Kaizen #203 - Answering Your Questions | Handling API Limits and Error Responses

Kaizen #203 - Answering Your Questions | 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.

    • Recent Topics

    • I want to transfer the project created in this account to another account

      Dear Sir I want to transfer the project created in one account to another account

    • Custom Bulk Select Button

      Zoho CRM offers the ability to select multiple records and invoke a Custom Button This functionality is missing from Recruit Currently we can only add buttons in the detail page and list But we cannot select Multiple Records and invoke a function with

    • Power of Automation :: Smart Ticket Management Between Zoho Desk and Projects

      Hello Everyone, 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

    • BUG - Google Business Buttons - Add a button to GBP Post

      I am experiencing an issue with the "Add a button" feature when creating posts for my Google Business Profile (GBP) through Zoho Social. When I schedule or publish a GBP post and include a call-to-action button with a specific URL, the post itself publishes

    • Do you have software like Windows software?

      We want swadeshi software

    • Support for Custom Fonts in Zoho Recruit Career Site and Candidate Portal

      Dear Zoho Recruit Team, I hope you're doing well. We would like to request the ability to use custom fonts in the Zoho Recruit Career Site and Candidate Portal. Currently only the default fonts (Roboto, Lato, and Montserrat) are available. While these

    • Trying to export a report to Excel via a deluge script

      I have this code from other posts but it gives me an error of improper statement, due to missing ; at end of line or incomplete expression. Tried lots of variations to no avail. openUrl(https://creatorapp.zoho.com/<username>/<app name>/XLSX/#Report:<reportname>,"same

    • Need help to create a attach file api

      https://www.zoho.com/crm/developer/docs/api/v8/upload-attachment.html Please help me to create it... It's not working for while. Do you have some example?

    • Export view via deluge.

      Hi, Is it possible to export a view (as a spreadsheet) via deluge? I would like to be able to export a view as a spreadsheet when a user clicks a button. Thanks     

    • Zoho Inventory's latest shipping integration updates at a glance.

      Hello Users, We would like to share some important news about our latest improvements in the Shipping integration capabilities of Zoho Inventory that we achieved in 2024 with some of our major integration partners in key editions across APAC, North America,

    • Possible to generate/download Quote PDF using REST API?

      See title. Is there any way after a quote has been created to export to a PDF using a specified template and then download it? Seems like something that should be doable. Is this not supported in the API v2.0?

    • Creating an invoice to be paid in two installments?

      Hi there, I own a small Photographic Services business and have not been able to find a way to fit my billing system into Zoho, or any other Accounting software. The way my payments work is: 1. Customer pays 50% of total price of service to secure their

    • Bug in allowing the user to buy out of stock items

      Hi i want to allow the user to buy out of stock items, according to the commerce documentation if i disable Restrict "Out of stock" purchases it will, but it doesnt work, so i want to know if it had any relation with zoho inventory, and if theres any

    • Replace Lookup fields ID value with their actual name and adding inormation from subforms

      Hi everyone,  I wanted to see if someone smarter than me has managed to find any solutions to two problems we have. I will explain both below.  To start we are syncing data from Zoho CRM to Zoho Analytics and I will use the Sales Order module when giving

    • Can a Zoho Sites page be embedded into another website (outside Zoho)

      Hi All, We have a request from a client - they'd like to take one of our information pages created in Zoho Sites and embed it into their own website? I was told through an email with Zoho that this was possible >>Thank you for your patience regarding

    • Bug in allowing the user to buy out of stock items

      Hi i want to allow the user to buy out of stock items, according to the commerce documentation if i disable Restrict "Out of stock" purchases it will, but it doesnt work, so i want to know if it had any relation with zoho inventory, and if theres any

    • Transition Criteria Appearing on Blueprint Transitions

      On Monday, Sept. 8th, the Transition criteria started appearing on our Blueprints when users hover over a Transition button. See image. We contacted Zoho support because it's confusing our users (there's really no reason for them to see it), but we haven't

    • Zoho CRM Sales Targets for Individual Salespeople

      Our organistion has salespeople that are allocated to different regions and have different annual sales targets as a result. I am building an CRM analytics dashboard for the sales team, which will display a target meter for the logged in salesperson.

    • Transfer all Related Data to new Account Owner

      Currently when I change the account Owner I only see the option to change only the open deals But I want the new account owner to take over all the related modules and all the deal stages Is it not possible right now? Am I missing something? Do I really

    • How to Calculate MTTR (Mean Time to Resolve)

      We want to calculate MTTR (Mean Time to Resolve) in our Zoho Analytics report under Tickets. Currently, we are using the following fields: Ticket ID Ticket Created Time Ticket Closed Time Ticket On Hold Time We are planning to calculate MTTR (in days)

    • How to export project tasks, including the comments

      Hi, how can I export the project tasks, whereby I can also see the comments associated to a specific task? The use-case is that often we use comments to discuss or update a task related ideas. I would like to export the tasks, where we can also see the

    • Does Zoho Sheet Supports https://n8n.io ?

