application/zip
The MIME type for ZIP archive files used for compression and bundling.
What Is This?
The application/zip MIME type indicates that the content is a ZIP archive. ZIP is a widely used compression and archival format that bundles multiple files into a single compressed container. It supports lossless compression, encryption, and multi-volume archives.
Common Uses
Software downloads and installers
Bundling multiple files for download
Source code distribution
Backup file archives
Examples
Supported by all browsers. Browsers typically prompt to download or save ZIP files.
The .zip file extension maps to application/zip as its MIME type.
Related Entries
More from this reference:
application/json
The standard MIME type for JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) data interchange.
application/pdf
The MIME type for PDF (Portable Document Format) documents.
application/xml
The MIME type for XML documents and data interchange.
application/octet-stream
The generic MIME type for arbitrary binary data, often used for unknown file types or forced downloads.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I use application/zip or application/x-zip-compressed?
Use application/zip, which is the official registered MIME type. application/x-zip-compressed is an older, non-standard alias that some systems still use for backward compatibility.
Can I serve large ZIP files efficiently?
Yes. For large files, ensure your server supports range requests (Accept-Ranges header) for resumable downloads. Consider using Content-Encoding: gzip on top of ZIP is redundant and wastes CPU.