Handling API Limits and Error Responses

Hi Everyone,

Welcome back to yet another post in the Kaizen Series! 

We appreciate your keen participation in the 200th milestone celebration of the Kaizen series. We will continue to answer the queries we received through the feedback. 

When working with Zoho CRM APIs, you must respect API limits, handle errors properly, and deliver meaningful experiences—even when things go wrong. In this post, we will discuss handling API limits and error responses.

Understanding Zoho CRM API Limits

Zoho CRM enforces API limits based on the purchased user licenses and add-on credits, and this is to ensure availability to all users and prevent abuse of its APIs. The following limits are applicable to Zoho CRM REST APIs.

• API Credits Limits: Each edition (Free, Standard, Professional, etc.) comes with a set number of API credits per rolling 24-hour window. For example, Enterprise/Zoho One offers a baseline of 50,000 plus 1,000 per user license, with a cap up to 5,000,000 credits including add-one credits. You can refer to our help documentation on API limits for more details.
• Concurrency Limits: Concurrency is the number of parallel API calls that are active at one time instance. Apps are capped at concurrent requests based on CRM edition: Free (5), Standard (10), Professional (15), Enterprise (20), Ultimate (25).
• Sub-Concurrency Limits: Some resource-intensive APIs have their own concurrency limits (typically 10 concurrent requests): bulk updates, queries, lead conversion, mail, etc. Exceeding these returns a TOO_MANY_REQUESTS error.
• Limits per Call: Different APIs have specific limits for the number of resources that can be inserted/updated. For example for insert, update, or upsert records, you can pass up to 100 records in one API call. Refer to the individual help documentation for any such limits.
  

Tips:

• Monitor Usage: Use Zoho’s dashboard to track API credits in real time. Set alerts if you are approaching limits. Alternatively, keep an eye on the header X-API-CREDITS-REMAINING which denotes the remaining credits that will be present in the response when your API usage exceeds 50 percent or the daily available credit limit. Also, you can customize your usage notification to receive an email alert.
• Batch Operations: Prefer bulk inserts/updates (up to 100 records/call) to reduce wasteful requests. Use composite APIs when multiple APIs need to be executed. 
• Space Out Calls: When integrating, use logical intervals and avoid call bursts to prevent concurrency /subconcurrency limit getting applied. We have covered this in more detail in our previous Kaizen post : How to effectively handle API calls to optimize API credits?
  

Limits in Zoho CRM GraphQL APIs

Like our REST APIs, our GraphQL API calls also consume credits based on the type and number of resources queried. Maximum allowed credits per call is 10 credits.

Complexity for each query is calculated based on the type and number of resources requested, and maximum allowed complexity is 1,000 per query. 

Depth refers to the number of nesting layers of a field. Depth up to seven for metadata and three for records is allowed.

You can refer to our GraphQL API documentation on Credits, Complexity, and Depth for more details.

Handling Errors

 Zoho CRM REST APIs return 200 status codes for every successful API call. Each API error has these sections:

• Status Code 
• Error Code 
• Message 

Different sections of an error response

Here "resource_path_index": 0 in the response indicates which segment of the URL path contains the error, counting after the API version.

Common Errors

• 400 Bad Request:  
• INVALID_MODULE
• Cause: Incorrect module name (e.g., "Lead" vs "Leads").
• Fix: Use exact API names from Setup > Developer Space > APIs.
  
• INVALID_DATA
• Cause: Malformed JSON/wrong data type.
• Fix: Validate field formats.
• DUPLICATE_DATA
• Cause: Unique field value exists elsewhere.
• Fix: Disable "Do not allow duplicates" or change value.
• MANDATORY_NOT_FOUND
• Cause: Missing required field (e.g., Last_Name in Contacts while trying to insert a new record in Contacts module).
• Fix: Include all mandatory fields in the request.
•  401 Unauthorized: 
• AUTHENTICATION_FAILED
• Cause: Wrong domain URL .
• Fix: Use the correct domain-specific URL.
• INVALID_TOKEN:
• Cause: Expired OAuth token is used for making API call.
• Fix: Refresh access token using the refresh token.
• 403 Forbidden: 
• NO_PERMISSION
• Cause: User lacks permission for the resource.
• Fix: Obtain necessary permission to access the resource.
•  404 Not Found: 
• INVALID_URL_PATTERN
• Cause: URL syntax error.
• Fix: Verify endpoint structure in API docs.
•  429 Too Many Requests: 
• TOO_MANY_REQUESTS
• Cause: Number of API requests for the 24 hour period is exceeded or the concurrency/sub-concurrency limit of the user for the app is exceeded.
• Fix: Make calls in accordance with the limits.
• 207 Multi-Status: 
• In some cases when the API is partially successful, 207 status code is returned.
  

