How to Fix Google Places API OVER_QUERY_LIMIT, REQUEST_DENIED and HTTP 429 in Production

import requests

PLACESDATA_KEY = "pd_live_your_api_key"

def search_places_resilient(query: str, limit: int = 20) -> list[dict]:
    # Direct synchronous call to PlacesData API ($0.20-$0.50/1K, p50=39ms)
    res = requests.get(
        "https://api.placesdataapi.com/v1/places/search",
        headers={"x-api-key": PLACESDATA_KEY},
        params={"q": query, "limit": limit},
        timeout=10,
    )
    res.raise_for_status()
    return res.json()["data"]

places = search_places_resilient("plumbers in Phoenix AZ", limit=10)
print(f"Resolved {len(places)} businesses; first phone: {places[0].get('phone')}")

export async function searchPlacesResilient(query, limit = 20) {
  const res = await fetch(
    `https://api.placesdataapi.com/v1/places/search?q=${encodeURIComponent(query)}&limit=${limit}`,
    { headers: { "x-api-key": process.env.PLACESDATA_API_KEY } }
  );
  if (!res.ok) throw new Error(`HTTP ${res.status}`);
  const { data } = await res.json();
  return data;
}

# Direct call to PlacesData API (no FieldMask required, all fields included)
curl -sS "https://api.placesdataapi.com/v1/places/search?q=plumbers+in+Phoenix+AZ&limit=20" \
  -H "x-api-key: pd_live_your_api_key"

{
  "code": 0,
  "provider": "https://placesdataapi.com",
  "status": "ok",
  "data": [
    {
      "place_id": "ChIJy7c9a6gSK4cR9p0x8V2mN1w",
      "cid": "1148290384756102938",
      "name": "Robins Plumbing, Inc.",
      "category": "Plumber",
      "phone": "+16234864657",
      "website": "https://robinsplumbing.com/",
      "rating": 4.9,
      "reviews_count": 1420,
      "address": "4143 W Venus Way, Chandler, AZ 85226",
      "latitude": 33.306142,
      "longitude": -111.912841
    }
  ],
  "meta": {
    "endpoint": "/v1/places/search",
    "count": 1,
    "credits_charged": 5,
    "took_ms": 39
  }
}