Telegram 'Too Many Attempts' or FLOOD_WAIT: How Long to Wait

What the message looks like

You see this after asking for a login code again and again, or after typing a wrong code or password several times. The wording depends on the app:

Where	What it says
Android, iPhone	"Too many attempts, please try again later." or "Too many attempts, please try again in …" with a time
Telegram Desktop	"Too many tries. Please try again later."
Telegram for macOS	"Attempts exceeded, please try again later."
Bots, scripts and third-party tools	FLOOD_WAIT followed by a number, or "Too many requests"

All of them mean the same thing: Telegram's servers have paused your requests for a while. It is a timer, not a ban. Your account is not suspended and nothing has been deleted.

How long to wait

The server decides the wait, and there is no way to shorten it.

• If the message shows a time, wait at least that long. In FLOOD_WAIT messages the number is in seconds, so it can look large: 3600 is one hour, 86400 is a full day.
• If there is no time, try again after a few hours. If it still refuses, leave it until the next day.
• Do not keep tapping. Each new request while you are paused can make the next wait longer. One careful attempt after the wait is better than ten during it.

While you wait: the code may already be there

Being blocked from asking again does not cancel the code you asked for before. Look in each place a code can arrive:

1. Telegram on another device. If you are still logged in on a computer, tablet or second phone, open the chat from Telegram (the verified one with a blue check, sometimes named Telegram Notifications). Login codes often go there instead of SMS. Getting your code in the Telegram app on another device covers this.
2. Your text messages. Use only the newest code. An older one is rejected, and the app may tell you "Code expired, please start over."
3. Your login email. If you set one up, check the inbox and the spam folder. See adding a login email.

After the wait: get it right first time

Most people who hit this limit hit it because each attempt had a small mistake in it. Before you try again:

• Check the number. Plus sign, the right country code, and no leading zero from your national format. 'Invalid phone number' goes through the common slips.
• Ask for a code once. Then look in all three places above before asking again.
• Do not guess your Two-Step Verification password. If you do not remember it, tap Forgot password? instead of trying variations; guessing is what triggers the lock. Recovery email and password hint explains what that button can do.

Messages that look similar but are not this

A few other messages also talk about "too many", but waiting a few minutes will not fix them:

The message says	What it means	What to do
"You have deleted and re-created your account too many times recently"	Repeated sign-up and deletion with the same number	Wait a few days, as the message says, then sign up once
"You are a member of too many groups and channels"	A membership limit, nothing to do with logging in	Leave a group or channel you no longer read
"Too many requests. Please wait before changing privacy settings again."	You changed privacy settings many times in a row	Wait a little, then change them once
"This phone number is banned"	The number itself is blocked, not paused	Waiting does not help; see a banned phone number

If you build bots or use scripts

The same limit applies to programs. Telegram's developer documentation describes FLOOD_WAIT errors as carrying the number of seconds to wait before repeating the request. Read that number, sleep for it, and retry once. Retrying in a tight loop only extends the pause, and an account that keeps doing it can face stricter limits.

If the same message is still there after a full day and no other device has the code, work through the full login checklist to find where it is failing. Next step: when sign-up asks you to pay before sending the code.