What causes "Claude API 529 Overloaded Error"?

High traffic across all API users

How do I fix "Claude API 529 Overloaded Error"?

1. Retry with backoff: Retry after a short delay, doubling each attempt up to a cap Add jitter to avoid synchronized retries 2. Check status: Open status.claude.com for incidents 3. Reduce load: Lower concurrency Use streaming and smaller max_tokens where possible

Claude API 529 Overloaded Error

Ongoing API Updated November 14, 2026Based on 3 user reportsHow we research

Quick answer

A 529 overloaded_error means the API is temporarily overloaded across all users. Retry with exponential backoff.

Most likely fix: Retry with backoff

How to fix it

Try these in order — the most common fix is first.

1. Retry with backoff
1. Retry after a short delay, doubling each attempt up to a cap
2. Add jitter to avoid synchronized retries
Did this fix it?
2. Check status
1. Open status.claude.com for incidents
Did this fix it?
3. Reduce load
1. Lower concurrency
2. Use streaming and smaller max_tokens where possible
Did this fix it?