Need to open a GZIP file?

What is a GZIP file extension?

GZIP, short for GNU Zip, is a compression/decompression format developed as part of a larger project to create a free software alternative to UNIX in the 1980s. This open source compression format does not support archiving, so it is used to compress single files. GZIP produces zipped files with the .gz extension. Although it’s not commonly used on Windows, this compression format is still popular on UNIX/LINUX. If you receive a GZIP file, you can save it to your desktop and open it with WinZip.

How to open GZIP files

1. Save the .gzip file to the desktop. If your compressed file was downloaded from a website, it may be saved in the Downloads folder in your Documents or user directory.
2. Launch WinZip from your start menu or Desktop shortcut. Open the compressed file by clicking File > Open. If your system has the compressed file extension associated with WinZip program, just double-click on the file.
3. Select all the files and folders inside the compressed file. Or multi-select only the files or folders you want to open by holding the CTRL key and left-clicking on them.
4. Click 1-click Unzip and choose Unzip to PC or Cloud in the WinZip toolbar under the Unzip/Share tab.
5. Choose the destination folder to place the extracting files and click "Unzip" button.
6. Find your extracted files in the destination folder.

Open GZIP files on Windows or Mac

WinZip opens and extracts GZIP Compressed Archive Files—and many more formats

We designed WinZip to open and extract from the widest range of file formats, including all of the following: