A computer-implemented method includes receiving a query plan. The method includes identifying a plurality of qualified relevant rows and one or more encoding candidate payload columns. The method includes analyzing the relevant rows in the encoding candidate payload columns to yield a count of distinct contents and a payload column width. The method includes estimating a cost and determining whether the cost is larger than an amount of available memory for on-the-fly encoding all of the plurality of encoding candidate payload columns. The method is responsive to the estimated cost being less than the amount of available memory, by on-the-fly encoding the encoding candidates and responsive to the estimated cost being greater than the amount of available memory by on-the-fly encoding fewer than all of the encoding candidates so as not to exceed the available memory, and leaving alone one or more remaining encoding candidate payload columns unencoded.