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HTTP 529 Overloaded
Non-standard, Anthropic-specific: the API is temporarily overloaded and shedding load.
5xx · Server error✓ retryable with backoff
In AI APIs specifically
Anthropic's dedicated overload signal (overloaded_error). Distinct from 429 — this is not about YOUR rate limit but about aggregate platform load. Typically resolves within seconds to minutes. The SDKs retry it automatically a limited number of times.
Fix checklist
- Retry with exponential backoff and jitter — start ~2s.
- Reduce concurrency while 529s persist; pressure makes it worse.
- Consider falling back to a different Claude model class, which may have separate capacity.
- Check status.anthropic.com — sustained 529s usually accompany an incident.
Retry handler (TypeScript)
async function fetchWithRetry(url: string, init: RequestInit, maxRetries = 5) {
for (let attempt = 0; ; attempt++) {
const res = await fetch(url, init);
// 529 is retryable — back off and try again.
if (res.status !== 529 || attempt >= maxRetries) return res;
const retryAfter = Number(res.headers.get("retry-after"));
const delay = Number.isFinite(retryAfter) && retryAfter > 0
? retryAfter * 1000
: Math.min(60_000, 1000 * 2 ** attempt) * (0.5 + Math.random()); // expo backoff + jitter
await new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, delay));
}
}Spec: official documentation
Related status codes
500 Internal Server Error
The server hit an unexpected condition.
501 Not ImplementedThe server does not support the functionality required to fulfil the request..
502 Bad GatewayA gateway or proxy received an invalid response from the upstream server..
503 Service UnavailableThe server is temporarily unable to handle the request — overload or maintenance.