Over the past few years, a huge variety of new storage media have appeared on the market, and existing ones have been improved, becoming more spacious. Nevertheless, the need for data archiving is still in demand, so choosing a good archiver for everyday use not worth it.
And while paid archiver programs are known to many, free ones often leave many questions.
Today we will try to determine the best free archiver. In this review, we will look at just a few applications that are the most popular among users.
1.
7- ZIP is one of the very first and, perhaps, the most popular free archiver today. It has a whole list of features and advantages. Its compression ratio is practically no different from its commercial counterpart, WinRAR. In addition, the program has one of the best results for archiving in ZIP and GZIP formats, demonstrating many times better results compared to other free analogues.
Possibility supported fine tuning. Among the advantages, a large number of compression algorithms, as well as a whole list of integrated presets, deserve mention. The ability to open archives in a huge variety of formats is supported, while packaging is only available for 7z, ZIP, GZIP, BZIP2 and TAR. The creation of multi-volume archives is provided.
2.
IZArc has not become as widespread as the above-described 7-ZIP, but is not inferior to the latter in many respects, and, in our opinion, has a more user-friendly interface. Creation of archive formats is supported for ZIP, 7-ZIP, BH, BGA, BZIP2, JAR, LZH, TAR, GZ, YZ1, when the list of unpacking formats is much larger.
Among the advantages, the implemented ability to create multi-volume and self-extracting archives deserves mention. The ability to encrypt fonts is supported, and for compressed files integrity checks and tools for eliminating errors when detected are provided.
3.
Another fairly popular archiver, which, interestingly, has its own archive format called PEA. However, support for all common formats is also present. In general, the functionality is similar to the programs described above, but some options are not fully implemented, which can cause some discomfort during operation.
Among the advantages are cross-platform, as well as support for various encryption algorithms for different compression formats. In addition, the developer offers to download PeaZip in both full (standard) and portable versions. The main advantage of the latter is the ability to run programs from flash drives.
Results. The title of the best.
To summarize, we need to say what to choose best archiver among free ones it is not so simple, because it is simply impossible to predict the requirements of each user. Nevertheless, the most interesting is the archiver, which is distinguished by a clear interface, as well as high performance, providing the maximum compression ratio compared to other analogues.
In addition, working with 7-Zip is extremely simple. After installing the program, its functionality is added to context menu operating system, so subsequently all options are available by pressing right click mice. All you need to do is select the desired file, select “7-Zip” from the menu and assign the task you need. If desired, you can “Open Archive”, which will be activated by the program manager with more complete access to all functionality.
Everyone knows that archiving files is very good way compress various data into a smaller size so that it takes up less space on your hard drive or so that it can be easily transferred using external storage devices.
Do you need to compress files on your computer well, but you don’t know which archiver does the best job? Are you satisfied with the compression, but the insufficient functionality of the program is driving you crazy? WinZip, WinRar and 7Zip - which archiver is better for your computer?
Today, for archiving files and data, there is huge amount programs. We won’t talk about all of them, since many of them are ordinary clones of popular applications. Or they are not worthy of attention at all. Archivers such as WinZip, WinRar and 7Zip are leaders in the market for such programs. Each of them deserves special praise, but why can't you make a firm decision and choose one of them?
Comparison of archive programs WinZip and WinRar
Let's start with a comparison. Today, there are a huge number of programs for archiving files and data. We won’t talk about all of them, since many of them are ordinary clones of popular applications. Or they are not worthy of attention at all. Archivers such as WinZip, WinRar and 7Zip are leaders in the market for such programs. Each of them deserves special praise, but why can't you make a firm decision and choose one of them? We will do this because these programs are almost identical, but the functionality of the second has been talked about with admiration for several years now. WinRar features support for a huge number of settings and compression technologies. Knowing how to use this program correctly, you can compress files to a minimum size.
One more distinctive feature WinRar is that it supports WinZip archives and handles them no worse than the first application. It would seem, why choose WinZip program? However, if you need a simpler interface and professional processing of zip files, then it is ideal for you.
7Zip: simplicity and speed
Now it's time to talk about the third application. As we already said, it is called 7Zip. You will learn about its advantages immediately as soon as you make the first launch. This is the most simplified archiver, which is very in a convenient way fits into the right-click context menu. Its design is no different from the usual windows of the Windows 7 operating system. Such simplicity allows you to understand it in literally 10 minutes.
