First query after idle is slow: the compute was suspended

TL;DR

p99 latency on the first-after-idle query drops to the configured behavior; no more single transient failures on wake. Neon's scale-to-zero suspends the compute after 5 minutes of inactivity.

Steps

1. Neon's scale-to-zero suspends the compute after 5 minutes of inactivity. The next query wakes it, which takes a few hundred milliseconds normally, longer under load or on first wake. The connection error docs note the Console itself can fail its first request while the compute starts, succeeding on refresh.
2. - Latency-sensitive production: disable scale to zero on paid plans, or extend the timeout up to 7 days.

• Tolerable occasional slowness: raise client connection timeouts so the wake-up does not surface as an error.
• Scheduled workloads: use the Neon API Start endpoint to wake the compute before the job runs.

When to use

You are seeing this: The first query after a quiet period takes seconds (sometimes failing once, then succeeding); subsequent queries are fast. Use this skill when you run into "First query after idle is slow: the compute was suspended".

When not to use

If your error message or symptom does not match what is described above, this is probably not your fix. Search for your exact error text instead of forcing this one to fit.

Versions

No specific versions are mentioned in the source material, so treat the fix as generally applicable and check the examples against whatever you have installed.

Why this happens

Neon's scale-to-zero suspends the compute after 5 minutes of inactivity.

Neon's scale-to-zero docs (verified live 2026-09-26): suspend after 5 minutes idle, reactivate within a few hundred ms, timeout adjustable up to 7 days, disableable on paid plans; connection latency docs: check compute Active/Idle status, Start/Suspend endpoint APIs, increase connection timeouts, same-region placement.