usage` as routine telemetry, not as a fire drill

Verified with Claude Code 2.1.153
Stability: stable
Status: current

Why this matters

/context and /usage are diagnostic commands most users only learn after they’ve been bitten — context filled mid-task and forced an awkward /compact, or a plan budget got eaten by a session that ran longer than expected. Used proactively, they’re routine telemetry that makes the awkward outcomes preventable.

/context visualizes current context as a grid: how much is in use, what’s filling it (CLAUDE.md, MCP tool results, memory, conversation history), and warnings about specific tools or files that dominate. The grid usually has a single offender — a tool result much larger than the rest, a CLAUDE.md import you forgot, a verbose MCP server. Spotting that early means you adjust before it forces a compact.

/usage (aliases /cost, /stats) shows session cost and plan limits. It’s most useful right before you commit to something expensive — spawning multiple subagents, running a long verification, launching an /ultrareview. Five seconds of /usage prevents the “why did this session eat my whole plan?” moment.

/insights is the longer-horizon version: it analyzes recent sessions for patterns, friction points, and where time goes. Useful when something feels generally off but no single session explains it.

What to avoid

Treating these as debug commands you reach for only when something breaks. Ignoring the warnings in /context (they’re real signals about specific tools or files). Launching expensive operations without a quick /usage check first. Letting context fill silently until /compact is forced — /compact under pressure produces worse summaries than /compact you chose to run with focus instructions.

What to do instead

Build a quick checkpoint habit at natural pause points: when a task ends, when you’re about to switch context, when you’re about to spawn agents. A two-second /context or /usage glance gives you information the rest of the session relies on. When /context flags a problem, act on it immediately — name the culprit, swap it for something smaller, or /compact deliberately rather than waiting.

Example

A telemetry check before launching expensive parallel work.

> /context

Context: 42% used
  Conversation: 18%
  Tool results:  16%   ← warning: 9% from a single MCP query
  CLAUDE.md:      4%
  Memory:         3%
  Agents/skills:  1%

> /usage

Session: $1.84  •  Plan: 38% used  •  31 turns

> /context

Context: 81% used
  Tool results:  52%   ← warning: large playwright trace
  Conversation: 22%
  …

> /compact keep the bug repro and the fix attempt; drop the playwright traces

Things to Remember

Check /context early in a long task — see what’s filling context before you’re forced to /compact
/usage shows session cost and plan usage; check before launching another expensive operation
/context flags context-heavy tools, memory bloat, and capacity warnings — read the warnings
/insights surfaces longer-term patterns across sessions when something feels off generally

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