When does Brave LLM Context switch to local place results?

Definition: Brave LLM Context uses local recall for location-aware queries when enable_local is left at null and the request supplies location context. You can also set enable_local=true to request local recall explicitly, or set it to false to keep the standard web ranking.

Key facts

• Brave describes LLM Context as an API that returns pre-extracted content for AI agents, LLM grounding and RAG pipelines in its LLM Context documentation.
• The enable_local parameter accepts true, false or null; when it is not set, the API auto-detects local recall from location headers, according to the GET API reference.
• The GET reference identifies X-Loc-Lat with X-Loc-Long, or X-Loc-City, as the location inputs for that auto-detection.
• When local recall is active, the response may include point-of-interest data and map data in addition to the generic results array.

How does the switch work?

The request parameter is enable_local. Its default is null, which means that Brave decides from the request context. With location context present, the documented auto-detection path uses local recall. With enable_local=true, the request explicitly asks for local recall. With enable_local=false, the request explicitly selects standard web ranking even when location headers are present.

The API reference describes the automatic trigger as either a coordinate pair, X-Loc-Lat together with X-Loc-Long, or the city header, X-Loc-City. The service documentation presents the broader rule that local recall is enabled automatically when location headers are present. The narrower API wording is the useful implementation test for a client.

Which headers provide location context?

Brave documents seven location headers for LLM Context: latitude, longitude, city, state code, state name, country and postal code. The coordinate headers use decimal geographic coordinates. The API reference gives a latitude range from -90.0 to 90.0 degrees and a longitude range from -180.0 to 180.0 degrees. The place-name headers carry city, region, country or postal information.

The service documentation says that coordinates alone are usually sufficient. When coordinates are unavailable, it says to provide the place-name headers available to the client. Its location example is:

curl -X GET "https://api.search.brave.com/res/v1/llm/context" \
  -H "X-Subscription-Token: <YOUR_API_KEY>" \
  -H "X-Loc-Lat: 37.7749" \
  -H "X-Loc-Long: -122.4194" \
  -G \
  --data-urlencode "q=best coffee shops near me"

What appears in a local response?

LLM Context normally organizes extracted web content in grounding.generic. When local recall is enabled, Brave documents an optional grounding.poi object and a grounding.map array. A point-of-interest item can contain a name, URL, title and snippets. A map item has the same documented fields for a place. The standard generic array remains part of the response model, so local recall adds place-oriented fields to the web context rather than replacing the ordinary context structure.

The API reference labels the POI and map fields as data that may be returned when enable_local is enabled. The documentation therefore describes their presence as conditional, rather than as a result returned for every local query.

How should a client choose the setting?

Leave enable_local unset when the client wants Brave to infer local intent from supplied location context. Set it to true when the request should use local recall without relying on automatic detection. Set it to false when the client needs standard web ranking despite location headers. The endpoint accepts both GET and POST requests, and the service documentation shows the parameter in a GET query string.

Related terms

• Brave Search API
• Brave Search localisation
• Brave Answers API

FAQ

Does a city header turn on local recall?

Brave's GET reference says that X-Loc-City is sufficient location input for automatic local recall. The service documentation also lists city as a supported location header.

Are latitude and longitude both needed?

For automatic detection, the GET reference names X-Loc-Lat with X-Loc-Long as a pair. The service documentation says those coordinates alone are usually sufficient.

Can local recall be forced without location headers?

Yes. Brave's service documentation shows enable_local=true in the query string without location headers. The same page describes this as an explicit local-recall setting.

Does local recall always return a place result?

No. The API reference says POI and map data may be returned when local recall is enabled. The response can still contain the standard grounding.generic array.

Sources

1. Brave Search API, "LLM Context: Web search for AI agents and chatbots", undated
2. Brave Search API, "LLM Context API Documentation", undated

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