> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.nolma.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Budget Rules

> Set hard limits that stop AI spend before it happens

# Budget Rules

Budget rules stop spend before the LLM call fires. When a limit is hit Nolma returns HTTP 429 immediately — the LLM provider never receives the request.

## Creating a budget rule

Dashboard → Guard → Budgets → Add rule

### Scope types

| Scope   | What it limits                     |
| ------- | ---------------------------------- |
| `org`   | All agents in your organization    |
| `agent` | One specific agent by name         |
| `user`  | One end user (NM-User header)      |
| `model` | One LLM model                      |
| `env`   | One environment (prod/staging/dev) |

### Enforcement modes

| Mode             | What happens at the limit     |
| ---------------- | ----------------------------- |
| `hard_block`     | Returns 429, no LLM call made |
| `auto_downgrade` | Switches to cheaper model     |
| `throttle`       | Slows request rate            |
| `alert_only`     | Sends alert, allows through   |

### Example rules

**Daily limit per agent:**

| Field    | Value               |
| -------- | ------------------- |
| Scope    | agent → support-bot |
| Limit    | \$15.00             |
| Period   | daily               |
| Mode     | hard\_block         |
| Alert at | 80%                 |

**Monthly org-wide limit:**

| Field    | Value       |
| -------- | ----------- |
| Scope    | org         |
| Limit    | \$500.00    |
| Period   | monthly     |
| Mode     | hard\_block |
| Alert at | 70%         |

## Budget templates

New accounts can apply a template from the Budgets page:

* **Conservative** — \$10/day hard block. Good for development and testing.
* **Growth** — \$100/day soft limit with auto-downgrade at 80%. Good for production startups.
* **Enterprise** — \$1,000/month org-wide. Good for regulated companies.

## What happens when a limit is hit

Your agent receives:

```json theme={null}
{
  "error": {
    "type": "NM_BUDGET_HARD_LIMIT",
    "message": "Agent 'support-bot' daily budget of $15.00 exceeded.",
    "spent": 15.43,
    "limit": 15.00,
    "period": "daily",
    "reset_at": "2026-05-22T00:00:00Z",
    "agent": "support-bot"
  }
}
```

Handle this in your code:

```python theme={null}
try:
    response = client.messages.create(...)
except anthropic.APIStatusError as e:
    if e.status_code == 429:
        error = e.response.json()["error"]
        if error["type"] == "NM_BUDGET_HARD_LIMIT":
            print(f"Budget hit. Resets: {error['reset_at']}")
```

## Emergency kill switch

Stop ALL agents instantly: Guard → "Pause all agents" button.

All LLM calls return 429 immediately. Click "Resume all agents" to restore.