diff --git a/optimizely/cmab/cmab_client.py b/optimizely/cmab/cmab_client.py
index dfcffa78..2d57bcf7 100644
--- a/optimizely/cmab/cmab_client.py
+++ b/optimizely/cmab/cmab_client.py
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@
 # Default constants for CMAB requests
 DEFAULT_MAX_RETRIES = 3
 DEFAULT_INITIAL_BACKOFF = 0.1  # in seconds (100 ms)
-DEFAULT_MAX_BACKOFF = 10  # in seconds
+DEFAULT_MAX_BACKOFF = 3  # in seconds
 DEFAULT_BACKOFF_MULTIPLIER = 2.0
 MAX_WAIT_TIME = 10.0