Tips

• Mandatory Fields: Provide all mandatory fields in the response body.
• OAuth Issues: Ensure correct scopes.
• Inspect Every Response Body: Parse responses even if the HTTP status code returned is 2XX. 
• Validate Data Before Calling: Ensure your request matches the expected format. Clean data before submission to prevent 400-range errors (e.g., MANDATORY_NOT_FOUND, DUPLICATE_DATA).
• Token Issues: Respond to INVALID_TOKEN with a token refresh workflow.

Error Status Code in GraphQL APIs 

Zoho CRM GraphQL APIs return errors in 200 and 400 status codes depending on error type. 200 HTTP status codes are returned in two cases. 

(a) Issue in the input when validated against the schema .

(b) Runtime errors due to credits, depth, and so on.

Refer to the Status Codes and Responses page in GraphQL for more information.

We hope you found this post useful. We will be back next week to answer another query we received.

Let us know if you have any questions in the comments or drop us an email at support@zohocrm.com.

Previous Kaizen : Answering Your Questions | Testing and Using REST APIs in Widgets| Kaizen Directory: Home 

• Topic Participants

• Mable Mary M P

  

• Sticky Posts

• Kaizen #197: Frequently Asked Questions on GraphQL APIs

  🎊 Nearing 200th Kaizen Post – We want to hear from you! Do you have any questions, suggestions, or topics you would like us to cover in future posts? Your insights and suggestions help us shape future content and make this series better for everyone.

• Kaizen #198: Using Client Script for Custom Validation in Blueprint

  Nearing 200th Kaizen Post – 1 More to the Big Two-Oh-Oh! Do you have any questions, suggestions, or topics you would like us to cover in future posts? Your insights and suggestions help us shape future content and make this series better for everyone.

• Celebrating 200 posts of Kaizen! Share your ideas for the milestone post

  Hello Developers, We launched the Kaizen series in 2019 to share helpful content to support your Zoho CRM development journey. Staying true to its spirit—Kaizen Series: Continuous Improvement for Developer Experience—we've shared everything from FAQs

• Kaizen #193: Creating different fields in Zoho CRM through API

  🎊 Nearing 200th Kaizen Post – We want to hear from you! Do you have any questions, suggestions, or topics you would like us to cover in future posts? Your insights and suggestions help us shape future content and make this series better for everyone.

• Client Script | Update - Introducing Commands in Client Script!

  Have you ever wished you could trigger Client Script from contexts other than just the supported pages and events? Have you ever wanted to leverage the advantage of Client Script at your finger tip? Discover the power of Client Script - Commands! Commands

• Recent Topics

• Zoho Books - Include Payment Terms as a Custom View filter

  It would be great if you could created a custom view based on Payment Terms. This would be really handy for seeing a list of customers who have credit terms. A workaround is not required. I could do something with a creditor checkbox, but it would be

• How to update changed purchase account of item in invoice

  I have selected the wrong purchase account for various articles and created invoices. I had to adjust the purchase account in the article afterwards, but the old purchase account is still posted in the transaction-journal of the invoice. To adjust the

• Help - Zoho CRM notification on mobile (IOS/Android)

  Hello Community! Can I get the IOS/Andoid CRM app to notify me of events, calls, etc. due as I can with MANY other apps?   I am running the free Zoho I would like this to be native to the Zoho CRM app. I do not want to write a sep. mobile app

• Zoho Books Idea - Include another field in Bank Details for Address

  Hi Books team, Currently use the Description field in the Bank Details to store the bank's address. This works fine but it would be great if you could add another field for Bank Address, so that other notes about the bank account could be stored in the

• Reverse payment on accidentally closed invoice.

  An invoice was closed accidentally with the full payment added. However, only partial payment was paid. How can I reopen the invoice and reverse this to update it to show partial payment?

