Rate Limits

Rate Limits

Default Limits

Limits are enforced per API key and depend on your plan:

Plan	Compilations/month	Requests/min
Free	50	10
Developer	500	30
Pro	2,000	60
Scale	10,000	120

Check current usage via the SDK:

usage = client.get_usage()
print(f"{usage.compilations_used}/{usage.compilations_limit} this month")
print(f"Overage: {usage.overage}")

When You're Rate Limited

The API returns 429 Too Many Requests. The SDK raises RateLimitError:

from formatex import RateLimitError
import time

try:
    result = client.compile(latex)
except RateLimitError as e:
    print(f"Rate limited — retry after {e.retry_after}s")
    time.sleep(e.retry_after)

Exponential Backoff

For batch processing:

import time, random
from formatex import RateLimitError

def compile_with_retry(client, latex, max_attempts=4):
    for attempt in range(1, max_attempts + 1):
        try:
            return client.compile(latex)
        except RateLimitError as e:
            if attempt == max_attempts:
                raise
            delay = e.retry_after * (2 ** (attempt - 1)) + random.uniform(0, 1)
            print(f"Rate limited — waiting {delay:.1f}s (attempt {attempt})")
            time.sleep(delay)

Monthly Quota

When exhausted the API returns 403 → PlanLimitError. Not temporary — upgrade or wait for the monthly reset (1st of each month, UTC):

from formatex import PlanLimitError

try:
    result = client.compile(latex)
except PlanLimitError:
    print("Quota exhausted — upgrade at https://app.formatex.io/billing")

Batch Processing Tips

• Use async_compile() for large batches — avoids holding connections open
• Check quota before starting: if usage.compilations_used >= usage.compilations_limit: return
• Add time.sleep(1) between requests if you're on a lower plan