Lokalise Rate Limits

Lokalise Rate Limits

Overview

Lokalise enforces a strict 6 requests per second rate limit across all API endpoints (https://api.lokalise.com/api2). Exceeding this triggers a 429 Too Many Requests response. This skill covers request queuing with 170ms minimum spacing, exponential backoff for 429 recovery, bulk operation throttling, and proactive quota monitoring via response headers.

Prerequisites

• @lokalise/node-api SDK installed (npm install @lokalise/node-api)
• API token configured (read or read/write scope depending on operations)
• Node.js 18+ for native AbortController support in timeout handling

Instructions

1. Understand the Rate Limit Headers

Every Lokalise API response includes rate limit headers:

X-RateLimit-Limit: 6          # Max requests per second
X-RateLimit-Remaining: 4      # Requests remaining in current window
X-RateLimit-Reset: 1700000000 # Unix timestamp when the window resets
Retry-After: 1                # Seconds to wait (only on 429 responses)

Always read these headers. Never hardcode assumptions about the window — Lokalise may adjust limits per plan tier.

2. Implement a Request Queue with 170ms Spacing

Space requests at minimum 170ms apart (1000ms / 6 = ~167ms, rounded up). Use p-queue for concurrency control:

import PQueue from "p-queue";

const lokaliseQueue = new PQueue({
  concurrency: 1,
  interval: 170,
  intervalCap: 1,
});