Clerk Rate Exceeded | Clerk Status Down How to Resolve

The “Clerk rate exceeded” error refers to hitting the API rate limits imposed by Clerk on both frontend and backend API requests to prevent abuse and ensure service stability.

When the limit is exceeded, a 429 HTTP status code (“Too Many Requests”) is returned, and further requests to that endpoint are blocked temporarily.

Clerk API Rate Limits Overview:

• Frontend API requests are rate-limited per user IP address:

  • SignIn and SignUp creation endpoints: 5 requests per 10 seconds

  • SignIn and SignUp attempt verification endpoints: 3 requests per 10 seconds

• Backend API requests are rate-limited per application instance (identified by Secret Key):

  • Production environment: 1000 requests per 10 seconds

  • Development environment: 100 requests per 10 seconds

• Some endpoints like getting JWKS have no rate limits.

What Happens When Rate Limits Are Exceeded:

• A 429 error is returned.

• The response includes a Retry-After header indicating how many seconds to wait before retrying.

• Subsequent requests to the same endpoint are blocked until the limit resets.

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Common Causes:

• High volume of requests in a short span.

• Loops or inefficient code triggering excessive API calls.

• Unexpected spikes in user activity or sharing API keys across many clients.

How to Resolve or Avoid:

• Implement rate limiting at the application level.

• Cache repeated data to reduce unnecessary calls.

• Monitor API usage and respect the Retry-After header in responses.

• Optimize code to batch or spread out API calls.

• Upgrade plan or request higher limits if needed.

This rate limit structure helps secure the platform and maintain reliability for all users while enforcing fair usage policies.