RAR to ZIP Converter
Drop a .rar file on the converter below and get a standard ZIP back. Your browser unpacks the archive and writes the ZIP on the spot, so the file never leaves your device.
- Runs in your browser
- No upload
- No signup or watermark
- Free
Convert RAR to ZIP free and private, with no upload
To convert RAR to ZIP free and private, drag your .rar file onto the converter above (or click the box to browse), leave the output on ZIP and press Convert to ZIP. Your browser unpacks the archive, writes a standard ZIP and shows a download button named after your file, so photos.rar becomes photos.zip. The conversion runs in your browser; nothing is uploaded, and you can check that in the Network tab of DevTools. There is no account or watermark, only a size limit of 2 GB per archive.
RAR is the archive format of WinRAR, created by Eugene Roshal and published by RARLAB. Anyone may write software that reads RAR, but the compression method is proprietary, so only RARLAB’s own tools create it. As of October 2026, Windows 11 opens RAR files in File Explorer (Microsoft added support in its optional update KB5031455, October 2023), while Windows 10, the macOS Archive Utility and most phones still need an extra app.
ZIP is the format almost every system opens without extra software, so it is the safe choice for passing an archive on. A 7-Zip file needs the 7z to ZIP converter and a Linux source tarball the TAR.GZ to ZIP converter. To confirm a download is intact first, compare its checksum with the file hash calculator.
Your files stay on this device
This converter runs in your browser; nothing is uploaded. When you add your first archive, the page fetches its engine, a WebAssembly build of libarchive of about 1 MB, from zipconvert.com. Your RAR file is then read from disk and rewritten as ZIP inside the tab. To check, open DevTools, switch to the Network tab and convert a file: apart from those engine files, no request carries it. The privacy policy covers the rest of the site.
Table of Use: what to do with your RAR
| Your RAR | What to do | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| A single .rar from a download or an email | Drop it and press Convert to ZIP | A ZIP with the same files and folders, named after the RAR |
| RAR4 (WinRAR 3 and 4) or RAR5 (WinRAR 5.0 and later) | The same steps; the version is read from the file | Both convert, and both are checked against the checksums stored inside |
| A comic book saved as .cbr | Drag it onto the converter, then rename the ZIP to .cbz | The same pages as a .cbz, which is simply a ZIP of images |
| A password-protected RAR | Open it with WinRAR, 7-Zip or The Unarchiver | The converter says it cannot unlock RAR encryption and writes nothing |
| A split set such as .part1.rar and .part2.rar | Extract the set with WinRAR or 7-Zip first | The part is refused with a message instead of half a ZIP |
| A download that stopped early | Download the file again | A damaged-or-incomplete message; no ZIP is written |
Photos inside a RAR are usually JPEGs that are already compressed, so the ZIP comes out about the same size. If the pictures themselves are too big, shrink them with the image compressor after unzipping.
Features
- Reads RAR4 and RAR5. libarchive 3.7.2, compiled to WebAssembly, recognises the format from the first bytes of the file, so a download renamed to .bin still converts.
- Checks files against RAR’s own checksums. Each extracted file is compared with the checksum stored in its RAR header: CRC-32 for RAR4 and, by default, for RAR5 too, or BLAKE2sp in RAR5 archives made with that option. A mismatch stops the conversion with a “damaged or incomplete” message, so a corrupt file never hides inside a ZIP; if a file has no checksum to compare, the result summary says so.
- Keeps the structure. Folders (empty ones too), modification dates, Unix permissions when the RAR stores them and symbolic links go into the ZIP, with names as UTF-8. Absolute paths, drive letters and “..” segments are cleaned and counted.
- Compresses sensibly. Files get Deflate at level 6; JPEGs, video and nested archives, which would not shrink, are stored as they are.
- Queues several RARs and says no clearly. Archives convert one at a time, each with a progress bar. A warning appears above 1 GB, anything over 2 GB is refused up front, and encrypted or split RARs get a specific message. If a RAR that WinRAR opens is refused, tell us on the contact page.
The same engine turns ISO disc images into ZIP and, the other way, ZIP into TAR.GZ for Linux servers.
How to convert RAR to ZIP, step by step
Add your RAR file
Drag the .rar onto the box labelled “Drop RAR files here or click to browse”, or click it and pick the file. Several files can be queued. The converter starts fetching its engine, about 1 MB, as soon as the first archive is added.
Keep “Convert to” on ZIP
Once a file is listed, a “Convert to” menu appears with ZIP selected. Tick “Keep macOS metadata files” only if you want __MACOSX and ._ files, which are left out by default.
Press Convert to ZIP
The button reads Convert all to ZIP when several archives are queued. A progress bar runs per file; an encrypted or split RAR gets a red message on its row instead.
Download the ZIP
Click the button labelled with the new file name, such as photos.zip. The note under the row counts files, folders and links and lists anything that could not be carried over.
Your browser caches the engine files for up to 30 days, so later conversions start faster. The home page converter handles every other format the same way, and all our free tools are one click away.
Who can use it
- Anyone who received a .rar and has no WinRAR. Macs, iPhones and locked-down work PCs often cannot install an extractor; a browser is enough.
- Comic readers. A .cbr file is a RAR archive. Convert it, rename the result to .cbz and your reader opens it.
- People sending files on. Recipients open a ZIP with a double-click instead of asking which app to install.
- Anyone handling private files. Scans, contracts and client folders never reach a server, so there is no upload-and-delete policy to trust.
FAQs
How do I convert RAR to ZIP without WinRAR?
Drag the .rar onto the converter on this page, keep ZIP selected and press Convert to ZIP. Your browser unpacks RAR4 or RAR5 archives with a WebAssembly build of libarchive and writes a standard ZIP, which you save with the download button on the row. No WinRAR, 7-Zip or other software is installed, and the same steps work in any current browser.
Is it safe to convert RAR to ZIP online? Is my file uploaded?
Nothing is uploaded. When you add your first archive the page downloads its own engine files from zipconvert.com, then reads your RAR from disk and unpacks it inside the tab. Open the Network tab in DevTools while you convert and you will see no request carrying your file. Closing the tab discards everything, and no copy exists on a server.
Can it convert a password-protected RAR file?
No. The in-browser engine cannot decrypt RAR archives, whether RAR4 or RAR5, so an encrypted file is reported as such and no ZIP is written. Open it with WinRAR, 7-Zip or The Unarchiver, which can take the password. Password-protected ZIP files are different: the converter asks for the password and decrypts them locally.
Can I convert split RAR files like part1.rar and part2.rar?
Not directly. The converter reads one file at a time and does not join numbered volumes, so names such as .part1.rar, .part2.rar or .r00 are refused with a message instead of producing an incomplete ZIP. Extract the whole set with WinRAR or 7-Zip, which read all the parts together, and zip the extracted folder with your system’s own tool.
Can I convert ZIP back to RAR?
No. The RAR compression method is proprietary and no open-source encoder exists that could run in WebAssembly, so creating a RAR needs RARLAB’s own software, which this in-browser converter does not contain. ZipConvert writes ZIP, TAR, TAR.GZ and GZIP only. If a recipient insists on RAR, WinRAR can create one from the extracted files.
How do I convert a CBR comic to CBZ?
A .cbr file is a RAR archive of page images, and a .cbz is the same pages in a ZIP. Drag the .cbr onto the converter, since the format is detected from the contents rather than the extension, press Convert to ZIP, then rename the downloaded .zip to .cbz. If your file picker hides .cbr files, drop the file on the box or rename it to .rar first.
Related Tools
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