> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.trychannel3.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Context

**Context** is who this chat is with, and what your app is. Set it **only on the first turn**. It sticks for the whole conversation. Sending it again on a later turn is a `422`. Each field can be up to 4,000 characters.

* `user_context` — the shopper (preferences, budget, size).
* `application_context` — context on your app, where this conversation is taking place

<CodeGroup>
  ```typescript TypeScript theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
  const stream = await client.conversations.createTurnStream({
    message: {
      role: "user",
      parts: [{ type: "text", text: "Weekend outfits" }],
    },
    context: {
      user_context:
        "25 year old software engineer in Williamsburg. Prefers minimalist styles, budget under $200.",
      application_context: "Shopping assistant inside a banking app.",
    },
  });
  ```

  ```python Python theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
  stream = client.conversations.create_turn_stream(
      message={
          "role": "user",
          "parts": [{"type": "text", "text": "Weekend outfits"}],
      },
      context={
          "user_context": "25 year old software engineer in Williamsburg. Prefers minimalist styles, budget under $200.",
          "application_context": "Shopping assistant inside a banking app.",
      },
  )
  ```

  ```bash cURL theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
  curl -N -X POST https://api.trychannel3.com/v1/conversations \
    -H "x-api-key: $CHANNEL3_API_KEY" \
    -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
    -d '{
      "message": {
        "role": "user",
        "parts": [{"type": "text", "text": "Weekend outfits"}]
      },
      "context": {
        "user_context": "25 year old software engineer in Williamsburg. Prefers minimalist styles, budget under $200.",
        "application_context": "Shopping assistant inside a banking app."
      }
    }'
  ```
</CodeGroup>

For hard catalog rules on a single turn (in-stock, a set of retailers), use [filters](/conversations/filters).