Error Handling Guide
Comprehensive guide to handling errors and implementing robust error recovery in your integration.
Overview
Proper error handling is crucial for building reliable applications. This guide covers all types of errors you might encounter with our API, how to handle them gracefully, and implement retry logic for temporary failures.
Error Response Format
All API errors follow a consistent response format
Loading syntax highlighting...The requestId can be used when contacting support for specific issues.
HTTP Status Codes
Common status codes and their meanings
| Status Code | Meaning | Action |
|---|---|---|
| 200 | Success | Process response data |
| 400 | Bad Request | Fix request data, don't retry |
| 401 | Unauthorized | Check API key, don't retry |
| 403 | Forbidden | Check permissions, don't retry |
| 404 | Not Found | Check resource ID, don't retry |
| 422 | Validation Error | Fix validation issues, don't retry |
| 429 | Rate Limited | Wait and retry |
| 500 | Server Error | Retry with backoff |
| 502/503 | Service Unavailable | Retry with backoff |
Common Error Types
Examples of different error categories you may encounter
Validation Errors (400/422)
Loading syntax highlighting...Authentication Errors (401)
Loading syntax highlighting...Rate Limiting Errors (429)
Loading syntax highlighting...Server Errors (500+)
Loading syntax highlighting...Basic Error Handler
A simple error handling class for API responses
Loading syntax highlighting...Best Practices
Essential guidelines for robust error handling
Do
- • Implement exponential backoff for retries
- • Use circuit breakers to protect your service
- • Log error details including request IDs
- • Provide graceful degradation when possible
- • Monitor error rates and patterns
- • Set appropriate timeouts for requests
- • Cache successful responses to reduce API calls
Don't
- • Retry non-retryable errors (4xx status codes)
- • Ignore rate limit responses
- • Log sensitive information in error messages
- • Fail completely when API is temporarily unavailable
- • Use fixed retry delays without backoff
- • Retry indefinitely without limits
- • Expose internal error details to end users
Production Checklist
Ensure your error handling is production-ready
RequiredImplement exponential backoff retry logic
RequiredSet up circuit breaker for service protection
RequiredConfigure error monitoring and alerting
RecommendedImplement graceful degradation strategy
RecommendedSet appropriate request timeouts
RecommendedSet up comprehensive error logging
RecommendedProvide meaningful error messages to users
RecommendedTest all error scenarios thoroughly