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About this tool
Convert a RAR archive into a ZIP that opens anywhere, with nothing to install. RAR compresses well, but it is proprietary and it is not welcome everywhere: macOS cannot open a .rar in Finder, most Linux desktops need an extra package, and plenty of upload forms and email filters reject the extension outright. ZIP has none of those problems. Windows Explorer, macOS Finder and every Linux file manager have handled it natively for two decades.
The conversion is a full unpack and repack, not a rename. Every file comes out of the RAR and goes into the ZIP with the folder structure intact, so a nested project archive arrives on the other side with its directories in place rather than flattened into a heap.
Both RAR3 and the newer RAR5 archives produced by recent WinRAR versions are supported. If your archive is split into parts, start from the first one and make sure the whole set sits together before you upload.
File size: The ZIP is typically 5 to 15 percent larger than the source RAR, since DEFLATE compression is less aggressive than the RAR algorithm. Archives already full of compressed data, such as photos or videos, barely change size either way.
Quality: Nothing inside the archive is touched. Files are extracted and repacked byte for byte, so documents, images and executables come out identical to what went in.
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How to convert
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Upload your RAR archive: up to 100 MB per file.
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Every file is extracted and repacked into a standard ZIP, folder structure included.
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Download a ZIP that opens with a double-click on Windows, macOS and Linux, with no extra software.
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FAQ
Why convert to ZIP at all?
Because ZIP opens everywhere by default. RAR needs WinRAR or 7-Zip installed, which you cannot count on when you are sending a file to someone else, and macOS has never supported it out of the box.
Does it handle RAR5 archives?
Yes. Archives created by WinRAR 5 and later use the RAR5 format, and older ones use RAR3. Both are supported, and you do not need to know which you have.
Is the folder structure preserved?
Yes. Files, subfolders and their arrangement are reproduced in the ZIP exactly as they sat in the RAR. Nothing is flattened or renamed.
What about a password-protected archive?
An encrypted RAR cannot be read without its password, so it cannot be converted here. Extract it locally with the password first, then compress the result to ZIP.
My archive is split into part1, part2 and so on. What do I do?
Multi-part sets need every part present to be readable. Gather the whole set in one folder on your device and upload the first part. A single part on its own is an incomplete archive and cannot be unpacked.
Will the ZIP be bigger than the RAR?
Slightly, usually. RAR generally compresses a little harder than the DEFLATE method ZIP uses, so expect the result to grow by around 5 to 15 percent. You trade a little space for an archive that opens anywhere.
Is my archive kept on your servers?
No. The upload and the ZIP we generate are both deleted automatically within two hours. No account is required, and the contents are never inspected or shared. The limit is 100 MB per file.
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Common use cases
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Opening a RAR file on a Mac without installing WinRAR or a third-party extractor
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Uploading to a form, a learning platform or a ticketing system that only accepts ZIP
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Sending an archive to someone who has no extraction software and no interest in installing any
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Converting old RAR backups to a format that will still open without special tools in ten years
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Getting an archive past an email filter that blocks .rar attachments
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