CallRateExceeded - numeric limits and more

Hello @Sofia Duarte (Omnicom) ,

Thank you for using our Microsoft Advertising Learn Q&A Platform!

Thank you for reaching out regarding rate limiting in Microsoft Advertising API v13.

While Microsoft Advertising provides general guidance on API throttling, we do not currently have a readily available public reference that specifies the exact calls-per-second or calls-per-minute limit for each of these operations. Therefore, we are unable to provide confirmed operation-specific numerical thresholds for GetUser, GetCustomer, SearchAccounts, AddCampaigns, UpdateCampaigns, GetCampaignsByAccountId, GetAdGroupsByCampaignId, or GetBillingDocumentsInfo at this time.

For the Campaign Management service, the documentation states that throttling limits the number of API calls any one user can make within a minute. Access to customer data is also restricted at the customer level using a sliding 60-second window.

However, the public documentation does not confirm:

• Separate thresholds for each operation
• Whether Customer Management operations share a quota
• Whether Customer Billing operations share a quota
• Whether quotas are shared across Customer Management, Campaign Management, and Customer Billing
• Whether Developer Token, Customer ID, or another identifier is used as the primary counter for services other than those specifically documented

Error 117, CallRateExceeded, indicates that the number of calls allowed within a minute has been exceeded. When this error is received, Microsoft’s documented guidance is to wait 60 seconds and then resubmit the request under the applicable limit.

Since exact thresholds are not published, we recommend implementing a configurable client-side rate limiter rather than relying on a fixed Microsoft-provided number. Your implementation may include:

• Pacing requests across a rolling 60-second period
• Maintaining separate counters by authenticated user and customer
• Separating counters by service to avoid one workflow affecting another
• Limiting concurrent calls and avoiding sudden request bursts
• Queuing requests instead of sending them simultaneously
• Using exponential backoff with randomized jitter for repeated throttling
• Waiting at least 60 seconds after error 117 before retrying the affected traffic
• Capping retry attempts to prevent retry storms
• Logging the service, operation, customer ID, account ID, authenticated user, timestamp, tracking ID, and request volume for each throttling occurrence
• Verifying that write operations are safe to retry before resubmitting them

We also recommend making the request rate configurable and starting conservatively. You can then gradually adjust the rate based on observed success and throttling patterns rather than assuming the same limit applies to every service or operation.

For additional information, please refer to the Microsoft Advertising API service protocol and service-error documentation and Bing Ads API Services Protocol

Our support teams are pleased to engage in more in-depth discussions about your account through phone, chat, or email to offer review assistance, please see our support page to reach out!

I trust that the details shared here will partially address your inquiry. Should you have any further questions, feel free to contact our support. Additionally, I’ve sent you a private message requesting additional information. Please don’t hesitate to reply if you require further assistance.

Kind regards, 

Marvin | Microsoft Advertising Support Specialist | 800-518-5689 

Hi Marvin,

Thank you for your quick response and for the recommendations provided.

At the moment, we are not experiencing any rate-limiting errors. Our goal is simply to implement a preventive mechanism to avoid potential issues in the future.

I don't have any further questions for now, but I will reach out again if anything else comes up.

Thank you again for your assistance.

Best regards.