Understanding Your API Usage and Quota

Introduction

Your plan includes an allowance, and how that allowance is consumed depends on which Tracking API product you are on. This article explains what counts, where to look, and what happens when you go over.

How usage is counted

On per shipment plans, one tracker equals one shipment from your quota. It is charged when the tracker is created, and covers that shipment for its whole journey, however long it takes and however many tracking events it produces. Refreshing results costs nothing extra.

Creating a tracker for a tracking number you have already registered does not charge you again, because the call is idempotent.

On per call plans, every API call counts. Checking one shipment once a day for a week uses seven calls. This is the difference that surprises people most when comparing the two products.

A small number of couriers consume more than one shipment credit per parcel. The pricing page notes which ones.

Where to check your usage

Usage is visible in real time in your dashboard. If you have the Shipment Dashboard, your consumption against your plan appears there alongside your shipments.

You will also receive an email as you approach your limit and again when you pass it.

Going over your quota

On paid plans you are allowed to exceed your allowance. Extra shipments or calls are billed on your next invoice at your plan's overage rate.

The overage rate falls as the plan tier rises, so consistently running over usually costs more than upgrading. See Ship24 pricing and plans explained for the rate at each tier.

Free plans have no overage. Once the allowance is used, tracking stops until the quota resets or you upgrade. If you are testing an integration on the free plan, this is usually what has happened when calls suddenly stop returning results.

Rate limits

Separately from your quota, the API applies rate limits to protect service quality. These cap how fast you can call, not how much you can track. See the rate limiter documentation for the current limits and the headers returned.

Quota and rate limits are different things. A rate limit error means slow down. A quota error means you have used your allowance.

Changing plans

Upgrades and downgrades take effect immediately with no interruption, and unused quota is converted to credit against the new plan.

Note that the Tracking API plans and the All-in-one Tracking Solution plans are separate products that cannot both be active on one account. Moving between them means cancelling first, which forfeits remaining quota.

Next steps

See Ship24 pricing and plans explained for every tier, price and overage rate. If your calls are failing rather than running out, see troubleshooting the Tracking API.

Updated on: 17/08/2026

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