• a question about the COQL API v8

  When I specify eight or more values in a WHERE IN clause and execute it, an error occurs. Is there a limit to the number of values that can be specified in a WHERE IN clause? ↓Error select * FROM Vendors WHERE (id in (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)) ↓Success

• Zoho Books Idea - Bank Details Button on Banking

  Hi Books team, Sometimes I'm asked to share bank details with a customer or a colleague. So I go to the Banking Module, find the correct bank account, click Setting > Edit, then copy and paste the bank details. Wouldn't it be great if there was a button

• JS SDK 8.0 – TypeError: Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'getCacheStore') with sample code

  Hello Zoho Support Team, I’m integrating the Zoho CRM JavaScript SDK v8.0 and I’m getting the error below when running your official sample. I tested directly from: https://github.com/zoho/zohocrm-javascript-sdk-8.0/blob/main/samples/create_records_sample/create_records.js

• Function #55: Convert multiple quotes to single SO using Custom Button

  Hello everyone, and welcome back to our series! In Zoho Books, after a quote is accepted by your customer, it can be converted into a sales order or an invoice. Often, a customer might have multiple quotes, and for easier billing or upon the customer's

• Zoho One - Syncing Merchants and Vendors Between Zoho Expense and Zoho Books

  Hi, I'm exploring the features of Zoho One under the trial subscription and have encountered an issue with syncing Merchant information between Zoho Expense and Zoho Books. While utilizing Zoho Expense to capture receipts, I noticed that when I submit

• Rich Text For Notes in Zoho CRM

  Hello everyone, As you know, notes are essential for recording information and ensuring smooth communication across your records. With our latest update, you can now use Rich Text formatting to organize and structure your notes more efficiently. By using

• Time based workflow without edit/action

  Hello I need help solving this problem if possible. We have Deals come into the CRM via Live Transfer which have the field properties: Stage = New Channel = Inbound Some of them don't get answered so we want these to automatically go into our Outbound

• What's New - August 2025 | Zoho Backstage

  Every month, Zoho Backstage grows with you. These updates aren't just features and fixes, they're about making your workday smoother, your events more impactful, and your attendees happier. We’ve listened, learned, and shaped this release to keep things

• prevent selling expired items

  Hello. I need to make a constraint on expired batch items not to be sold. Is it possible in Zoho Inventory? if so, then how? Thanks for further help.

• Product details removed during update from other system

  We maintain our product details in an other system. These details are synchronized with Zoho at the end of each day, through an API. This has worked perfectly sofar. But last Monday, all product codes and some other product data have been wiped during

• Client Customer

  I purchased a customer user license, but we cannot see the project I added in the customer account. I would like to ask for support on what we should do.

• Add Ability to Use Zoho Finance Tags

  For Zoho Finance (Books and Inventory), the current actions do not allow us to affect the tags associated with the entities in question (customers, vendors, items, etc.). Please consider adding this functionality into the actions.

• Embeded Signing doesn't work on Safari Browser

  We have implemented Zoho Sign in our website by using embeded signing, It works perfectly on Chrome. But it fails on Safari, We get stuck on Zoho Sign Page during redirection from Zoho Sign to our website after signing the document, Please let us know

• Dataprep Webhook Limits and Cannot update column with Dataprep

  I have two problems : 1 - I am using Airflow to trigger my pipeline, and when I tested it, it worked fine a couple of times. However, after that, I received an error: {"code":429,"message":"Request rate limited"}. I didn’t send too many requests — maybe

• Power of Automation :: Automatic removal of project users once the project status is changed.

  A custom function is a software code that can be used to automate a process and this allows you to automate a notification, call a webhook, or perform logic immediately after a workflow rule is triggered. This feature helps to automate complex tasks and

• New in Zoho Forms: Google reCAPTCHA v3 for smarter spam protection

  Hello form builders, Spam submissions are one of the biggest challenges when you share your forms online. They not only clutter your data but can also waste valuable time. To help you combat this without making life harder for genuine respondents, we’re

• Project Management Bulletin: August, 2025

  We’ve touched a grand 19 years since we started pioneering project management solutions with Zoho Projects. What started as a simple one-page interface is now a suite of products with Zoho BugTracker, Zoho Sprints, and our new debut Zoho Projects Plus,

• Zoho Sign and Zoho Workdrive Integration

  Hello, there. I want to know if it's possible to save a signed document from Zoho Sign in an specific folder for each signer in Zoho Workdrive.  For example: If John Doe signs the document in Zoho Sign I want to save it automatically in a folder named

• Office 365 and CRM mail integration: permission required

  Has anyone run into this weird problem? My email server is Office 365. When I try to configure Zoho CRM to use this server, a Microsoft popup window opens requesting user and password. After entering that, I get a message in the Microsoft window saying

• Empowered Custom Views: Cross-Module Criteria Now Supported in Zoho CRM

  Hello everyone, We’re excited to introduce cross-module criteria support in custom views! Custom views provide personalized perspectives on your data and that you can save for future use. You can share these views with all users or specific individuals

• How do you list multiple contacts for a lead?