It differs in that it supports both zip and rar files, but it also has its own archive format with the 7z extension. The 7zip archiver boasts the highest data compression rates among all three leaders. However, its functionality leaves room for improvement. This program is suitable for beginners who do not often have to work with archives. We hope that our article helped you in choosing an archiver that best suits your requirements.
There are many archivers offered on the computer market - each has its own set of supported formats, its own pros and cons, and its own circle of admirers who firmly believe that the archiver they use is the best. We will not dissuade anyone or anything - we will simply try to impartially evaluate the most popular archivers in terms of functionality and efficiency. These include WinZip, WinRAR, WinAce, 7-Zip, IZArc and PowerArchiver - they lead in the number of downloads on software servers (for example, on Download.com - Table 1). It is hardly advisable to consider other archivers, since the percentage of users using them (judging by the number of downloads) is small.
Functionality assessment
When assessing functionality, we will focus on basic set opportunities (Table 2). In other words, for archivists to support the main archival formats (that is, the ability to pack/unpack archives in ZIP, ZIPX, RAR, ACE and 7Z formats) and create, in addition to regular archives, multi-volume, self-extracting EXE format(Self-Extracting - SFX) and continuous (Solid) archives, as well as archiving large files(over 4 GB). Let's pay attention to the availability of functionality for restoring damaged archives and encrypting data. In addition, we will take into account whether drag-and-drop support is implemented, whether it is possible to batch unpack archives and pause the archiving/unpacking process (the latter may be useful when processing very large amounts of data), as well as a number of other useful functions.
WinZip 14.5
Developer: WinZip Computing, S.L.
Distribution size: 13.8 MB
Distribution method: shareware (45-day demo - http://www.winzip.com/downwz.htm)
Price: Standard - $29.95; Backup - $39.95; Pro - $49.95
WinZip is one of the oldest (on the market since 1991) archivers for Windows with its own graphical interface. Such a respectable age, apparently, provides this archiver with such an impressive audience of users, since, in our opinion, it does not have any special advantages (compared to competitors) - it is a truly reliable archiver with very good compression parameters and operating speed, but nothing more. True, appeared in the archiver from version 12.1 new format ZIPX provides more high level data compression compared to ZIP. However, archiving in it is quite slow, and the format itself is practically not supported by other archivers (of the solutions reviewed, only PowerArchiver has the ability to unpack ZIPX archives), which will serve as a limiting factor for its active use for now.
The program is presented in three editions: Standard, Backup and Pro; a detailed comparison of editions is available at: http://www.winzip.com/winzip-feature-comparison.htm. The Standard edition provides access to all the archiving features found in WinZip. The Backup edition additionally includes tools for automating tasks such as backing up data, compressing files, burning ZIP archives onto CD/DVD and uploading them to FTP servers. The Pro edition combines the capabilities of the Backup edition with functionality for working with images and, as conceived by the developers, is focused on the multidisciplinary use of WinZip in enterprises.
WinZip is based on the ZIP archive format, originally developed by PKWARE for MS-DOS. In addition, it now supports its own ZIPX format, which provides a higher compression ratio than ZIP and even performs better than RAR and 7Z on certain data. In the case of ZIP archives, it is possible to compress large files larger than 4 GB; the maximum allowable size of such files is not specified. In addition to archives in ZIP and ZIPX formats, the WinZip archiver can create LHA archives. In terms of unpacking, the list of supported formats is more impressive: RAR, 7Z, CAB, IMG, ISO, etc. However, you should keep in mind that unpacking archives created by WinRAR sometimes fails for some reason.
The archiver has two operating modes. The WinZip Wizard mode is designed for beginners - compression/decompression operations are performed using a step-by-step wizard, and ZIP archives are created with default compression parameters. In WinZip Classic mode, aimed at advanced users, all processes are started manually.
WinRAR 3.93
Developer: RARLAB
Distribution size: 32-bit version - 1.33 MB; 64-bit version - 1.49 MB
Distribution method: shareware (40-day limited demo version - http://www.rarlab.com/download.htm)
Price:$29
WinRAR is a popular archiver not only in Russia, but throughout the world, the first version of which appeared in 1993. It is a RAR archiver for Windows, which has several versions for different operating systems(Windows, Linux, FreeBSD, DOS, OS/2, Mac OS X), as well as the console version (Rar.exe), launched from command line and working in text mode. The program has been recognized as optimal solution, which has the most reasonable ratio between operating speed and file compression ratio.
