How to Open (Extract, Unpack) Zip, Rar and 7z Archives on Android

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This wikiHow article teaches you how to view, open, and extract the contents of ZIP, RAR, and 7z folders while using an Android device. In order to do this, you must first download the folder in question onto your Android.

Quick Steps to Unzipping Files on Android

In order to unzip files on Android, you'll need an unzipping app such as WinZip. You can download WinZip from the Google Play Store. Open WinZip once it's installed and tap the Start button. Tap and hold the file you want to unzip, and select Unzip to... . Select an unzip location, then tap Unzip Here .

Part 1
Part 1 of 3:

Downloading WinZip

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    It's either on your Android's Home Screen or in the App Drawer.
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    It's at the top of the screen.
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    This will prompt a drop-down menu to appear below the search bar with the WinZip icon at the top.
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    The icon next to it resembles a folder with a vice around it. This will open the WinZip app page.
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    This green button is below the app's icon.
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    Doing so prompts WinZip to begin downloading to your Android.
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    It's a green button in place of the INSTALL option from earlier. Once WinZip has downloaded, tap this option to open it.
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Part 2
Part 2 of 3:

Viewing Files

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    It's at the bottom of the WinZip home page.
    • You may first have to swipe left through a few advertisements.
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    Tap either the SD option or the Internal option here. Make sure you select the storage location to which you downloaded your ZIP folder.
    • If your Android doesn't use an SD memory card, you'll only see the Internal option.
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    Tap the folder in which your ZIP folder is saved. If you downloaded the ZIP folder from an online source (e.g., Gmail or Google Drive), you'll tap the Downloads folder.
    • You may have to navigate through multiple folders to find the ZIP folder.
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    Tap the ZIP, RAR, or 7z folder that you want to open. This will allow you to view the folder's files.
    • Many zipped files won't actually work until they're unzipped .
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Part 3
Part 3 of 3:

Unzipping Folders

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    It's in the top-left corner of the screen. This will take you back to the folder that has your ZIP folder(s) in it.
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    Tap and hold a folder that you want to unzip until a pop-up menu appears.
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    It's at the top of the pop-up menu.
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    Tap one of the following unzip locations:
    • Storage - Allows you to select a storage option ( Internal or SD ) as well as a specific folder on your Android.
    • My Files - Selects the "My Files" folder on your Android as the unzip location.
    • Google Drive - Selects your Google Drive folder as the unzip location.
    • Dropbox - Selects your Dropbox folder as the unzip location. If you don't have a Dropbox account, you'll first need to make one .
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    It's in the bottom-right corner of the screen. Doing so will unpack the folder's contents into a regular folder, which will appear by the same name as the ZIP folder in your selected unzip location.
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      Tips

      • WinZip will occasionally ask you if you want to purchase the paid version in a pop-up. If you don't want to, simply wait until the Continue Free button becomes available, then tap it.
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      Warnings

      • Just because you can extract a ZIP folder's files doesn't mean those files can be opened or played on your Android.
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