System Design Basics — Rate Limiter

A rate limiter is a mechanism used in software systems and network communications to control the rate at which requests or operations are performed. It helps maintain system stability, prevent resource overuse, and ensure fair usage among users. Rate limiters are critical in high-traffic, distributed architectures. Common rate limiting algorithms include Token Bucket, Leaky Bucket, and Sliding Window. Understanding rate limiting is important for system design interviews, where it is often discussed alongside concepts like API gateways and load balancers.