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Choose the right compression layer
| Decision axis | Brotli | Gzip | LZ-String |
|---|---|---|---|
| Layer | HTTP content encoding (br) |
HTTP content encoding (gzip) |
Application-level string or byte representation |
| How it is selected | Client sends Accept-Encoding; server returns Content-Encoding |
Not selected by Accept-Encoding; define it in your payload contract |
|
| Node.js implementation | node:zlib Brotli APIs or Express middleware |
node:zlib gzip APIs or Express middleware |
LZ-String methods with a matching decompressor |
| Output | Encoded HTTP body | Encoded HTTP body | Raw, Base64, URI-safe, UTF-16, or Uint8Array output |
| Main risk | Settings affect CPU, memory, size and latency | Settings affect CPU, memory, size and latency | Both peers must agree on the exact format and compatible implementation |
This distinction matters: an HTTP client, proxy or browser can transparently decode Brotli or gzip when the headers are correct. It will not transparently decode an arbitrary LZ-String value unless your application tells it how.
How HTTP response compression negotiation works
- Read the request. A client may send a header such as
Accept-Encoding: br, gzip. Its list and quality values express what it can accept. - Select an encoding. Choose a supported encoding, or send the response uncompressed when no acceptable encoding is available.
- Encode the actual bytes. Do not set a compression header unless the response body was really compressed with that algorithm.
- Label the response. Set
Content-Encoding: brorContent-Encoding: gzip. - Protect caches. When the representation changes according to
Accept-Encoding, sendVary: Accept-Encodingso intermediaries do not reuse a Brotli response for a client that cannot decode it.
Node.js documents these patterns, along with decompression and streaming APIs, in its zlib documentation. Follow the documentation for the Node.js version you deploy; available HTTP encodings and option details are version-specific.
Compress responses in a custom Node.js server
Use streaming APIs when your endpoint streams data, and connect the stream with a pipeline so compression and write errors are handled. A small, complete gzip example is:
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import http from 'node:http';
import { createGzip, createBrotliCompress } from 'node:zlib';
import { Readable } from 'node:stream';
const server = http.createServer((req, res) => {
const accepted = String(req.headers['accept-encoding'] || '');
const payload = JSON.stringify({ ok: true, items: [1, 2, 3] });
res.setHeader('Content-Type', 'application/json');
res.setHeader('Vary', 'Accept-Encoding');
if (accepted.includes('br')) {
res.setHeader('Content-Encoding', 'br');
Readable.from([payload]).pipe(createBrotliCompress()).pipe(res);
} else if (accepted.includes('gzip')) {
res.setHeader('Content-Encoding', 'gzip');
Readable.from([payload]).pipe(createGzip()).pipe(res);
} else {
res.end(payload);
}
});
server.listen(3000);A production negotiator should parse quality values rather than merely checking whether a token appears. It should also handle wildcards, an explicit identity preference, malformed headers and a policy for clients that advertise no usable encoding. Keep an uncompressed path.
Enable Brotli or gzip in Express
For ordinary Express responses, the compression package handles negotiation and sets the relevant headers:
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import express from 'express';
import compression from 'compression';
const app = express();
app.use(compression({
// The package default is 1 KB; set a policy that fits your API.
threshold: '1kb'
}));
app.get('/api/data', (req, res) => {
res.json({ ok: true, items: [1, 2, 3] });
});
app.listen(3000);Express’s compression middleware documentation says the middleware supports gzip, Brotli and deflate. Its default filter checks whether the response content type is compressible, and its documented default threshold is 1 KB. The threshold is advisory when the body length is unknown as headers are committed, so do not treat it as an exact minimum for every response. You can provide a custom filter to skip selected responses.
Choose gzip settings deliberately
Gzip levels are documented from 0 through 9, with -1 as the default compromise (currently equivalent to level 6 in the Express documentation). Higher levels can reduce output more while taking longer; lower levels favor speed. These are package defaults and trade-offs, not universal performance results.
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Choose Brotli settings deliberately
Node’s zlib options expose Brotli quality parameters. The Node.js v26.10.0 documentation describes quality 6 as suitable for streaming and quality 11 as intended for offline or build-time compression. Treat that guidance as version-specific and measure your own payloads before applying it to live traffic.
Use LZ-String only as an explicit API format
LZ-String is a JavaScript library, not an HTTP content encoding. It is useful when an API deliberately puts a compressed representation into a string field, URL component or byte-oriented channel.
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Pick and document one representation
compressToBase64anddecompressFromBase64for text-safe Base64.compressToEncodedURIComponentanddecompressFromEncodedURIComponentfor URI components.compressToUTF16anddecompressFromUTF16when the agreed transport safely preserves that UTF-16 representation.compressToUint8ArrayanddecompressFromUint8Arraywhen the transport supports bytes.
The project README does not treat raw compressed output as safe for arbitrary text storage. Put the selected method, expected character or byte representation, package/version expectations and test vectors in the API contract.
import LZString from 'lz-string';
const value = JSON.stringify({ message: 'hello', count: 3 });
const encoded = LZString.compressToEncodedURIComponent(value);
// Send { data: encoded, encoding: 'lz-string-uri' }
const decoded = LZString.decompressFromEncodedURIComponent(encoded);
const original = JSON.parse(decoded);Ports maintained by other developers are separate implementations. If one side is not JavaScript, verify compatibility with known test vectors instead of assuming every port produces interchangeable output.
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Compression costs and operational checks
- Benchmark representative data. Compare uncompressed, gzip and Brotli response size and end-to-end latency using your actual JSON shapes, runtime version, settings, payload sizes, concurrency and client mix. The cited documentation does not establish a directly comparable Brotli-versus-gzip-versus-LZ-String benchmark for API JSON.
- Measure CPU and memory. Node.js warns that zlib work can be expensive; asynchronous operations use the internal threadpool, and many large concurrent zlib objects can contribute to memory fragmentation.
- Cache repeated work. If the same representation is compressed repeatedly and cache behavior is valid, cache the compressed result rather than recompressing it for every request.
- Verify headers and bytes. Inspect the wire response to confirm that
Content-Encodingmatches the bytes and that caches receiveVary: Accept-Encodingwhen needed. - Keep contracts explicit. For LZ-String, test every supported decoder and reject or clearly report an unknown representation.
- Review sensitive data separately. Compression behavior can interact with application security rules when sensitive and attacker-controlled values are combined. The cited sources do not establish a security guarantee, so apply your own threat model and security review.
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