The compact loaders are obvious, but I just don't see the reason for stacking and was hoping people could give me idea(s).

At first I thought it would be used for storage, reducing the amount of inventory slots one stack of an item took, but the total items per "stack" from the base item and from the beltboxes are the same so, the same amount of space is taken.

Throughput

less belts on the bus for the same throughput. a lot less

Stacking belt boxes compact 5 items into 1 item for the purposes of item transport, but not item storage, making not only belt and bot throughput but train loading and unloading 5 times faster.

Does it also give less lag?

No. If anything, it adds a slight amount of lag, but the throughput increase per belt might outweigh the extra lag because of the entities required to compress and decompress items.

No. If anything, it adds a slight amount of lag, but the throughput increase per belt might outweigh the extra lag because of the entities required to compress and decompress items.

Also you need less bots to move things if they are compressed, but I still don't know what is less laggy: bots or belts.

No. If anything, it adds a slight amount of lag, but the throughput increase per belt might outweigh the extra lag because of the entities required to compress and decompress items.

Also you need less bots to move things if they are compressed, but I still don't know what is less laggy: bots or belts.

Belts are far less laggy than bots as far as I am aware.

No. If anything, it adds a slight amount of lag, but the throughput increase per belt might outweigh the extra lag because of the entities required to compress and decompress items.

Also you need less bots to move things if they are compressed, but I still don't know what is less laggy: bots or belts.

Belts are far less laggy than bots as far as I am aware.

https://www.reddit.com/r/factorio/comments/a0esr1/best_ups_bots_or_belts/

I also use LTN with my Megabase, and I use the stackers to increase the actual amount of items that can be loaded/onloaded and transported, I usually compact at the provider and destack at the requester stations. the only problem is signaling cuz it doesn't count the stacked materials as the raw materials