TCP vs UDP: When to Use What, and How TCP Relates to HTTP

TCP(Transmission control protocol) and UDP (User datagram protocol) are transport layer protocolsi in the TCP/IP model.
TCP: TCP is connection oriented protocol that focuses on reliability and accurate data delivery.
UDP: UDP is a connectionless protocol that focuses on speed and low overhead.

Key differences between TCP and UDP

TCP:

• TCP is connection oriented protocol.

• TCP is focuses on reliability.

• TCP maintains order in data packets.

UDP:

• UDP is connectionless protocol
• UDP is not reliable
• UDP not gurantee of order in data packets

When to use TCP
Use TCP when data accuracy and reliability are more important than speed.
Typical use cases:
Web Browsing (HTTP/HTTPS): Web pages must load correctly. Missing HTML, CSS, or JavaScript files could break the page, so reliable delivery is essential.
Email (SMTP, POP3, IMAP): Emails must arrive complete and in the correct order. Missing data could corrupt the message or attachments.