Rate Limits

The Essal API enforces rate limits to ensure fair usage and platform stability. Limits are applied per API key, per app, and per endpoint tier.

Limit Tiers

Tier	Endpoints	Limit
Standard	Most `GET` endpoints	1,000 req / min
Write	`POST`, `PUT`, `PATCH` endpoints	300 req / min
Destructive	`DELETE` endpoints	60 req / min
Bulk	Batch and export operations	10 req / min

Limits are calculated on a rolling 60-second window per API key. Workspace-level burst allowances of 2× the standard limit are available for up to 10 seconds.

Rate Limit Headers

Every response includes headers that communicate your current usage:

X-RateLimit-Limit: 1000
X-RateLimit-Remaining: 847
X-RateLimit-Reset: 1720780860
X-RateLimit-Window: 60

Header	Description
`X-RateLimit-Limit`	Maximum requests allowed in the current window
`X-RateLimit-Remaining`	Requests remaining before you are throttled
`X-RateLimit-Reset`	Unix timestamp when the window resets
`X-RateLimit-Window`	Window duration in seconds

Handling 429 Responses

When a rate limit is exceeded, the API returns HTTP 429 Too Many Requests. The Retry-After header indicates how many seconds to wait before retrying.

{
  "error": {
    "code": "RATE_LIMIT_EXCEEDED",
    "message": "You have exceeded the request limit for this endpoint. Please retry after 14 seconds.",
    "retry_after": 14
  }
}

Implement exponential backoff with jitter in your client:

async function requestWithBackoff(fn, maxRetries = 5) {
  for (let attempt = 0; attempt < maxRetries; attempt++) {
    try {
      return await fn();
    } catch (err) {
      if (err.status !== 429 || attempt === maxRetries - 1) throw err;
      const retryAfter = parseInt(err.headers["retry-after"] ?? "2", 10);
      const jitter = Math.random() * 1000;
      await new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, retryAfter * 1000 + jitter));
    }
  }
}

Use the official Essal SDKs — they handle rate limit retries, exponential backoff, and Retry-After parsing automatically.

Per-App Limits

Each of the six apps may apply additional limits on specific high-throughput endpoints, such as real-time collaboration events in Office or bulk import operations in Sales. Consult the relevant API reference page for per-endpoint details.

Increasing Limits

Enterprise workspaces can request higher rate limit tiers. Contact support.essal.cloud to discuss your usage requirements.

Getting Started

Platform Concepts

App Guides — Office

App Guides — Access

App Guides — Sales

App Guides — Careers

App Guides — Project

App Guides — Guard

Integrations

Security & Compliance

Limit Tiers

Rate Limit Headers

Handling 429 Responses

Per-App Limits

Increasing Limits

​Limit Tiers

​Rate Limit Headers

​Handling 429 Responses

​Per-App Limits

​Increasing Limits

Limit Tiers

Rate Limit Headers

Handling 429 Responses

Per-App Limits

Increasing Limits