  My sales team wants to be able to add additional contacts for leads, how do we do that? Is there a different way we should be using the lead / contact functionality? Moderation update (9th September 2025): Our developers have built an extension to achieve

• Modifying Three Dot Menu Options

  Is there a way to modify the three dot menu options that display in a Report header? They currently display: Show As (List, Calendar, Timeline), Print, Import, Export. I'd like to remove the Show As and Print options, since they aren't applicable for

• Elevate your CX delivery using CommandCenter 2.0: Simplified builder; seamless orchestration

  Most businesses want to create memorable customer experiences—but they often find it hard to keep them smooth, especially as they grow. To achieve a state of flow across their processes, teams often stitch together a series of automations using Workflow

• Field Not Updating in FSM Script - Service and Parts module.

  Dear Team, I am reaching out regarding a script I have implemented in Zoho FSM to automate the calculation of the End of Service date based on the End of Sale date in the Service and Parts module. Overview of the script: Fetches the End_of_Sale__C and

• Zadarma + Zoho CRM Integration – Missed Calls Saved as Contacts Instead of Leads

  Hello everyone, I’m looking for input from anyone with experience using the Zadarma + Zoho CRM integration. Currently, I’m seeing that missed calls are automatically being created as Contacts instead of Leads. From a CRM perspective, this doesn’t make

• Zoho Books | Product updates | September 2025

  Hello users, We’ve rolled out new features and enhancements in Zoho Books. From PayNow payment method to applying journal credits to invoices and bills in other locations, explore the updates designed to enhance your bookkeeping experience. Integrate

• How to update Multiple Users field in Quote Module from Deal Module

  Scenario : Deal Module having Multiple User Field (Presales Engineer) which having more than 1 User and through Deluge Script I need to get that Users Details and need to put into Multiple User Field (Presales Engineer) of Quote Module. Note: Both Module

• Auto-sync field of lookup value

  This feature has been requested many times in the discussion Field of Lookup Announcement and this post aims to track it separately. At the moment the value of a 'field of lookup' is a snapshot but once the parent lookup field is updated the values diverge.

• Clone a Module??

  I am giong to repurpose the Vendors module but would like to have a separate but very similar module for another group of contacts called Buyers. I have already repurposed Contacts to Sellers. Is it possible to clone (make a duplicate) module of Vendors

• Advance PDF creation from CRM data

  I'm trying to create a PDF export of data in the CRM. My problem is I want a pretty complicated format for the data. I'm trying to export multiple modules worth of data, with nested one-to-many relationships between the modules. Along with that, I want

• how to disable staff selection Zoho Booking integrated to SalesIQ?

  currently there is only one Consultant in my Zoho Bookings like this I integrate Zoho Bookings into Zoho SalesIQ to create a chatbot. Unfortunately, even though I only have one consultant for a consultation, the user have to pick the consultant. It will

• How to change the text in WhatsApp Zobot integrated to Zoho Booking?

  I have integrated Zoho Bookings into Zoho SalesIQ, I want to change the text in WhatsApp when creating a booking in Zobot how to change those text?

• how to differentiate if whatsapp comes from certain landing page?

  I create a Zobot in SalesIQ to create a Whatsapp bot to capture the lead. I have 2 landing pages, one is SEO optimized and the other want is optimized for leads comes from Google Ads. I want to know from which landing page this lead came through WhatsApp

• Introducing Profile Summary: Faster Candidate Insights with Zia

  We’re excited to launch Profile Summary, a powerful new feature in Zoho Recruit that transforms how you review candidate profiles. What used to take minutes of resume scanning can now be assessed in seconds—thanks to Zia. A Quick Example Say you’re hiring

• Updating Subform Record from other Form

  Just wanted to ask how to properly approach this. I have 2 forms and would like to trigger an auto update on the subform once record submitted. block below only updates 1 row for each recordRow in input.AV_System { AssetRecord = Site_Asset_Services[SOR_No

• Next Page