HTTP Status Codes in the NWS API
The NWS API uses standard HTTP status codes to indicate the success or failure of a request. This page provides an overview of possible responses and how to interpret them.
Each API endpoint also lists the most common status codes returned in its context.
See the Endpoints section for details.
2xx–Success
| Code |
Meaning |
Description |
| 200 |
OK |
The request was successful and the response contains the expected data. |
| 204 |
No Content |
The request succeeded, but there's no response body. Rare in the NWS API. |
3xx–Redirection
| Code |
Meaning |
Description |
| 304 |
Not Modified |
The resource has not changed since the last request (used with caching headers). |
4xx–Client Errors
| Code |
Meaning |
Description |
| 400 |
Bad Request |
The request was invalid or malformed (for example, incorrect parameter format). |
| 401 |
Unauthorized |
Missing or invalid User-Agent header. |
| 403 |
Forbidden |
You aren't authorized to access this resource. |
| 404 |
Not Found |
The endpoint or resource couldn't be found. |
| 406 |
Not Acceptable |
The server can't produce a response matching the requested format. |
| 429 |
Too Many Requests |
You have exceeded the rate limit or quota. |
5xx–Server Errors
| Code |
Meaning |
Description |
| 500 |
Internal Server Error |
A general server-side error occurred. Try again later. |
| 503 |
Service Unavailable |
The service is temporarily unavailable or under maintenance. |
When an error occurs, the API returns a structured JSON response like this:
{
"title": "Bad Request",
"status": 400,
"detail": "The value provided for 'area' is not valid.",
"type": "https://api.weather.gov/problems/InvalidParameter"
}