| name | elevenlabs-rate-limits |
| description | Implement ElevenLabs rate limiting, concurrency queuing, and backoff patterns.
Use when handling 429 errors, implementing retry logic, or managing concurrent
TTS request throughput for an ElevenLabs integration.
Trigger with "elevenlabs rate limit", "elevenlabs throttling", "elevenlabs 429",
"elevenlabs retry", "elevenlabs backoff", "elevenlabs concurrent requests".
|
| allowed-tools | Read, Write, Edit |
| version | 1.6.0 |
| license | MIT |
| author | Jeremy Longshore <jeremy@intentsolutions.io> |
| tags | ["saas","voice","ai","elevenlabs","rate-limits","reliability"] |
| compatibility | Designed for Claude Code |
ElevenLabs Rate Limits
Overview
Handle ElevenLabs rate limits with plan-aware concurrency queuing, exponential backoff, and quota monitoring. ElevenLabs uses two rate limit mechanisms: concurrent request limits (per plan) and system-level throttling. The key insight is that a 429 means two different things depending on its detail.status — and each demands the opposite response.
Prerequisites
- ElevenLabs SDK installed (
@elevenlabs/elevenlabs-js)
- Understanding of your subscription plan's limits
p-queue package (recommended): npm install p-queue
Instructions
Step 1: Understand the Two 429 Error Types
ElevenLabs returns HTTP 429 for two different reasons. Read the detail.status field to tell them apart — the correct strategy is opposite for each.
| 429 Variant | Response Body | Cause | Strategy |
|---|
too_many_concurrent_requests | {"detail":{"status":"too_many_concurrent_requests"}} | Exceeded plan concurrency | Queue requests, don't backoff |
system_busy | {"detail":{"status":"system_busy"}} | Server overload | Exponential backoff |
Step 2: Know Your Plan Concurrency Limits
Concurrency is capped per plan. Size your queue to this number — never higher.
| Plan | Max Concurrent Requests | Characters/Month |
|---|
| Free | 2 | 10,000 |
| Starter | 3 | 30,000 |
| Creator | 5 | 100,000 |
| Pro | 10 | 500,000 |
| Scale | 15 | 2,000,000 |
| Business | 15 | Custom |
Step 3: Assemble the Four Building Blocks
Write four small modules and compose them. The full, copy-ready source for each is in references/implementation.md — the skeleton below shows how they fit together.
- Request queue () — a sized to your plan's concurrency limit. This is the response to : queue, do not back off.
