name: MediaWiki Action API Rate Limits
description: Rate limiting rules and usage guidelines for the MediaWiki Action API (api.php). Read operations have no hard rate cap but require responsible usage. Write operations are subject to site-configured limits based on user rights.
url: https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/API:Etiquette
created: "2026-06-13"
modified: "2026-06-13"
rateLimits:
  - name: Read Requests
    description: No hard rate limit is enforced for read requests. Requests should be made serially rather than in parallel to remain within acceptable usage. Clients that send too many requests too quickly may be blocked by administrators.
    quota: unlimited
    period: none
    unit: requests
    notes: Make requests in series rather than in parallel. Implement exponential backoff on errors.

  - name: Write Requests
    description: Write operations are subject to rate limiting. Limits vary based on user rights and individual wiki configuration. Query your limits at action=query&meta=userinfo&uiprop=ratelimits.
    quota: variable
    period: variable
    unit: requests
    notes: Check your specific limits via action=query&meta=userinfo&uiprop=ratelimits. Handle ratelimited error codes with exponential backoff.

  - name: List and Property Query Results
    description: Results for list and property queries cannot exceed 500 items per call for regular users. Some modules may impose stricter limits.
    quota: 500
    period: per-request
    unit: results

  - name: Batch Requests
    description: Multiple pages can be requested in a single call using pipe-separated titles (titles=PageA|PageB|PageC) to reduce total request volume.
    quota: 50
    period: per-request
    unit: titles
    notes: Use the generator pattern and batch parameters to minimize API calls.

throttlingBehavior:
  errorCode: ratelimited
  retryStrategy: exponential-backoff
  userAgentRequired: true
  userAgentFormat: "clientname/version (contact-url; contact-email) library/version"

restrictions:
  - description: A descriptive User-Agent header is mandatory for all Wikimedia API requests. Requests without a proper User-Agent may be blocked.
    required: true
  - description: For bulk data downloads, use Wikimedia database dumps or the Enterprise API rather than the Action API.
    required: false
  - description: GZip compression should be requested via Accept-Encoding header to reduce bandwidth.
    required: false