remotion-dev/remotion · error · Error

Lambda function returned no payload (status ${res.StatusCode

Error message

Lambda function returned no payload (status ${res.StatusCode})

What it means

Thrown when a synchronous Invoke returns with no FunctionError but res.Payload is empty. The StatusCode is included. This is an abnormal Lambda service response — normally a sync RequestResponse invocation always carries a payload.

Source

Thrown at packages/lambda-client/src/call-lambda-sync.ts:43

		region as AwsRegion,
		timeoutInTest,
		null,
	).send(
		new InvokeCommand({
			FunctionName: functionName,
			Payload,
			InvocationType: 'RequestResponse',
		}),
	);

	if (res.FunctionError) {
		throw new Error(
			`Lambda function returned error: ${res.FunctionError} ${res.LogResult}`,
		);
	}

	if (!res.Payload) {
		throw new Error(
			`Lambda function returned no payload (status ${res.StatusCode})`,
		);
	}

	const decoded = new TextDecoder('utf-8').decode(res.Payload);

	try {
		return JSON.parse(decoded) as OrError<ServerlessReturnValues<Provider>[T]>;
	} catch {
		throw new Error(`Invalid JSON: ${JSON.stringify(decoded)}`);
	}
};

export const callFunctionSyncImplementation = async <
	Provider extends CloudProvider,
	T extends ServerlessRoutines,
>(
	options: CallFunctionOptions<T, Provider>,

View on GitHub (pinned to 78fe4bb3fd)

Solutions

1. Retry the operation (transient)
2. Update @aws-sdk/client-lambda and @remotion/lambda-client to the latest version
3. Use the StatusCode in the message to narrow the cause (e.g. 5xx vs 2xx)
4. Report to Remotion with the StatusCode if it persists

try {
  await callSync(...);
} catch (err) {
  if (/returned no payload \(status/.test((err as Error).message)) {
    // transient; retry with backoff
  }
  throw err;
}

When it happens

Trigger: Sync Lambda invocation returning StatusCode without a body. Rare; can indicate an AWS-side issue, an SDK/transport problem, or an intermediary stripping the response.

Common situations: Transient AWS service incidents, outdated @aws-sdk/client-lambda, a proxy/gateway rewriting the response, unusual account-level throttling.

Related errors

• Lambda Insights is not supported by AWS in region ${region}.
• Lambda was created but has no name
• Deploying the site failed, and removing the generated bundle
• Render did not finish yet
• No valid AWS Caller Identity detected

AI-assisted analysis of remotion-dev/remotion@78fe4bb3fd (2026-08-12). Data as JSON: /api/errors/ce42bf05f57efe90. Report an issue: GitHub.