`tar --help` :  `-I, --use-compress-program=PROG`  

  

      
  
    tar -I 'xz -9' -cvf foo.tar.xz foo/  
    tar -I 'gzip -9' -cvf foo.tar.gz foo/    

also compress with external compressors:   

    tar -I 'lz4 -9' -cvf foo.tar.lz4 foo/
    tar -I 'zstd -19' -cvf foo.tar.zst foo/

decompress external compressors:  

    tar -I lz4 -xvf foo.tar.lz4  
    tar -I zstd -xvf foo.tar.zst  
list archive external compressors:  

    tar -I lz4 -tvf foo.tar.lz4
    tar -I zstd -tvf foo.tar.zst