> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.agentlabs.dev/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.agentlabs.dev/core-concepts/messages/one-off-vs-stream.md).

# One-off vs Stream

## One-off messages

A one-off message is a standard message that you can send entirely as you would do when you're chatting with a friend and hit `send` .

The entire message will be sent at once.

One-off messages are great for small content that you know in advance.3

For example, in our [Ping-Pong](/recipes/ping-pong.md) recipe, we answer "pong" using a one-off message every time the user says "ping".

## Streamed messages

Streamed messages are different from one-off messages. 

When you send a streamed message, the user immediately sees a message box popping up.

However, every time you send a new stream on the same channel, it will aggregate to the same message box.

{% hint style="info" %}
You can think of them as having this "typewriter" look and feel as you could have for example in [ChatGPT](https://chat.openai.com/).
{% endhint %}

Sending a stream works in 3 steps:

:blue\_circle: **Open a stream channel using the** `createStream()` **method**

```typescript
const channel = agent.createStream(conversationId)
```

{% hint style="info" %}
Note that starting from `v0.0.51` openeing a stream triggers an event that will displays a smooth animation in the frontend (see [Typewriter animation](/core-concepts/messages/typewriter-animation.md))
{% endhint %}

:blue\_circle: **Write content to the stream as many times as you want**

```typescript
channel.write("this")
channel.write("is")
channel.write("a")
channel.write("streamed")
channel.write("message")
```

:blue\_circle: **When you're done, close the channel**

```typescript
channel.streamEnd()
```

Et voilà :tada:\
\
\
Here's an example of how a streamed response looks

{% embed url="<https://youtu.be/1pCXNfhPtJY>" %}
Example streamed message with code execution
{% endembed %}

## Which one to choose?

It's pretty rare to hesitate between both, but if you're in that situation, here's a quick recap that might help.

| Solution | Info                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           | Warning                                                                                                                                          |
| -------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| One-off  | <p><span data-gb-custom-inline data-tag="emoji" data-code="2705">✅</span> great when you know the content of the message upfront<br><span data-gb-custom-inline data-tag="emoji" data-code="2705">✅</span> suited when you need to inform the user quickly about something</p> | :x:Generally not suited to send multiple messages in a row                                                                                       |
| Stream   | <p><span data-gb-custom-inline data-tag="emoji" data-code="2705">✅</span> feel more natural / human-friendly<br><span data-gb-custom-inline data-tag="emoji" data-code="2705">✅</span> suited for long-running tasks in the background<br></p>                                 | :x:Be careful with very very long answers because it can become borring for the user to wait, especially if you know the whole response upfront. |

{% hint style="info" %}
Indeed, you have to test each solution on your own to make sure you decide which one is best suited to your specific use case. In general, you want to use a mix of both in your application anyway.
{% endhint %}