Gemini API (429 on new free-tier project)

Gemini API
1

  1. Symptom: Every request to the Gemini API returns a 429 error, even on a brand-new project with very low usage (roughly a dozen test requests total, spread across debugging a Chrome extension over the past few days — nowhere near the documented free-tier RPD/RPM limits shown in AI Studio).

    Exact error:

    {
  "error": {
    "code": "too_many_requests",
    "message": "You exceeded your current quota, please check your plan and billing details. For more information on this error, head to: https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/rate-limits. To monitor your current usage, head to: https://ai.dev/rate-limit."
  }
}

    Billing: Not enabled — free tier.

    Models tried: gemini-2.5-flash (404’d as unavailable for new projects), gemini-3.8-flash, gemini-3.5-flash-lite — all three return the identical 429 above, regardless of model.

    Endpoint used: POST https://generativelanguage.googleapis.com/v1beta/interactions with x-goog-api-key header auth.

    Timing: Started immediately on first real requests, and the error persists identically even after waiting more than 24 hours past a midnight Pacific reset.

    Project ID: gen-lang-client-0999776868