Rate Limits

The Sabdasakha API uses rate limiting to ensure fair usage and maintain service quality for all users.

Current Limits

Tier	Requests/minute	Requests/day	API Key Required
Anonymous	30	1,000	No
Partner	300	100,000	Yes

Rate Limit Headers

Every API response includes headers showing your current rate limit status:

X-RateLimit-Limit: 30
X-RateLimit-Remaining: 28
X-RateLimit-Reset: 1704067200

Header	Description
X-RateLimit-Limit	Maximum requests allowed per minute
X-RateLimit-Remaining	Requests remaining in current window
X-RateLimit-Reset	Unix timestamp when the limit resets

Rate Limit Exceeded

When you exceed the rate limit, you'll receive a 429 Too Many Requests response:

{
  "error": {
    "code": "RATE_LIMIT_EXCEEDED",
    "message": "Rate limit exceeded. Please wait before making more requests.",
    "retry_after": 60
  }
}

Best Practices

1. Implement Exponential Backoff

When you receive a 429 response, wait before retrying:

import time
import requests

def make_request_with_retry(url, max_retries=3):
    for attempt in range(max_retries):
        response = requests.get(url)

        if response.status_code == 429:
            wait_time = 2 ** attempt  # 1, 2, 4 seconds
            time.sleep(wait_time)
            continue

        return response

    raise Exception("Max retries exceeded")

2. Cache Responses

Dictionary definitions don't change frequently. Cache responses locally:

from functools import lru_cache

@lru_cache(maxsize=1000)
def lookup_word(word):
    response = requests.get(f"https://sabdasakha.com/api/v1/dictionary/word/{word}")
    return response.json()

3. Batch Spellcheck Requests

Instead of checking words one at a time, use the batch endpoint:

# Instead of this (4 requests):
for word in ["नेपाल", "भारत", "चीन", "जापान"]:
    check_word(word)

# Do this (1 request):
response = requests.post(
    "https://sabdasakha.com/api/v1/spellcheck/text",
    json={"text": "नेपाल भारत चीन जापान"}
)

4. Debounce Autocomplete

For search-as-you-type, debounce requests to avoid hitting limits:

let timeoutId;

function onSearchInput(query) {
  clearTimeout(timeoutId);

  timeoutId = setTimeout(() => {
    fetch(`https://sabdasakha.com/api/v1/dictionary/suggest?q=${query}`);
  }, 300); // Wait 300ms after user stops typing
}

Partner Access

Need higher rate limits for your application? Contact us on Twitter (@sabdasakha) with:

• Your application name and description
• Expected request volume
• Your use case

Partner access is free for educational and non-commercial projects.