API Issue

Hey ​@KeepInnovations,

Has this been occuring for some time now? Or only recently?
Might it be related to the size of the tables you are fetching data from?

AT does not show any issue on ther status page. 

If the issue persists you might want to reach out to support@airtable.com

Completely different matter, but would love to have you join our Airtable Hackathon! Make sure to sign up!!

Mike, Consultant @ Automatic Nation 
YouTube Channel

Intermittent API performance like this is frustrating! Here are the most common causes and solutions:

1. Rate Limiting & Throttling
Airtable enforces rate limits (5 requests per second per base). If you're hitting this, you'll see delays. Solutions:
- Add exponential backoff retry logic
- Implement request queuing
- Use batch operations when possible (up to 10 records per request)

2. Table Size & Complexity
Large tables with many linked records or complex formulas slow down API responses. Optimize by:
- Using filterByFormula to fetch only needed records
- Requesting specific fields with fields[] parameter
- Limiting pageSize to reasonable amounts (default 100, max 100)

3. Network & Geographic Latency
API servers are in specific regions. If you're far from them:
- Implement caching for frequently accessed data
- Use webhooks instead of polling when possible
- Consider regional cloud functions closer to Airtable servers

4. Cold Start Issues
Sometimes first requests after inactivity are slower:
- Implement warming requests
- Keep connections alive with connection pooling

5. Debugging Steps
Add logging to track:
- Request timestamp
- Response time
- Response status codes
- Payload sizes

This helps identify patterns (time of day, specific tables, request types).

6. Quick Wins
- Use HTTP/2 for connection reuse
- Compress request/response payloads
- Implement local caching with TTL
- Use Promise.all() for parallel independent requests (respecting rate limits)

If you're using the Web API, share your implementation approach and I can suggest specific optimizations. Happy to help troubleshoot further!

Feel free to DM me if you want to share code snippets privately for review.