An unexpected error has occurred. Please retry your request later.
In short
Meta failed on its side for a reason it does not give, and asks you to send the same request again later.
By Mathieu Malige, founder of Apogee
· Checked on 8 October 2026
Exact message
| Field | English |
|---|---|
| Message | An unexpected error has occurred. Please retry your request later. |
Where it shows up: in the response of Meta’s Marketing API when an ad, ad set or creative is created, for example by a tool that launches ads for you.
Why it happens
- A temporary problem on Meta’s side. The message only asks you to retry later. Meta does not document this exact text, but its Graph API documentation describes its generic errors, codes 1 (API Unknown) and 2 (API Service), as possibly temporary issues due to downtime, and the recommended action is to wait and retry.
- Nothing in your settings is named. The message does not point to a field, which is why it is not a setup error you can fix by editing the ad.
- If it keeps coming back, Meta’s documentation adds a check for code 1: make sure you are calling an existing API (for tools and integrations).
How to fix it
- Wait a few minutes and send the same action again (publish, create or edit).
- Before retrying, check in Ads Manager whether the campaign, ad set or ad was partly created, to avoid duplicates: look at the Campaigns, Ad sets and Ads tabs.
- If it persists, check the platform status on Meta Status and try again later. Meta’s help center gives this advice for a related Ads Manager error (“something went wrong”, #1487470).
- If it still fails on one specific ad, duplicate it and publish the copy: Meta’s help center also suggests this for error #1487470.
How to avoid it next time
- Publish large launches in batches rather than all at once, so one failure does not block everything.
- If you build on the API, retry codes 1 and 2 automatically with a delay, and keep the request id (fbtrace_id), which Meta asks for when you report a bug.
Frequently asked questions
Did I do something wrong?
Probably not. The message only asks you to retry later, and Meta describes its generic errors as possibly temporary issues on its side, to be handled by waiting and retrying.
How long should I wait before retrying?
Meta gives no duration. Retry after a few minutes; if it fails again, check Meta Status before changing your ads.
Can this error create duplicates?
It can leave a launch half done. Check what was actually created in Ads Manager before you retry the whole launch.
Related errors
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