---
sourceDocument: Brazil API Reference
sourceDocumentLink: https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/api-reference

 Release :

    - brazil

ft:locale :

    - en-US

ft:publication_title :

    - Brazil API Reference

ft:clusterId :

    - crapiref

bundleId :

    - crapiref

workflow :

    - Creator


---

# Inbound REST API rate limiting

# Inbound REST API rate limiting {#ariaid-title1}

Release version: Brazil  
Updated September 10, 2026  
![](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ico-clock) 3 minutes to read
Summarize  
![AI sparkle icon](https://servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ai-sparkle-icon) Summarized using AI  
This content was generated using new OpenAI-powered functionality. Results are provided on an as is basis and are not guaranteed to be accurate or complete.  

## Summary of Inbound REST API rate limiting

Inbound REST API rate limiting in ServiceNow allows you to control and restrict the number of inbound REST API requests processed per hour.
This helps prevent excessive API usage that could impact system performance.
You can define rate limit rules for specific users, users with certain roles, or all users, managing API consumption effectively.
Show full answer Show less  

## Key Features

* **Rate Limit Rules:** Created in the *sysratelimitrules* table, these rules specify request limits per hour for users or roles.
* **Request Counting:** Each node tracks request counts per user; counts are committed to the database every 30 seconds. This delay means rate limits may take up to 30 seconds to enforce.
* **Priority Handling:** When multiple rules apply to a request, the system enforces the most specific rule:
  * Rules for a single user override rules for users with roles and all users.
  * Rules for users with roles override rules for all users.
* **Role Intersection:** If a user has multiple roles matching different rules, the rule with the lowest allowed requests applies.
* **Response Headers:** When a request matches a rate limit rule, the response includes headers such as *X-RateLimit-Limit* , *X-RateLimit-Reset* , and *X-RateLimit-Rule* to provide rate limit details.
* **Exceeded Limits:** Requests exceeding limits receive a 429 Too Many Requests status, a detailed JSON error message, and a *Retry-After* header indicating when to retry.

## Practical Use and Management

* **Creating Rules:** Define rules to control API usage per hour for users or roles based on business needs.
* **Resetting Limits:** You can reset rate limit counts and clear violations for a rule to start fresh within the current hour.
* **Monitoring:** Track request counts and violations to evaluate if rate limits are appropriate and adjust rules accordingly.
* **Investigation:** Analyze violations to identify which users or roles exceed limits and adjust policies or usage patterns.  
To prevent excessive inbound REST API requests, set rules that limit the number of inbound REST API requests processed per hour. You can create rules to limit requests for specific users, users with specific roles, or all users.

Rate limit rules are created in the Rate Limit Rules \[sys_rate_limit_rules\] table.  
Note:  
As requests reach an instance, each node maintains a rate limit count per user. Every 30 seconds, the count is committed to the database. As a result, a rate limit rule may not take effect for up to 30 seconds.

## Rate limiting priority {#inbound-REST-API-rate-limiting__section_isk_1gr_hdb}

If an inbound REST API request matches multiple rate limit rules for the same resource, rate limiting priority is enforced as follows:

* Rules set for Single user override rules for All users and rules for Users with role.
* Rules set for Users with role override rules for All users.
{#inbound-REST-API-rate-limiting__ul_oy2_xrk_hdb}  
In this example, there are four rate limit rules for the REST API resource `GET /now/v2/table/incident`.  
These rate limit rules are applied in the following order:

1. Limit incidents by user applies to ITIL User, who can submit up to 200 requests per hour.
2. Limit incidents by import admin applies to all users with the import_admin role. Each user with the import_admin role can submit up to 500 requests per hour.
3. Limit incidents by itil applies to all users with the itil role. Each user with the itil role can submit up to 100 requests per hour.
4. Limit incidents applies to all users. Each user can submit up to 100 requests per hour.
{#inbound-REST-API-rate-limiting__ul_k4q_qjr_hdb}

When ITIL User makes the request `GET /now/v2/table/incident`, the request matches the criteria for three rules: Limit incidents, Limit incidents by itil, and
Limit incidents by user. Only the Limit incidents by user rule is applied because it takes precedence over the other rules. As a result, ITIL User can submit a maximum of 200
requests per hour.

If a user has two or more roles matching the criteria of multiple rate limiting rules for a REST API resource, the rule allowing the lowest number of requests applies to the user's requests for the resource. For the example
rules in the figure above, assume that user Abel Tuter has both the import_admin role and the itil role. When Abel Tuter submits a request, it meets the criteria for both the Limit incidents by admin rule
and the Limit incidents by itil rule. Only the Limit incidents by itil rule is applied because it allows the lowest number of requests. As a result, Abel Tuter can submit a maximum
of 100 requests per hour.

## REST API response headers {#inbound-REST-API-rate-limiting__section_l5l_5my_hdb}

You can generate inbound REST API requests using the [REST API Explorer](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/u5yPzbegiHwmWzc30gVYJQ "In this tutorial you will use the REST API Explorer to test the ServiceNow REST APIs.") or an HTTP client, such as Postman API platform. If the request matches a rate limit rule, several HTTP response headers provide information about rate limiting.

* X-RateLimit-Limit displays the number of requests allowed per hour.
* X-RateLimit-Reset displays a UNIX timestamp for the next scheduled reset of the rate limit window.
* X-RateLimit-Rule displays the sys_id of the rate limit rule \[sys_rate_limit_rules\] that is being enforced.
{#inbound-REST-API-rate-limiting__ul_xpr_w4y_hdb}  
If a request is denied because it exceeds the rate limit, the system returns a Retry-After response header in addition to the response headers about rate limiting. The Retry-After response header displays the number of seconds after which you can retry the request to avoid exceeding the rate limit. The following error response is returned:

    {
        "error": {
            "message": "Rate limit exceeded",
            "detail": "Rate limit of 100 requests per hour for Table API exceeded"
        },
        "status": "failure"
    }

The status code of a denied request is 429 Too Many Requests.
* **[Create an inbound REST API rate limit](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/0Da5j8tN7fJYMiUyGFvtEQ)**   
  Create rate limit rules to limit the number of inbound REST API requests processed per hour.
* **[Reset an inbound REST API rate limit](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/WjNCIPoKOGepUIfLUoXo7g)**   
  Reset a rate limit rule to reset the rate limit count to zero (0) and delete any violations for the current hour.
* **[Monitor inbound REST API rate limit counts and violations](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/6zs6EJeduNYBDZE4jmnxIQ)**   
  To determine if you have set a rate limit rule appropriately, monitor the counts and violations for inbound REST API requests that are restricted by the rule.
* **[Investigate inbound REST API rate limit violations](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/mn72~a6LZ1WyRrIZ_LjU4A)**   
  Investigate rate limit violations to determine which rate limit rules are being exceeded and which users are exceeding those rate limits.