“Context” is better for describing the circumstances in which a user uses a product. “Background” usually refers to the past (historical) facts leading up to an event or that describe a person’s career up to a certain point. Example: “The ambassador began his speech by giving some background on the relationship between China and the US over the last 10 years.” “Please give me some background on Mr. Smith. Where did he go to school, what jobs has he held, etc.”. Context, in contrast, usually means “additional facts that help to give meaning to another fact, or that make that other fact more understandable.” The facts about how/where/when one uses a product would fall into this category of “context.”

Although they may have similar descriptions, both words are different. Background is a more general term to describe context. Context is more specific to a topic than background would be.