workflow/docs/api-reference/workflow/retryable-error.mdx

Workflow DevKit - Build durable, resilient, and observable workflows

---
title: RetryableError
description: Throw to retry a step, optionally after a specified duration.
type: reference
summary: Throw RetryableError in a step to trigger a retry with an optional delay.
prerequisites:
  - /docs/foundations/errors-and-retries
related:
  - /docs/api-reference/workflow/fatal-error
---

When a `RetryableError` is thrown in a step, it indicates that the workflow should retry a step. Additionally, it contains a parameter `retryAfter` indicating when the step should be retried after.

You should use this when you want to retry a step or retry after a certain duration.

```typescript lineNumbers
import { RetryableError } from "workflow"

async function retryableWorkflow() {
    "use workflow"
    await retryStep();
}

async function retryStep() {
    "use step"
    throw new RetryableError("Retryable!") // [!code highlight]
}
```

<Callout>
The difference between `Error` and `RetryableError` may not be entirely obvious, since when both are thrown, they both retry. The difference is that `RetryableError` has an additional configurable `retryAfter` parameter.
</Callout>

## API Signature

### Parameters

<TSDoc
definition={`
import { type RetryableErrorOptions } from "workflow";
interface RetryableError {
    options?: RetryableErrorOptions;
    message: string;
}

export default RetryableError;`}
/>

#### RetryableErrorOptions

<TSDoc
definition={`
import { type RetryableErrorOptions } from "workflow";
export default RetryableErrorOptions;`}
/>

## Examples

### Retrying after a duration

`RetryableError` can be configured with a `retryAfter` parameter to specify when the step should be retried after.

```typescript lineNumbers
import { RetryableError } from "workflow"

async function retryableWorkflow() {
    "use workflow"
    await retryStep();
}

async function retryStep() {
    "use step"
    throw new RetryableError("Retryable!", {
        retryAfter: "5m" // - supports "5m", "30s", "1h", etc. // [!code highlight]
    })
}
```

You can also specify the retry delay in milliseconds:

```typescript lineNumbers
import { RetryableError } from "workflow"

async function retryableWorkflow() {
    "use workflow"
    await retryStep();
}

async function retryStep() {
    "use step"
    throw new RetryableError("Retryable!", {
        retryAfter: 5000 // - 5000 milliseconds = 5 seconds // [!code highlight]
    })
}
```

Or retry at a specific date and time:

```typescript lineNumbers
import { RetryableError } from "workflow"

async function retryableWorkflow() {
    "use workflow"
    await retryStep();
}

async function retryStep() {
    "use step"
    throw new RetryableError("Retryable!", {
        retryAfter: new Date(Date.now() + 60000) // - retry after 1 minute // [!code highlight]
    })
}
```