---
title: Claude API Best Practices
description: "Practical best practices for the Claude API on apiToken.sale: model choice, prompt caching, streaming, lifetime key spending limits, expiration, and secure key handling."
url: https://apitoken.sale/docs/learn/claude-api-best-practices
language: en
---

# Claude API best practices

A short checklist to get reliable, economical results from the Claude API in production.

## The checklist

- Pick the cheapest model that can do each task; escalate only when needed.
- Cache large, stable context to slash input cost.
- Stream responses for responsive agents and UIs.
- Set an optional lifetime spending limit and expiration date on each key.
- Handle 429s with Retry-After and backoff.
- Watch the token-level usage breakdown to catch waste early.

## Keep costs and reliability in check

- Cap max_tokens to what each response actually needs.
- Retry 429/5xx with exponential backoff, not tight loops.
- Use separate, clearly named keys per environment so a leak can be revoked without replacing every client.
- Review token-level usage weekly to catch regressions early.

## Frequently asked questions

### What is the most impactful best practice?

Match the model to the task and cache repeated context — together they cut cost the most.

### How do I keep keys safe?

Store keys in a secret manager, set an appropriate lifetime spending limit and expiration date, and revoke a key immediately if it is exposed.

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More guides: https://apitoken.sale/docs/learn