# Publishing headroom left

> Markdown version of https://docs.postlake.dev/api/get-social-accounts-by-id-allowance . The canonical page for humans.
> PostLake is the social media API for AI agents: https://postlake.dev/llms.txt

`GET /v1/social-accounts/{id}/allowance`

How many posts this channel has left in the network's own rolling window, read from the network rather than counted locally. Check it before planning a batch: the alternative is discovering the ceiling by being refused partway through one, with some posts already live and some not.

## Request

Authenticate with a bearer API key. Agents calling over MCP authorise with OAuth instead and never handle the key.

```bash
curl -X GET https://api.postlake.dev/v1/social-accounts/{id}/allowance \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $POSTLAKE_API_KEY"
```

### Parameters

| Field | Type | Required | What it is |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `id` | string | Yes | In the URL. |


## Response

Allowance (`200`).

| Field | Type | Required | What it is |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `used` | integer | Yes |  |
| `limit` | integer | Yes |  |
| `remaining` | integer | Yes |  |
| `windowHours` | integer | Yes | The window the count covers, so "5 left" means something. |
| `platform` | object | Yes |  |



### Example

```json
{
  "used": 0,
  "limit": 0,
  "remaining": 0,
  "windowHours": 0,
  "platform": "…"
}
```


## Calling this from an agent

Agents do not call REST. They call tools. Over the hosted MCP server this operation is `list_social_accounts`, and the agent authorises with OAuth so your API key is never pasted into a chat or seen by the model. You control what any one agent may do: which brands it may act for, which networks it may reach, how much a day, and whether it may spend credits bought up front.

## Errors

Every failure uses one shape: a stable `type`, a granular `code`, the field at fault in `param`, and a plain-language `fix`. See https://docs.postlake.dev/errors.md .

Retries are safe: send the same `Idempotency-Key` and a call that already succeeded returns its original result rather than repeating it.

## Common questions

**Can an AI agent do this without the REST API?**

Yes. Over MCP the same job is the list_social_accounts tool. The agent authorises with OAuth, so no API key is pasted into a chat or seen by the model, and the answer comes back in the same normalised shape.

**How often can I call this?**

Reads are rate limited per account and every response carries X-RateLimit-Remaining and X-RateLimit-Reset. On a 429 the Retry-After header tells you how long to wait.

**What happens when it fails?**

You get one error shape: a stable type, a granular code you can branch on, the offending field in param, and a fix written so an agent can correct itself rather than stop. Full list on Errors and retries.

## Related

- [Ad accounts this channel can use](https://docs.postlake.dev/api/get-social-accounts-by-id-ad-accounts.md) `GET /v1/social-accounts/{id}/ad-accounts`
- [Branded content partners](https://docs.postlake.dev/api/get-social-accounts-by-id-branded-partners.md) `GET /v1/social-accounts/{id}/branded-partners`
- [Scheduled events on this channel](https://docs.postlake.dev/api/get-social-accounts-by-id-events.md) `GET /v1/social-accounts/{id}/events`
- [This channel's own posts, from the network](https://docs.postlake.dev/api/get-social-accounts-by-id-posts.md) `GET /v1/social-accounts/{id}/posts`