WinRAR uses its own original RAR archive format for compression and can create RAR archives of almost any size with an unlimited number of files. This algorithm compression allows you to achieve the optimal balance between operating speed and compression ratio when processing many types of data - in particular multimedia files, object libraries and executable programs. The archiver also provides full support for ZIP archives, but, unlike a number of competitors, it cannot create archives in 7Z format. As for other archive formats, WinRAR allows you to perform basic operations (unpack, view content, etc.) with archives in 7Z, ACE, ARJ, BZ2, CAB, GZ, ISO, JAR, LZH, TAR, UUE and Z formats.
Interface WinRAR archiver, in our opinion, is much more convenient, and the principle of its use is more obvious than WinZip, although this is a controversial issue. The fact is that in WinZip, for example, to create an archive you must first specify its name and determine the location, and only then specify the files to be archived. In WinRAR, everything is exactly the opposite - first the files to be archived are selected, and then the compression parameters are set, and the name of the archive and its location on the disk are indicated, which looks more natural.
WinAce 2.69
Developer: E-Merge
Distribution size: 3.85 MB
Distribution method: http://www.winace.net/files/wace269i.exe)
Price: $29; Maybe free use WinAce subject to installation of the sponsorship module from TrialPay
WinAce is a development of the German company of the same name, which is the creator of the famous powerful Ace compressor. It runs on Windows, but a free console version of the file extraction program, known as Unace, is available for Mac OS X and Linux. There is also a command line version of the archiver. WinAce has gained popularity due to its extraordinary abilities in terms of file compression and speed, but the peak of popularity of this archiver is already behind us, and today, in terms of these parameters, it is inferior to other solutions under consideration. The program has not been updated for a long time (the last stable release was dated November 2007), but the number of fans of this archiver is still large.
WinAce uses its own ACE archive format, which provides a good compression ratio and a good speed of this process, but today this format(like the ZIP format) is already becoming obsolete. In addition to ACE archives, the program can create and unpack archives in ZIP, LHA, MS-CAB, JAR, GZip and TAR formats. Viewing and unpacking are provided for RAR, ARC, ARJ and ZOO archive formats, that is, there is no ability to work with 7Z archives, and only unpacking is provided for RAR archives. The archiver's interface is intuitive, and the principle of use is exactly the same as WinRAR.
7-Zip 4.65
Developer: Igor Pavlov
Distribution size: 917 KB
Distribution method: freeware (http://7-zip.org.ua/ru/)
Price: for free
7-Zip - archiver with open source code, running primarily under Windows (there is a portable version of the archiver for the Linux/UNIX command line). The program has gained great popularity and recognition among users as a solution that provides archiving of files with a high compression percentage. In reality, the compression ratio greatly depends on the data being compressed. According to independent tests, 7-Zip generally compresses the 7Z format better than the other solutions reviewed into its own original format, but its compression speed is lower. In addition to the regular one, 7-Zip has a portable version (http://portableapps.com/apps/utilities/7-zip_portable), which is relevant since not all popular archivers can unzip archives in the 7Z format.
7-Zip uses the new 7Z archiving format, which provides a very high compression ratio: on many data it is higher than other formats. When creating archives in this format, not only the data is compressed, but also the archive header, and you can choose any compression, conversion and encryption method and archive files up to 16 billion GB in size. Of the archivers discussed in this publication, only WinAce cannot unpack archives in this format today, and 7-Zip can unpack files in the formats ARJ, CAB, CHM, CPIO, DEB, DMG, HFS, ISO, LZH, LZMA, MSI, NSIS, RAR, RPM, UDF, WIM, XAR and Z. The archiver can also create ZIP, GZIP, BZIP2 and TAR archives and unzip the corresponding archives, with the exception of multi-volume ZIP archives.
The interface of 7-Zip is extremely simple and intuitive. By default, the archiver window is single-panel, and compression/decompression operations in it are performed in exactly the same way as in WinRAR. In addition, the archiver can work in a two-panel interface mode - approximately the same as file manager, which allows you to perform common operations with files and folders in it.
IZArc 4.1.2
Developer: IZSoftware
Distribution size: 4.45 MB
Distribution method: freeware (http://www.izarc.org/download.html)
Price: for free
IZArc is an archiver that works only under Windows and differs from its analogues in that it supports a very large number of compression formats (on at the moment 47), including very rare ones at present (ARC, ARJ, ZOO, etc.). Another distinctive feature This archiver is the ability to convert archives in various formats (including CD images) and convert some types of archives into others (for example, self-extracting archives and standard ones). At the same time, IZArc demonstrates an impressive degree of data compression and acceptable speed when creating 7Z and ZIP archives, but it processes archives in other formats slowly. In addition to the regular version, IZArc has a portable version known as IZArc2Go (http://izarc.org/download.html).
