diff --git a/go_backend/httputil.go b/go_backend/httputil.go
index 9554d68c..b2c333b9 100644
--- a/go_backend/httputil.go
+++ b/go_backend/httputil.go
@@ -123,7 +123,9 @@ var metadataTransport = &http.Transport{
 	ForceAttemptHTTP2:     true,
 	WriteBufferSize:       32 * 1024,
 	ReadBufferSize:        32 * 1024,
-	DisableCompression:    true,
+	// Metadata responses are JSON; transparent gzip cuts transfer size several
+	// times over. Downloads stay on sharedTransport with compression disabled.
+	DisableCompression:    false,
 	TLSClientConfig:       newTLSCompatibilityConfig(false),
 }