What database block size should I use?

Oracle recommends that your database block size match, or be multiples of your operating system block size. One can use smaller block sizes, but the performance cost is significant.

Your choice should depend on the type of application you are running. If you have many small transactions as with OLTP, use a smaller block size. With fewer but larger transactions, as with a DSS application,use a larger block size.

If you are using a volume manager, consider your "operating system block size" to be 8K. This is because volume manager products use 8K blocks (and this is not configurable).