Linux: Zip is generally supported out-of-the-box.

Mac OS X: Zip is supported, and so are other archive types like.

This feature was added back in Windows XP, so practically every Windows user can create and extract zip files. Here are the formats integrated into popular operating systems: If you’re sending the archives to someone else, or you’re posting them online, you’ll probably want to use a format that the recipients can access with less fuss. However, some archive formats are more interoperable and work out-of-the-box on various operating systems without installing third-party software.

If you’re just compressing files for your own use, you can use whatever file format you like. For example, on Windows, select some files in Windows Explorer or File Explorer, right-click them, point to Send To, and select Compressed (zipped) folder. For Ease of Use and Maximum Compatibility: Create Zip files with the feature integrated into your operating system.F or Maximum Compression: Create 7z archives with 7-Zip.It’s called Archive Utility, and can be found via a Spotlight search. You can change the destination of your compressed files by opening the app that does the compression. How to make zip files save somewhere else

You can use a free app such asįolderWasher to remove dot files before creating the zip. These are Mac system files and can be ignored. Note that Windows users decompressing your zip will also see ‘dot files’ – files and folders whose filenames are preceded by dots or sometimes underscores (such as ‘.DS_Store’ or ‘_MACOSX’). Once zipping has completed, drag the folder you created to the Trash. Then hold down Ctrl and click the folder, selecting the Compress option on the menu. Drag and drop the files you want to be in the zip, but hold down Alt before releasing the mouse button so the files are copied there. To compress several files and/or folders, create a new folder (Shift +Ĭmd + N) within Finder or on the desktop and name it whatever you want the zip to be called. You can delete the original file if you wish, but you won’t be able to view or use the zipped file in its present form: you’ll need to unzip it first. zip file can now be emailed to a friend or simply stored until needed.

Best zip utility for mac