Convert GZIP to ZIP
Free online converter for GZIP files. The default archive format across all platforms. Nothing to install, no watermark, and every file is deleted automatically.
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Upload a GZIP file to convert it to ZIP. Up to 3 files at once, 100 MB each.
Free · up to 3 files · 100 MB each · files deleted automatically after 1 hour.
About GZ and ZIP
GZIP .gz
A single-stream compressor, not an archive. Gzip compresses one file; bundling many requires tar first, which is why tar.gz is so common.
Good for
- Fast to compress and very fast to decompress
- Universal on Unix systems and across the web
- Streams cleanly through pipes
Trade-offs
- One file only — it cannot hold a directory
- Compresses less than LZMA
- No integrity protection beyond a basic checksum
application/gzip
ZIP .zip
The archive format every operating system opens without extra software. Each file inside is compressed separately, so any one of them can be read without unpacking the rest.
Good for
- Built into Windows, macOS and Linux — nothing to install
- Random access: extract one file without expanding everything
- Supports password protection
Trade-offs
- Compresses less than 7z or tar.gz
- Per-file compression misses redundancy between files
- Its legacy encryption is weak — only AES is worth using
application/zip
GZ and ZIP side by side
| GZ | ZIP | |
|---|---|---|
| Compression | Single stream (DEFLATE) | Per-file (Deflate) |
| Typically used for | Compressing one file, web transfer encoding | Sending several files as one, universal exchange |
What changes when you convert GZ to ZIP
The archive is rebuilt, not renamed
Your GZ is unpacked in full and its contents are written into a new ZIP. Nothing is passed through untouched, so the compression is done again from scratch at the level you choose, and the resulting size depends on that setting rather than on how the GZ was originally made. The folder structure inside is preserved exactly.
These two store files differently
GZ compresses a single stream and has no concept of multiple files, so must be decompressed from the start. ZIP compresses each file separately with deflate, so any single file can be read without touching the rest. That difference is the real reason to pick one over the other: per-file compression lets a tool pull out a single entry cheaply, while compressing everything as one stream finds patterns across files and usually ends up smaller.
Why GZ is read-only here
Plain gzip compresses a single stream and has no concept of files or folders — which is why it is nearly always paired with tar. We accept it as a source and write open multi-file formats instead.
You choose how hard it compresses
Because the archive is built again from scratch, the compression level is yours to set rather than inherited from the GZ. It defaults to 6 — the setting that has been the sensible middle ground for deflate for thirty years. Raising it buys a few percent for a disproportionate amount of time; lowering it is worth doing for large archives of already-compressed material such as photographs or video, where there is nothing left to squeeze.