Cursor Based Pagination vs Keyset Pagination

Developers should use cursor based pagination when building APIs or applications that handle large, dynamic datasets where data consistency and performance are critical, such as social media feeds, real-time analytics, or e-commerce product listings meets developers should use keyset pagination when building applications that require efficient, stable pagination over large datasets, especially in real-time or frequently updated systems like social media feeds, e-commerce product listings, or log viewers. Here's our take.

Cursor Based Pagination

Nice Pick

Developers should use cursor based pagination when building APIs or applications that handle large, dynamic datasets where data consistency and performance are critical, such as social media feeds, real-time analytics, or e-commerce product listings

Pros

• It prevents problems like skipped or repeated items that occur with offset pagination when data is inserted or deleted between requests, and it scales better for deep pagination by avoiding expensive offset calculations in databases
• Related to: api-design, database-optimization

Cons

• Specific tradeoffs depend on your use case

Keyset Pagination

Developers should use keyset pagination when building applications that require efficient, stable pagination over large datasets, especially in real-time or frequently updated systems like social media feeds, e-commerce product listings, or log viewers

Pros

• It is ideal because it leverages database indexes for fast queries, prevents performance degradation as offset values increase, and ensures consistency by avoiding issues from concurrent data modifications
• Related to: database-indexing, sql-optimization

Cons

• Specific tradeoffs depend on your use case

The Verdict

Use Cursor Based Pagination if: You want it prevents problems like skipped or repeated items that occur with offset pagination when data is inserted or deleted between requests, and it scales better for deep pagination by avoiding expensive offset calculations in databases and can live with specific tradeoffs depend on your use case.

Use Keyset Pagination if: You prioritize it is ideal because it leverages database indexes for fast queries, prevents performance degradation as offset values increase, and ensures consistency by avoiding issues from concurrent data modifications over what Cursor Based Pagination offers.

The Bottom Line

Cursor Based Pagination wins

Developers should use cursor based pagination when building APIs or applications that handle large, dynamic datasets where data consistency and performance are critical, such as social media feeds, real-time analytics, or e-commerce product listings