diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index f177075..c369462 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -105,6 +105,7 @@ LOCAL_DOMAINS=masto.asonix.dog
 LOCAL_BLURB="<p>Welcome to my cool relay where I have cool relay things happening. I hope you enjoy your stay!</p>"
 PROMETHEUS_ADDR=0.0.0.0
 PROMETHEUS_PORT=9000
+CLIENT_POOL_SIZE=20
 ```
 
 #### Descriptions
@@ -154,6 +155,11 @@ Optional - description for the relay
 Optional - Address to bind to for serving the prometheus scrape endpoint
 ##### `PROMETHEUS_PORT`
 Optional - Port to bind to for serving the prometheus scrape endpoint
+##### `CLIENT_POOL_SIZE`
+Optional - How many connections the relay should maintain per thread. This value will be multiplied
+by two times the number of cores available to the relay. This defaults to 20, so a 4-core machine
+will have a maximum of 160 simultaneous outbound connections. If you run into problems related to
+"Too many open files", you can either decrease this number or increase the ulimit for your system.
 
 ### Subscribing
 Mastodon admins can subscribe to this relay by adding the `/inbox` route to their relay settings.
diff --git a/src/config.rs b/src/config.rs
index db21f9d..bf58533 100644
--- a/src/config.rs
+++ b/src/config.rs
@@ -45,6 +45,7 @@ pub(crate) struct ParsedConfig {
     local_blurb: Option<String>,
     prometheus_addr: Option<IpAddr>,
     prometheus_port: Option<u16>,
+    client_pool_size: usize,
 }
 
 #[derive(Clone)]
@@ -68,6 +69,7 @@ pub struct Config {
     local_domains: Vec<String>,
     local_blurb: Option<String>,
     prometheus_config: Option<PrometheusConfig>,
+    client_pool_size: usize,
 }
 
 #[derive(Clone)]
@@ -135,6 +137,7 @@ impl std::fmt::Debug for Config {
             .field("local_domains", &self.local_domains)
             .field("local_blurb", &self.local_blurb)
             .field("prometheus_config", &self.prometheus_config)
+            .field("client_pool_size", &self.client_pool_size)
             .finish()
     }
 }
@@ -164,6 +167,7 @@ impl Config {
             .set_default("local_blurb", None as Option<&str>)?
             .set_default("prometheus_addr", None as Option<&str>)?
             .set_default("prometheus_port", None as Option<u16>)?
+            .set_default("client_pool_size", 20u64)?
             .add_source(Environment::default())
             .build()?;
 
@@ -235,6 +239,7 @@ impl Config {
             local_domains,
             local_blurb: config.local_blurb,
             prometheus_config,
+            client_pool_size: config.client_pool_size,
         })
     }
 
@@ -414,6 +419,10 @@ impl Config {
         )
     }
 
+    pub(crate) fn client_pool_size(&self) -> usize {
+        self.client_pool_size
+    }
+
     pub(crate) fn source_code(&self) -> &IriString {
         &self.source_repo
     }
diff --git a/src/data/state.rs b/src/data/state.rs
index 4387974..d6c484b 100644
--- a/src/data/state.rs
+++ b/src/data/state.rs
@@ -47,6 +47,7 @@ impl State {
             config.user_agent(),
             self.breakers.clone(),
             self.last_online.clone(),
+            config.client_pool_size(),
         )
     }
 
diff --git a/src/main.rs b/src/main.rs
index 5f733d7..10f764c 100644
--- a/src/main.rs
+++ b/src/main.rs
@@ -148,7 +148,7 @@ fn client_main(config: Config, args: Args) -> JoinHandle<Result<(), anyhow::Erro
 }
 
 async fn do_client_main(config: Config, args: Args) -> Result<(), anyhow::Error> {
-    let client = requests::build_client(&config.user_agent());
+    let client = requests::build_client(&config.user_agent(), config.client_pool_size());
 
     if !args.blocks().is_empty() || !args.allowed().is_empty() {
         if args.undo() {
diff --git a/src/requests.rs b/src/requests.rs
index 0a2238e..efd3a99 100644
--- a/src/requests.rs
+++ b/src/requests.rs
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ use crate::{
 };
 use activitystreams::iri_string::types::IriString;
 use actix_web::http::header::Date;
-use awc::{error::SendRequestError, Client, ClientResponse};
+use awc::{error::SendRequestError, Client, ClientResponse, Connector};
 use base64::{engine::general_purpose::STANDARD, Engine};
 use dashmap::DashMap;
 use http_signature_normalization_actix::prelude::*;
@@ -145,6 +145,7 @@ impl Default for Breaker {
 
 #[derive(Clone)]
 pub(crate) struct Requests {
+    pool_size: usize,
     client: Rc<RefCell<Client>>,
     consecutive_errors: Rc<AtomicUsize>,
     error_limit: usize,
@@ -159,6 +160,7 @@ pub(crate) struct Requests {
 impl std::fmt::Debug for Requests {
     fn fmt(&self, f: &mut std::fmt::Formatter<'_>) -> std::fmt::Result {
         f.debug_struct("Requests")
+            .field("pool_size", &self.pool_size)
             .field("error_limit", &self.error_limit)
             .field("key_id", &self.key_id)
             .field("user_agent", &self.user_agent)
@@ -168,8 +170,11 @@ impl std::fmt::Debug for Requests {
     }
 }
 
-pub(crate) fn build_client(user_agent: &str) -> Client {
+pub(crate) fn build_client(user_agent: &str, pool_size: usize) -> Client {
+    let connector = Connector::new().limit(pool_size);
+
     Client::builder()
+        .connector(connector)
         .wrap(Tracing)
         .add_default_header(("User-Agent", user_agent.to_string()))
         .timeout(Duration::from_secs(15))
@@ -183,9 +188,11 @@ impl Requests {
         user_agent: String,
         breakers: Breakers,
         last_online: Arc<LastOnline>,
+        pool_size: usize,
     ) -> Self {
         Requests {
-            client: Rc::new(RefCell::new(build_client(&user_agent))),
+            pool_size,
+            client: Rc::new(RefCell::new(build_client(&user_agent, pool_size))),
             consecutive_errors: Rc::new(AtomicUsize::new(0)),
             error_limit: 3,
             key_id,
@@ -205,7 +212,7 @@ impl Requests {
         let count = self.consecutive_errors.fetch_add(1, Ordering::Relaxed);
         if count + 1 >= self.error_limit {
             tracing::warn!("{} consecutive errors, rebuilding http client", count + 1);
-            *self.client.borrow_mut() = build_client(&self.user_agent);
+            *self.client.borrow_mut() = build_client(&self.user_agent, self.pool_size);
             self.reset_err();
         }
     }