane
  email: kin@apievangelist.com