We present a general analysis of the error budget in the spectral inversion of atmospheric radiometric measurements. By focussing on the case of an occultation experiment, we simplify the problem through a reduced number of absorbers in a linearized formalism. However, our analysis is quite general and applies to many other situations. For a spectrometer having an infinite spectral resolution, we discuss the origin of systematic and random errors. In particular, the difficult case of aerosols is investigated and several inversion techniques are compared. We underline the importance of carefully simulating the spectral inversion as a function of the target constituent to be retrieved, and the required accuracy level.