How do I use p-retry to retry failed API calls with fetch in Node.js?

Wrap your fetch call in an async function and pass it to pRetry. Use the onFailedAttempt callback to log attempts, and handle specific errors like 404 status codes by throwing AbortError to stop retries gracefully, as shown in the usage example.

p-retry vs axios-retry: which is better for HTTP requests?

p-retry is a general-purpose library for any promise-based function, offering more flexibility, while axios-retry is specific to Axios HTTP client with built-in integration. Choose p-retry for diverse async operations or axios-retry for seamless Axios use.

How to mock timers when testing code that uses p-retry?

Since p-retry uses global setTimeout, you can mock timers with Node.js's test timer mocking or libraries like sinon. This ensures retry delays don't slow down tests and allows precise control over timing, as mentioned in the FAQ.

Can p-retry be used in browser environments?

p-retry is designed for Node.js and relies on Node.js-specific features like AbortSignal. While it might work in browsers with polyfills, it's not officially supported, and browser-focused alternatives or adjustments may be needed.

How to handle rate limiting errors with p-retry?

Use the shouldConsumeRetry callback to check for rate limit errors and return false, so they don't consume your retry budget. This allows implementing custom backoff strategies without wasting retries, as demonstrated in the shouldConsumeRetry example.

Does p-retry support circuit breaking patterns?

No, p-retry focuses solely on retry logic and does not include circuit breaking. For full resilience, you might need to combine it with other libraries like opossum or implement circuit breakers manually in your application.

p-retry — Promise Retry with Backoff

What is p-retry?

p-retry is a Node.js library that automatically retries failed promise-based operations with configurable strategies. It solves the problem of transient failures in network requests, API calls, and other async operations by implementing exponential backoff and custom retry logic to improve application reliability.

Target Audience

Node.js developers building resilient applications that interact with external APIs, databases, or services where transient failures are common.

Value Proposition

Developers choose p-retry for its clean API, flexible configuration, and intelligent error handling—particularly its ability to distinguish network errors from fatal TypeErrors and provide fine-grained control over retry behavior through multiple callback hooks.

Retry a promise-returning or async function

Use Cases

Best For

Retrying failed HTTP requests to external APIs with exponential backoff
Handling temporary database connection failures in Node.js applications
Implementing resilient file upload operations with custom retry logic
Building CLI tools that need to gracefully handle intermittent network issues
Adding retry mechanisms to third-party API client libraries
Creating robust background job processors that survive transient errors

Not Ideal For

Applications requiring circuit breaker patterns to prevent service overload during sustained failures
Simple scripts where a basic retry loop with fixed delays would suffice without library overhead
Real-time systems where accumulating exponential backoff delays could violate strict latency requirements
Projects using HTTP clients like Axios with built-in retry mechanisms, to avoid redundancy

Pros & Cons

Pros

Configurable Exponential Backoff

Allows adjustable delays between retries using factors and timeouts, such as minTimeout and maxTimeout, to avoid overwhelming services as detailed in the options.

Fine-grained Retry Control

Provides callbacks like shouldRetry and shouldConsumeRetry for custom logic, enabling precise error handling and retry budget management based on context.

Integrated Abort Mechanism

Supports AbortSignal for clean cancellation, useful for user-initiated stops or handling process signals like SIGINT, as shown in the signal option examples.

Intelligent Network Error Handling

Automatically retries on network-related TypeErrors while aborting on others, leveraging fetch specification best practices to distinguish transient failures.

Cons

Automatic Abort on Errors

Non-network TypeErrors always abort retries without allowing overrides via shouldRetry in some cases, which can be too restrictive for custom error scenarios.

No Built-in Circuit Breaking

Lacks features like circuit breakers to halt retries during outages, requiring additional libraries for comprehensive fault tolerance beyond simple retries.

Testing Requires Timer Mocking

Relies on global setTimeout, making unit tests non-deterministic without mocking timers, as acknowledged in the FAQ about using Node.js test tools or sinon.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is p-retry?

Target Audience

Node.js developers building resilient applications that interact with external APIs, databases, or services where transient failures are common.

Value Proposition

Use Cases

Best For

Retrying failed HTTP requests to external APIs with exponential backoff
Handling temporary database connection failures in Node.js applications
Implementing resilient file upload operations with custom retry logic
Building CLI tools that need to gracefully handle intermittent network issues
Adding retry mechanisms to third-party API client libraries
Creating robust background job processors that survive transient errors

Not Ideal For

Applications requiring circuit breaker patterns to prevent service overload during sustained failures
Simple scripts where a basic retry loop with fixed delays would suffice without library overhead
Real-time systems where accumulating exponential backoff delays could violate strict latency requirements
Projects using HTTP clients like Axios with built-in retry mechanisms, to avoid redundancy

Pros & Cons

Pros

Configurable Exponential Backoff

Allows adjustable delays between retries using factors and timeouts, such as minTimeout and maxTimeout, to avoid overwhelming services as detailed in the options.

Fine-grained Retry Control

Provides callbacks like shouldRetry and shouldConsumeRetry for custom logic, enabling precise error handling and retry budget management based on context.

Integrated Abort Mechanism

Supports AbortSignal for clean cancellation, useful for user-initiated stops or handling process signals like SIGINT, as shown in the signal option examples.

Intelligent Network Error Handling

Automatically retries on network-related TypeErrors while aborting on others, leveraging fetch specification best practices to distinguish transient failures.

Cons

Automatic Abort on Errors

Non-network TypeErrors always abort retries without allowing overrides via shouldRetry in some cases, which can be too restrictive for custom error scenarios.

No Built-in Circuit Breaking

Lacks features like circuit breakers to halt retries during outages, requiring additional libraries for comprehensive fault tolerance beyond simple retries.

Testing Requires Timer Mocking

Relies on global setTimeout, making unit tests non-deterministic without mocking timers, as acknowledged in the FAQ about using Node.js test tools or sinon.

Frequently Asked Questions

p-retry

What is p-retry?

Overview

Use Cases

Best For

Not Ideal For

Pros & Cons

Pros

Cons

Frequently Asked Questions

Related Projects

Found a gem we're missing?

p-retry

What is p-retry?

Overview

Use Cases

Best For

Not Ideal For

Pros & Cons

Pros

Cons

Frequently Asked Questions

Related Projects

Found a gem we're missing?