FAQ

Authentication & Access

• How do I get an API key for Base? Sign up at TheRPC.io, open the Dashboard, go to API Keys, and generate a key. It works for Base (chain ID 8453) right away.
• Can I create multiple API keys? Yes. Separate keys per environment or app (dev, staging, production) let you track usage independently and isolate problems — if one key is abused, you revoke just that one.
• What if a key is compromised? Revoke it immediately from the dashboard and generate a new one. Then update your environment variables and redeploy so the old key is no longer in use.

API Usage

• HTTP vs WebSocket on Base? Use the HTTP endpoint (https://base.therpc.io/YOUR_API_KEY) for single or simple requests like balance checks and contract reads. Use the WebSocket endpoint (wss://base.therpc.io/YOUR_API_KEY) for real-time subscriptions — streaming new ~2-second blocks and logs via eth_subscribe instead of polling.
• How do I handle rate limits? Retry with exponential backoff when you hit a limit, and consider upgrading your plan if you regularly exceed it.
• What timeouts should I use? A 30-second timeout for HTTP requests, a 60-second WebSocket ping/pong interval to keep the connection alive, and roughly 30 seconds for subscription operations.

Error Handling

Base returns standard JSON-RPC error codes, summarized in the table below: -32700 parse error, -32600 invalid request, -32601 method not found, -32602 invalid params, -32603 internal error, and the -32000 to -32099 range for server errors. Four practices keep your integration robust: always check the error field on every response before using result; retry transient failures with exponential backoff; log the full error code and message for later diagnosis; and set sensible timeouts so a slow request never hangs your application.

Common Error Response

1{
2  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
3  "error": {
4    "code": -32601,
5    "message": "Method not found"
6  },
7  "id": 1
8}

Standard JSON-RPC Error Codes

Technical Questions

• How do I track pending transactions? Poll eth_getTransactionReceipt with the transaction hash until a receipt appears, or subscribe in real time with eth_subscribe over WebSocket to react the moment a transaction is mined.
• How do I ensure transaction ordering? Use the nonce parameter and an application-level queue so transactions from one address go out in sequence. Read the current nonce with eth_getTransactionCount before signing.
• How do I handle chain reorganizations? Wait for several confirmations by comparing the receipt's block against eth_blockNumber, listen to newHeads via eth_subscribe to detect head changes, and verify finality by re-reading the block with eth_getBlockByNumber. On Base, soft confirmations come fast at ~2-second blocks, but full L1 finality settles on Ethereum, so wait for enough confirmations on high-value flows.

Transaction Tracking Example

1// Example of transaction tracking
2const receipt = await web3.eth.getTransactionReceipt(txHash);
3if (receipt) {
4  console.log(`Transaction confirmed in block ${receipt.blockNumber}`);
5}

Performance

• How do I optimize API usage on Base? Batch independent calls into a single request, use WebSocket subscriptions instead of polling for real-time data, cache slowly-changing results (chain ID, contract code, old blocks), and pick polling intervals that match Base's ~2-second block time rather than hammering the endpoint.
• What about high-throughput workloads? Use connection pooling to reuse sockets, queue requests to stay under your rate limit, monitor rate-limit headers and dashboard metrics, and consider dedicated infrastructure or a higher-tier plan for sustained heavy traffic from indexers or trading systems.

Network Specific

• How do I switch between networks? Just change the endpoint host in the URL — your same API key and the same JSON-RPC request format work across every TheRPC network. Confirm the active network with net_version, which returns 8453 for Base.
• Does my Base code work on other chains? Yes. Because the request format is identical, the same code runs against any supported network simply by swapping the endpoint. Base's chain ID is 8453 (hex 0x2105), which you can verify at runtime with eth_chainId.

Development & Integration

• Which Web3 libraries work with Base? For JavaScript/TypeScript use ethers.js, viem, or web3.js; for Python use web3.py; for Java/Kotlin use web3j. For every other language, see the Tools & SDKs reference. All of them work unchanged because Base is EVM-equivalent.
• How should I test my integration? Start on a Base testnet (Base Sepolia) before mainnet, use a separate test API key, build in error handling from the start, validate connectivity with a simple eth_blockNumber call, and monitor latency and error rates as you scale up.