Spec conformance: zstd.zig implements the Zstandard 1.6.0 specification natively in Zig - every algorithm, frame element, and default table in this document follows that version.

Installation

Requirements

• Zig 0.17.0 (required) - download from ziglang.org
• No external dependencies required - pure Zig implementation
• Supported OS: Windows 10+, Linux, macOS
• Supported architectures: x86_64, aarch64, x86

Version Requirement

This library targets the new Zig 0.17.0 release and standard library APIs (std.Io, language builtins, etc.). Zig 0.16.0 is not supported in this release (v0.0.4+). If your project is still on Zig 0.16.0, please use library version 0.0.3 (the previous stable release).

Setup

Method 1: Zig Fetch (Recommended) - Latest Release (Zig 0.17.0)

zig fetch --save https://github.com/muhammad-fiaz/zstd.zig/archive/refs/tags/0.0.4.tar.gz

This corresponds to build.zig.zon version 0.0.4:

.{
    .name = .zstd,
    .version = "0.0.4",
    .minimum_zig_version = "0.17.0",
    // ...
}

On Zig 0.16? Zig 0.16.0 is not supported in v0.0.4+. Fetch the previous stable release instead:

zig fetch --save https://github.com/muhammad-fiaz/zstd.zig/archive/refs/tags/0.0.3.tar.gz

Method 2: Zig Fetch (Dev Branch - Latest Updates)

Use the latest development version from the dev branch:

zig fetch --save git+https://github.com/muhammad-fiaz/zstd.zig.git

Method 3: Manual build.zig.zon Configuration

Add the dependency to your build.zig.zon:

.dependencies = .{
    .zstd = .{
        .url = "https://github.com/muhammad-fiaz/zstd.zig/archive/refs/tags/0.0.4.tar.gz",
        .hash = "...", // Run `zig fetch --save <url>` to generate the hash.
    },
},

Method 4: Local Source Checkout

Clone the repository locally:

git clone https://github.com/muhammad-fiaz/zstd.zig.git
cd zstd.zig
zig build

To use a local checkout from another project, add a path dependency to your build.zig.zon:

.dependencies = .{
    .zstd = .{
        .path = "../zstd.zig",
    },
},

Wire into build.zig

After adding the dependency, import the module in your build.zig:

const target = b.standardTargetOptions(.{});
const optimize = b.standardOptimizeOption(.{});

const zstd_dep = b.dependency("zstd", .{
    .target = target,
    .optimize = optimize,
});
exe.root_module.addImport("zstd", zstd_dep.module("zstd"));

Use in your code

const zstd = @import("zstd");

// You're ready to go!
const compressed = try zstd.compress(allocator, data);
defer allocator.free(compressed);

const decompressed = try zstd.decompress(allocator, compressed);
defer allocator.free(decompressed);

For repeated work, prefer one reusable context instead of one-shot calls:

var ctx = zstd.Context.init(allocator);
defer ctx.deinit();

const c = try ctx.compress(data);
defer allocator.free(c);
const d = try ctx.decompress(c);
defer allocator.free(d);

Verify Installation

zig build                    # Build library
zig build test --summary all # Run all tests
zig build run-all-examples   # Run all 20 examples
zig build check              # Compile tests and examples without running

zig build test verifies compatibility against reference zstd if available, found through ZSTD_REFERENCE_PATH, then PATH, then the usual install locations.

If all tests pass, zstd.zig is properly installed.

Cross-Compilation

Zig makes cross-compilation easy. Build for any target from any host:

# Build for Linux ARM64 from Windows
zig build -Dtarget=aarch64-linux

# Build for Windows from Linux
zig build -Dtarget=x86_64-windows

# Build for macOS Apple Silicon from Linux
zig build -Dtarget=aarch64-macos

# Build for 32-bit Windows
zig build -Dtarget=x86-windows

# Run tests with emulation for cross targets
zig build test -Dtarget=aarch64-linux --summary all -fqemu

Validated targets:

Platform	x86_64 (64-bit)	aarch64 (ARM64)	x86 (32-bit)
Linux	Yes	Yes (via QEMU)	Yes
Windows	Yes	Yes	Yes
macOS	Yes (via aarch64 runner)	Yes (Apple Silicon)	No