Cline error
Cline: 429 ... Number of request tokens has exceeded your per-minute rate limit
429 {"type":"error","error":{"type":"rate_limit_error","message":"Number of request tokens has exceeded your per-minute rate limit (https://docs.anthropic.com/en/api/rate-limits); see the response headers for current usage. Please reduce the prompt length or the maximum tokens requested, or try again later. You may also contact sales at https://www.anthropic.com/contact-sales to discuss your options for a rate limit increase."}}Status: WorkaroundLast verified 3 documented fixes5 sources
What it means
The model provider rejected the request because your account exceeded its per-minute request or token rate limit. Cline forwards the provider's 429.
Causes
- Provider account tier limits; a Cline contributor stated rate limit errors are almost always caused by the provider you use and each provider has its own limits.
- Large prompts per request (system prompt plus file context) consuming the per-minute token allowance.
How to fix it
- Fix 1.
Update Cline: PR #1605 added retry handling for 429 errors using response-header timing with exponential backoff (3.3.0: "Add automatic retry for rate limited requests").
- Fix 2.
Raise your provider account tier or contact the provider; or use a routing provider such as the Cline provider, which a contributor said has high rate limits with upstream providers.
- Fix 3.
Cline API docs: for 429 Too Many Requests, wait and retry with exponential backoff, add delays between requests, and reduce concurrent requests.
More Cline errors
All 17 Cline errorsShell Integration Unavailable. Cline may have trouble viewing the command's output. Please update VSCode (CMD/CTRL + Shift + P → "Update") and make sure you're using a supported shell: zsh, bash, fish, or PowerShell (CMD/CTRL + Shift + P → "Terminal: Select Default Profile").Status: WorkaroundError executing command: The command ran successfully, but we couldn't capture its output. Please proceed accordingly.Status: Fixed in releaseCommand failed with exit code 1: powershell (Get-CimInstance -ClassName Win32_OperatingSystem).caption 'powershell' is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file.Status: WorkaroundUnexpected API Response: The language model did not provide any assistant messages. This may indicate an issue with the API or the model's output.Status: WorkaroundInvalid API Response: The provider returned an empty or unparsable response. This is a provider-side issue where the model failed to generate valid output or returned tool calls that Cline cannot process. Retrying the request may help resolve this issue.Status: OpenModel returned empty responseStatus: OpenFunction call is missing a thought_signature in functionCall parts. This is required for tools to work correctly, and missing thought_signature may lead to degraded model performance.Status: Fixed in releaseInvalid MCP settings format. Please ensure your settings follow the correct JSON format.Status: Workaround
Related reading
- What Is Cline? The Open-Source AI Coding Agent for VS CodeCline is a free, open-source VS Code extension for agentic AI coding. Bring your own model, a cloud API or a local one via Ollama, with no vendor lock-in.
- Every AI Coding Tool Compared: The 2026 MatrixEvery AI coding tool compared: 15 terminal, IDE, cloud and browser tools side by side on pricing, model surface, strengths, weaknesses and best use cases.
FAQ
What does "429 ... Number of request tokens has exceeded your per-minute rate limit" mean in Cline?
The model provider rejected the request because your account exceeded its per-minute request or token rate limit. Cline forwards the provider's 429.
How do I fix "429 ... Number of request tokens has exceeded your per-minute rate limit"?
There are 3 documented fixes. Start with the first: Update Cline: PR #1605 added retry handling for 429 errors using response-header timing with exponential backoff (3.3.0: "Add automatic retry for rate limited requests").
Is this Cline error fixed?
Status: Workaround. No release removes the cause. The documented fixes work around it. Affected versions: All versions; automatic retry since 3.3.0
Sources
Last verified against 5 sources: official docs, maintainer replies and release notes.
- github.comhttps://github.com/cline/cline/issues/713
- github.comhttps://github.com/cline/cline/pull/1605
- github.comhttps://github.com/cline/cline/issues/3142
- docs.cline.bothttps://docs.cline.bot/api/errors
- github.comhttps://github.com/cline/cline/blob/main/CHANGELOG.md
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