Choosing between MQTT and HTTP can dictate your hardware payload overhead, power consumption, and network bandwidth costs for years.
MQTT features a tiny 2-byte header overhead compared to HTTP's multi-hundred byte header footprints, making it ideal for cellular/satellite IoT data plans.
HTTP REST APIs remain optimal for low-frequency configuration updates and large firmware payload transfers.
Explore more engineering and IoT insights
How we designed a sensor network handling 50,000+ data points per second for a manufacturing client, and the trade-offs we made along the way.
The steps we run on every project before launch: bundle analysis, image optimization, server component boundaries, and more.
The questions we ask clients before recommending a build-or-buy approach, and how to evaluate total cost of ownership honestly.