ZIP to TAR

How to convert ZIP to TAR

1. Drop a .zip file onto the drop zone or click Choose a file.
2. For a password-protected ZIP, type the password into Password (only if the archive is encrypted); for a normal ZIP, leave it empty.
3. Click Convert to TAR. Every file is decompressed from the ZIP and written into an uncompressed tarball.
4. Click Download. A file called dataset.zip is saved as dataset.tar.

The ZIP is read with zip.js and the tarball is written with libarchive (WebAssembly), entirely in your browser. No upload takes place.

When you want a plain TAR

Unlike TAR.GZ, a plain .tar file has no compression at all, so it will be larger than the ZIP you started with, often about as large as all the files added together. That sounds like a step backwards, but there are good reasons to want one:

• Tools that expect a tarball. Some build systems, container workflows (such as docker load and docker import) and backup scripts read TAR directly.
• Compressing later with your own settings. You can run the tarball through gzip, bzip2, xz or zstd yourself, or let a backup tool handle compression.
• Fast, streamable access. A TAR can be read from start to finish in one pass without decompression, which suits tape drives, pipes and network streams.
• No compression overhead for content such as video or photos that would not shrink anyway.

On Linux or macOS, unpack the result with tar -xf dataset.tar. Windows 10 and 11 also ship a tar command in the terminal.

Names, folders and dates

The tarball is written in the POSIX (pax) format, which has no practical limit on path length and stores file names as UTF-8. Deeply nested folders and names in any language, including accented letters, Cyrillic, Arabic, Chinese or emoji, come through as they were in the ZIP. Each file also keeps its original modification date.

Empty folders in the ZIP are not written to the tarball, macOS junk entries (__MACOSX/ folders and ._ files) are skipped, and the output contains no encryption, even if the source ZIP was protected. Unix permissions are not set from the ZIP, so if you need a script to be executable after extraction, run chmod +x on it.

Tips

• Want a compressed tarball in one step? ZIP to TAR.GZ applies gzip as well.
• To build a TAR straight from files and folders on your computer, use Create TAR.
• To reverse the process, TAR to ZIP turns a tarball into a compressed ZIP.
• Unpack any tarball, including .tar.bz2 and .tar.xz, with Extract TAR.

Frequently asked questions

Why is my TAR file bigger than the ZIP?

TAR does not compress. It stores the files as they are, while the ZIP held them in compressed form. Choose TAR.GZ if you want a smaller file.

Are file modification dates kept?

Yes. Each entry in the tarball gets the date recorded in the ZIP.

Can I convert an encrypted ZIP?

Yes, as long as you enter the correct password. The resulting TAR is not encrypted, so store it somewhere safe.

How large can the ZIP be?

The files are held in browser memory during conversion. Archives up to about 700 MB are fine, larger ones slow down, and inputs over 2 GB are refused.