      Does Zoho Sheet Supports https://n8n.io ? If not, can we take this as an idea and deploy in future please? Thanks

    • Bigin Android app update: User management

      Hello everyone! In the most recent Bigin Android app update, we have brought in support for the 'Users and Controls' section. You can now manage the users in your organization within the mobile app. There are three tabs in the 'Users and Controls' section:

    • Share records with your customers and let them track their statuses in real time.

      Greetings, I hope everyone is doing well! We're excited to introduce the external sharing feature for pipeline records. This new enhancement enables you to share pipeline records with your customers via a shareable link and thereby track the status of

    • Live webinar: Discover Zoho Show: A complete walkthrough

      Hello everyone, We’re excited to invite you to our upcoming live webinar, Discover Zoho Show: A Complete Walkthrough. Whether you’re just getting started with Show or eager to explore advanced capabilities, this session will show you useful tips and features

    • Deal Stage component/widget/whatever it is... event

      Deal Stages I am trying to access the event and value of this component. I can do it by changing the Stage field but users can also change a Deal Stage via this component and I need to be able to capture both values. Clicking on 'Verbal' for instance,

    • Create advanced slideshows with hybrid reports using Zoho Projects Plus

      Are your quarterly meetings coming up? It’s time to pull up metrics, generate reports, and juggle between slides yet again. While this may be easier for smaller projects, large organizations that run multiple projects may experience the pressure when

    • Add an option to disable ZIA suggestions

      Currently, ZIA in Zoho Inventory automatically provides suggestions, such as sending order confirmation emails. However, there is no way to disable this feature. In our case, orders are automatically created by customers, and we’ve built a custom workflow

    • Formula field with IF statement based on picklist field and string output to copy/paste in multi-line field via function

      Hello there, I am working on a formula field based on a 3-item picklist field (i.e. *empty value*, 'Progress payment', 'Letter of credit'). Depending on the picked item, the formula field shall give a specific multi-line string (say 'XXX' in case of 'Progress

    • Unified Directory : How to Access ?

      I signed in to Zoho One this morning and was met with the pop up about the upgraded directory (yay!) I watched the video and pressed "Get Started" ... and it took me back to the standard interface. How do I actually access the new portal/directory ?

    • Zoho CRMの流入元について

      Zoho CRMとZoho formsを連携し、 formsで作成したフォームをサイトに埋め込み運用中です。 UTMパラメータの取得をformsを行い、Zoho CRMの見込み客タブにカスタム項目で反映される状況になっています。 広告に関してはUTMパラメータで取得できているため問題ないのですが、オーガニック流入でフォーム送信の場合も計測したいです。メールやGoogle、Yahoo、directなどの流入元のチャネルが反映されるようにしたいのですが、どのように設定したら良いでしょうか。 また、

    • Error While Sign in on Zoho Work Drive

      Dear Team, I hope this email finds you well. I have recently created a Zoho account and started using it. But while I am trying to log in to Zoho work drive it won't log me in its crashing every time I try it. I have tried it on android app, phone browser

    • Choosing a portal option and the "Unified customer portal"?

      I am trialling Zoho to replace various existing systems, one of which is a customer portal. Our portal allows clients to add and edit bookings, complete forms, manage their subscriptions and edit some CRM info. I am trying to understand how I might best

    • Translation support expanded for Modules, Subforms and Related Lists

      Hello Everyone!   The translation feature enables organizations to translate certain values in their CRM interface into different languages. Previously, the only values that could be translated were picklist values and field names. However, we have extended

    • Unified task view

      Possible to enable the unified task view in Trident, that is currently available in Mail?

    • Bigin, more powerful than ever on iOS 26, iPadOS 26, macOS Tahoe, and watchOS 26.

      Hot on the heels of Apple’s latest OS updates, we’ve rolled out several enhancements and features designed to help you get the most from your Apple devices. Enjoy a refined user experience with smoother navigation and a more content-focused Liquid Glass

    • Importing data into Assets

      So we have a module in Zoho CRM called customers equipments. It links to customers modules, accounts (if needed) and products. I made a sample export and created extra fields in zoho fsm assets module. The import fails. Could not find a matching parent

    • Allow instruction field in Job Sheets

      Hello, I would like to know if it is possible to have an instruction field (multi line text) in a job sheet or if there is a workaround to be able to do it. Currently we are pretty limited in terms of fields in job sheets which makes it a bit of a struggle

    • Streamlining Work Order Automation with Zoho Projects, Writer & WorkDrive

      Hello Community, Here is the first post in 'Integration & Automation' Series. Use Case :: Create, Merge, Sign & Store Documents in Zoho WorkDrive. Scenario :: You have a standard Work Order template created in Zoho Writer. When a task status is chosen

    • The dimensions of multilingual power

      Hola, saludos de Zoho Desk. Bonjour, salutations de Zoho Desk. Hallo, Grüße von Zoho Desk. Ciao, saluti da Zoho Desk. Olá, saudações da Zoho Desk. வணக்கம், Zoho Desk இலிருந்து வாழ்த்துகள். 你好，来自 Zoho Desk 的问候。 مرحباً، تحيات من Zoho Desk. नमस्ते, Zoho

    • Next Page