Does 7-Zip Support Zstandard and LZ4 Natively?

This article examines whether the official release of 7-Zip natively supports modern compression algorithms like Zstandard (zstd) and LZ4. It clarifies the built-in capabilities of the official software, explains why these high-speed algorithms are absent from standard installations, and outlines the practical methods available to enable Zstandard and LZ4 functionality within the 7-Zip ecosystem.

Native Support in Official 7-Zip

The short answer is no. Official 7-Zip, developed by Igor Pavlov, does not natively support Zstandard or LZ4 for compression or decompression. When you download and install the standard version from the official 7-Zip website, you are limited to its default set of algorithms:

  • LZMA and LZMA2: The primary algorithms optimized for high compression ratios.
  • Deflate: The standard algorithm used for traditional .zip archives.
  • BZip2: A legacy high-compression algorithm.
  • PPMd: An algorithm specialized for compressing plain text.
  • Copy: Storing files with zero compression.

Neither Zstandard nor LZ4 appears as an option in the compression method dropdown within the native 7-Zip graphical user interface, and the native command-line tool cannot process these formats out of the box.

Why Native Support Is Missing

The primary design philosophy behind official 7-Zip has historically prioritized maximum compression density over real-time processing speeds. LZ4 focuses on ultra-fast compression and decompression at the expense of ratio, while Zstandard provides high decompression speeds and scalable compression levels. Because official development prioritizes LZMA2 maintenance and security stability, third-party modern codecs have not been merged into the upstream main branch.

How to Add Zstandard and LZ4 Support

While native support is absent, you can easily use Zstandard and LZ4 with 7-Zip through community-developed solutions:

1. 7-Zip Zstandard Edition (7-Zip-zstd)

The most common approach is using the 7-Zip-zstd fork maintained by Tino Reichardt. This is a modified, open-source version of 7-Zip that retains the original user interface while integrating several modern codecs directly into the core engine:

  • Zstandard (zstd)
  • LZ4
  • LZ5
  • Brotli
  • Lizard
  • Fast LZMA2

This fork operates as a drop-in replacement for the official build, allowing you to select Zstandard or LZ4 directly from the compression settings menu.

2. External Codec Plugins

If you prefer keeping the official 7-Zip installation, you can expand its capabilities by installing external codec plugins. By creating a Codecs folder within the 7-Zip program directory and placing compatible .dll codec files inside, standard 7-Zip can handle compression and extraction for formats like Zstandard and LZ4 without requiring a completely separate installation.