Discord API · error code

Discord error 40094: Maximum follow-up messages reached

Permanent - do not retryHTTP 400Interactions and slash commands

Last verified against Discord Developer Docs - Opcodes and status codes

What Discord returns
This interaction has hit the maximum number of follow up messages

What error 40094 means

You sent more follow-up messages for one interaction than Discord allows. Follow-ups are additional messages sent with POST /webhooks/{application.id}/{interaction.token} after the initial response.

The documented cap applies to user-installed apps: when your app is used somewhere it is not installed as a bot (for example a user-installed command run in another server or a group DM), it can send 5 follow-ups per interaction. Beyond that the interaction refuses more messages.

Commands that stream output as many separate messages, or paginate by sending each page as a new follow-up, are the usual cause. The interaction token's 15-minute lifetime is a separate limit; when it expires you see an invalid token error such as 50027 instead.

The interaction payload's authorizing_integration_owners field shows whether the app was authorized by the server or only by the user, which tells you whether the cap applies to that command run.

What it looks like

{
  "message": "This interaction has hit the maximum number of follow up messages",
  "code": 40094
}

Why it happens

  • User-installed command sends more than 5 follow-ups in a context where the app is not installed in the server
  • Pagination implemented as one follow-up per page
  • Streaming long output as many small messages
  • Loop that sends a follow-up per item in a list

How to fix Discord error 40094

  1. 1Count follow-ups per interaction in your handler
  2. 2Combine output into fewer messages using embeds (up to 10 per message) or attachments
  3. 3Use components (buttons) to paginate by editing one message instead of sending new ones
  4. 4For very long output, attach a text file

How to stop it recurring

Treat each interaction as one response that you edit, not a channel to post into. Button-driven pagination that edits the original message avoids the cap entirely and works the same whether the app is user-installed or guild-installed. Interaction limits are on the Discord limits page.

Official reference: Discord Developer Docs - Opcodes and status codes. See all Discord error codes or the Discord limits and quotas.

Related codes

Error 40094 - quick answers

What does Discord error 40094 mean?

You sent more follow-up messages for one interaction than Discord allows. Follow-ups are additional messages sent with POST /webhooks/{application.id}/{interaction.token} after the initial response.

How do I fix Discord error 40094?

1. Count follow-ups per interaction in your handler 2. Combine output into fewer messages using embeds (up to 10 per message) or attachments 3. Use components (buttons) to paginate by editing one message instead of sending new ones 4. For very long output, attach a text file

Should I retry after error 40094?

No. Retrying the same request produces the same error; the condition has to be fixed first. Treat it as a permanent failure for that message and surface it, rather than looping.

Stop debugging Discord by hand

Connect the channel through Conferbot: tokens, webhooks and retries are handled, failures show as readable status.