GRAPH_RECURSION_LIMIT: infinite loop in the graph or a legitimately deep run

Not specified by the original author.

TL;DR: The graph hit the maximum step count before reaching a stop condition. Either your edges form a cycle that never exits, or the graph is genuinely deep and needs a higher limit. GRAPHRECURSIONLIMIT Diagnose first Ask: should this graph terminate in a handful of steps? The classic shape is two nodes with edges in both directions and a conditional edge whose condition never flips.

The fix

1. Cycle: fix the conditional logic so some path reaches END.
2. Legitimately deep: raise the limit per invocation:
3. Do not raise the limit to silence a real infinite loop. A loop that burns 1000 steps burns money and time; fix the logic.
4. In JS this is the GRAPHRECURSIONLIMIT error code on lc_error_code.
5. Agent loops that call tools forever usually mean the model never gets a usable tool result; check the tool outputs, not just the graph.

When to use this

• This covers exactly what the title says: GRAPHRECURSIONLIMIT.
• You are setting this up for the first time, or auditing an existing setup.
• You want the key gotchas in one place before you start.

When not to use this

• You are doing a different workflow with GRAPHRECURSIONLIMIT; these steps are specific to the title above.
• You need the full reference docs; this is the short path, not the manual.

Compatibility

• Not pinned to a specific version; follows current GRAPHRECURSIONLIMIT behavior.

Error catalog entry grounded in the official GRAPHRECURSIONLIMIT error page, verified 2026-09-26. Error page: https://docs.langchain.com/oss/python/langgraph/errors/GRAPHRECURSIONLIMIT