All Comparisons
Winner: Brotli
Gzip vs Brotli Compression
Comparing web compression algorithms for HTTP responses. Which reduces file size more and improves Core Web Vitals?
Gzip
Brotli
Compression Ratio
Good
Excellent (~15-20% smaller than Gzip)
Decompression Speed
Very Fast
Fast (slightly slower than Gzip, but negligible)
Browser Support
Universal (100%)
Excellent (Modern browsers, ~96%)
Best For
Legacy fallback, dynamic content (lower compression levels)
Static assets (JS, CSS, HTML) pre-compressed at high levels
When to use which?
Static Assets (CSS, JS, HTML)
"Delivering static files from a CDN or web server."
RecommendationPre-compress files using Brotli at maximum level (11). The one-time CPU cost is worth the massive file size reduction.
Dynamic API Responses
"Serving highly dynamic JSON responses generated on the fly."
RecommendationUse Brotli at a lower level (4-5) or Gzip. High-level Brotli compression is too slow for dynamic content generation.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Q.Does Brotli work over HTTP?
A.
No, browsers only accept Brotli compression over HTTPS connections to prevent issues with intermediate proxies.
Q.Should I disable Gzip if I use Brotli?
A.
No, you should configure your server to offer Brotli first, but fall back to Gzip for older browsers or clients that do not support Brotli (via the Accept-Encoding header).
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