diff --git a/caput/fileformats.py b/caput/fileformats.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..d8707d81
--- /dev/null
+++ b/caput/fileformats.py
@@ -0,0 +1,87 @@
+import bitshuffle.h5
+import h5py
+import numcodecs
+import zarr
+
+
+class FileFormat:
+    """Abstract base class for file formats supported by this module."""
+
+    module = None
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def open(*args, **vargs):
+        raise NotImplementedError
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def compression_kwargs(compression=None, compression_opts=None, compressor=None):
+        """
+        Sort compression arguments in a format expected by file format module.
+
+        Parameters
+        ----------
+        compression : str or int
+            Name or identifier of HDF5 compression filter.
+        compression_opts
+            See HDF5 documentation for compression filters.
+        compressor : `numcodecs` compressor
+            As required by `zarr`.
+
+        Returns
+        -------
+        dict
+            Compression arguments as required by the file format module.
+        """
+        if compressor and (compression or compression_opts):
+            raise ValueError(
+                f"Found more than one kind of compression args: compression ({compression}, {compression_opts}) "
+                f"and compressor {compressor}."
+            )
+
+
+class HDF5(FileFormat):
+    module = h5py
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def open(*args, **kwargs):
+        return h5py.File(*args, **kwargs)
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def compression_kwargs(compression=None, compression_opts=None, compressor=None):
+        super(HDF5, HDF5).compression_kwargs(compression, compression_opts, compressor)
+        if compressor:
+            raise NotImplementedError
+        else:
+            return {"compression": compression, "compression_opts": compression_opts}
+
+
+class Zarr(FileFormat):
+    module = zarr
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def open(*args, **kwargs):
+        return zarr.open_group(*args, **kwargs)
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def compression_kwargs(compression=None, compression_opts=None, compressor=None):
+        super(Zarr, Zarr).compression_kwargs(compression, compression_opts, compressor)
+        if compression:
+            if compression == "gzip":
+                return {"compressor": numcodecs.gzip.GZip(level=compression_opts)}
+            elif compression == bitshuffle.h5.H5FILTER:
+                blocksize, c = compression_opts
+                if c == bitshuffle.h5.H5_COMPRESS_LZ4:
+                    cname = "lz4"
+                else:
+                    raise ValueError(
+                        f"Unknown value for cname in HDF5 compression opts: {compression_opts[1]}"
+                    )
+                return {
+                    "compressor": numcodecs.Blosc(
+                        cname, shuffle=numcodecs.blosc.BITSHUFFLE, blocksize=blocksize
+                    )
+                }
+            else:
+                ValueError(f"Compression filter not supported in zarr: {compression}")
+        else:
+            return {"compressor": compressor}