Errors

ArtAPI uses standard OpenAI-compatible error responses.

Error Format

All errors follow this structure:

{
  "error": {
    "message": "Human-readable description of the error.",
    "type": "error_type",
    "code": "error_code"
  }
}

HTTP Status Codes

Status	Type	Description
400	invalid_request_error	Bad request — missing or invalid parameters.
401	authentication_error	Invalid or missing API key.
402	billing_error	Insufficient credits. Top up at app.artapi.ai.
429	rate_limit_error	Too many requests. Slow down or upgrade your plan.
500	api_error	Upstream or internal server error. Retry after a delay.

Common Error Codes

Code	Cause	Fix
invalid_api_key	Key is malformed, revoked, or belongs to another account	Check Settings → API Keys
model_not_found	Model ID doesn't exist or isn't available on your plan	See Models
invalid_size	Requested size not supported by the model	Use a supported size
prompt_too_long	Prompt exceeds maximum character limit	Shorten your prompt
content_policy_violation	Prompt or output violates usage policy	Revise the prompt
insufficient_quota	Not enough credits	Top up at dashboard
upstream_error	Provider (fal.ai, OpenAI, etc.) returned an error	Retry with backoff

Handling Errors

from openai import OpenAI, APIError, AuthenticationError, RateLimitError

client = OpenAI(
    api_key="YOUR_API_KEY",
    base_url="https://app.artapi.ai/v1",
)

try:
    response = client.images.generate(
        model="flux-dev",
        prompt="...",
    )
except AuthenticationError:
    print("Invalid API key")
except RateLimitError:
    print("Rate limit hit — back off and retry")
except APIError as e:
    print(f"API error {e.status_code}: {e.message}")

Retry strategy

For 500 and 429 errors, implement exponential backoff: wait 1s, 2s, 4s, 8s between retries. Give up after 4–5 attempts.