Do you want a free and easy way to compress your business and personal documents by up to 70%?
The answer lies with 7zip, an award-winning file compression archiver that’s used by millions of home and business users. It also offers high-end encryption to keep your spreadsheets, images, and files safe from prying eyes.
This article looks at the 7z file software and how to open 7-Zip files.
You’ll learn all about the compression format along with the major benefits 7-Zip has to offer. Discover the differences between 7z, RAR, and Zip. Then see how to convert between several archive compression formats online for free.
Read on to find out why 7-Zip is a must-have tool to compress and secure your data.
What Is a 7z File?
7-Zip or the 7z format is a type of file compression software, similar to the popular .zip format found in Windows.
A 7z file looks and acts like a folder. It groups files together and uses an intelligent algorithm to remove unneeded data which reduces the overall file size.
This algorithm is called LZMA and it offers:
- Fast compression and decompression speeds
- Higher compression ratios than other archiving algorithms
- Small code file size and memory requirements
- Works with multi-threading for faster processing
All of these innovations allow you to take several files or folders and compress them to 30-70% of their original size. You can then send this group of files together via email or upload it to the cloud with ease.
Benefits of 7-Zip
The 7-Zip format is recognized as having better performance than regular zip files because it offers:
- Full control over how you archive and compress
- 256-bit AES encryption to keep files safe
- Higher levels of compression at faster speeds than Zip
- Opens other compression formats like BIZIP2, TAR, and X2
A popular rival to both the .zip and .7z formats is RAR.
RAR stands for Roshal Archive, named after its creator Eugene Roshal. Half-a-million users have downloaded the software and use it to compress their files. However, the WinRAR tool comes with a financial cost — approx. $55.
The biggest benefit of 7-Zip is that it’s free!
You can download the 7-Zip File Manager and it won’t cost you a penny. Also, benchmark tests that compare the three formats prove that 7z offers the best service.
Why use a worse product that costs money when 7-Zip does it better at no cost?
Opening 7z Files
What’s the best way to open a .7z file?
Firstly, download 7-Zip File Manager if you use Windows. macOS users must download an alternative compression software tool called Unarchiver. Both are free.
Make sure to choose the latest version of 7-Zip File Manager that matches your operating system (32-bit or 64-bit). You also have the option to download an executable (.exe) or installer (.msi) file or a standalone option (.7z).
For full integration with Windows, it’s best to choose the .exe option.
Follow the on-screen installation instructions and accept all the defaults. You need to have administrative privileges to be able to do this.
Program and Windows Shell
Once installed, you have two methods when opening a 7z file:
- Through the file manager program
- Via Windows Explorer (Windows Shell)
Opening the file manager gives you a host of options including adding and extracting files and copying/moving data.
Beneath the icons is a list of files in your Documents folder. You can navigate to another directory like Downloads or wherever the 7-zip file is located that you wish to open.
To view the contents of the 7z file or any compressed file like .zip, simply double-click it.
You’ll see a list of the files and folders along with their full file size, compressed size, and other useful attributes. You can order files by attribute by clicking on the header row.
Double-clicking a file will open it in a temporary location, a bit like a preview. But it’s best to extract the file(s) by clicking the Extract button. Choose the destination and the software will unpack them there.
Windows Shell Integration
7-Zip also integrates directly with Windows Explorer.
Open Explorer and navigate to the file you want to extract. Right-click and you’ll see a 7-Zip menu option. Moving your mouse over this branch displays a list of choices including ‘Open Archive’, ‘Extract Files…’, and ‘Extract here’.
Choose the latter to automatically extract all the files/folders contained within the 7-zip file to the current directory.
7z Conversion
Although 7-Zip can open different formats, that doesn’t mean that your friends or workers have the software installed.
They may only have WinRAR on their computers or no compression apps at all. In any case, you’ll need to convert your files to a different type.
The great news is that Offdrive lets you do this for free!
Convert 7z to Zip
Use our 7z to Zip online conversion tool to change your files into a format that everyone can open.
Although .zip files don’t offer the same functionality, Windows can read and open them. That means they’re guaranteed to work.
7z to RAR
For WinRAR users, convert 7z to RAR format.
All it takes is for you to upload your file and check the reCAPTCHA box to verify that you’re human. Hit Convert, wait for your file to process, then download it to your computer.
7z to TAR
Linux users often use the TAR compression format. Converting 7z to TAR sounds complicated but it doesn’t have to be with our online tool.
Remember, all of our conversion services are free. And you can upload and transform as many files as you want.
Free Online Archive Conversion at Offdrive
7-Zip files offer an excellent compression to speed ratio for reducing the total file size of your data.
The 7z extension brings with it built-in AES encryption that’s unbreakable if used with a strong password. The 7-Zip File Manager for Windows even integrates with Explorer so you can right-click a folder and compress it within seconds.
7z conversion is easy thanks to Offdrive’s free online Archive Conversion tools. Not only can you convert 7z to Zip or RAR formats but our service lets you convert formats in reverse.
Want to transform your RAR file into a 7-Zip archive? Then use our free tool to upload and convert as many files as you need.