IZArc can create archives in ZIP, 7-ZIP, BH, BGA, BZip2, CAB, GZIP, JAR, LZH, TAR and YZ1 formats. The list of archives that can be opened is even more impressive and covers 47 formats, including ACE and RAR. In addition, the program easily copes with unpacking images in ISO, BIN, MDF, NRG, IMG, C2D, PDI and CDI formats. The principle of operation of this archiver is the same as that of WinZip in Classic mode; the program’s interface can be made in the classic style or in the Explorer style.
PowerArchiver 2010 (11.64)
Developer: ConeXware, Inc.
Distribution size: English version - 8.6 MB; international version - 14.2 MB
Distribution method: shareware (30-day demo - http://www.powerarchiver.com/download/)
Price: Standard - 19.95 euros, Professional - 28.75 euros
PowerArchiver is an archiver that runs only on Windows and in its first versions was known as EasyZip. It did not gain popularity immediately, because its archiving speed is for a long time turned out to be much lower than WinZip. However, over time, some WinZip users switched to PowerArchiver, which, apparently, was caused not only by progress in increasing speed, but also by widespread support for archive formats, impressive functionality and regular updates. Latest version This archiver makes full use of the capabilities of multiprocessor systems for ZIP archiving, which, according to the developers, has made it possible to achieve a significant increase in the speed of packing/unpacking ZIP files in comparison with WinZip. In addition, the program now unpacks RAR archives 30% faster than WinRAR.
The archiver is presented in two editions - Standard and Professional. The professional edition has advanced backup capabilities and additionally includes an FTP client and tools for burning CD/DVD discs, creating ISO images and mounting them in virtual drives. Detailed comparison editions available at: http://www.powerarchiver.com/features/compare.php.
For the ZIP, 7Z, CAB, LHA, TAR (TAR.GZ and TAR.BZ2) and BH formats, PowerArchiver has full support - that is, you can both create archives in these formats and unpack them. The archiver can also read and extract archives in ZIPX, RAR (version 3), ARJ, ARC, ACE (version 2) and ZOO formats. It is possible to extract files from images in ISO, BIN, IMG and NRG formats and create backup copies archives.
The archiver has three interface modes: classic (designed for ordinary users) and two modern interface options (“Explorer style” and “Explorer with folders”), which are designed for advanced users.
Comparison of compression level and operation speed
It is equally useful to compare archivers in terms of the effectiveness of their use - that is, the degree of compression by archiving programs different types data. In this case, not only the degree of compression is important, but also the speed of the archiving/unpacking processes.
Different types of data can theoretically be compressed with varying degrees of efficiency: some are stronger (files in TXT formats, DOC, DBF and BMP), others are weaker, and files that have already been compressed (say, DivX video files, AVI videos or JPEG images) are almost useless to archive. Different archivers depending on the algorithms involved in them on the same file formats show good results, while others are less successful. According to the famous archiving rating Maximum Compression (http://www.maximumcompression.com/index.html), conducted by Werner Bergmans, 7-Zip in most cases shows the best compression results on a wide variety of formats (Table 3). Let's say, in the ranking of the compression efficiency of EXE files, 7-Zip is in 21st place (for comparison, we note that, for example, WinZip is in 47th), MS Word documents are in 23rd, and Bitmap images are in 30th, etc.
It is also interesting how archivers perform on complex data of different types, because users are unlikely to be satisfied with an archiver that copes well with some types of data and mediocre with others. A similar assessment of the overall compression efficiency is made in the Summary test (Maximum Compression rating), in which programs are tested in maximum compression mode (by selecting the appropriate archiving settings - method and compression level) through the use of RAM and CPU time at the expense of speed. According to the results of this test, 7-Zip ranks 24th in the ranking of archivers in terms of data compression ratio (Table 4), while WinRAR and WinZip are ranked 32nd and 34th, respectively.
At the same time, users should be more attracted to archivers that provide a high level of compression in an acceptable time. Tests from the Multiple file compression group (Maximum Compression rating), which were developed specifically to simulate the work of ordinary users, are responsible for assessing the effectiveness of programs from these positions. Brief results of these tests are presented in table. 5, where for each of the archivers the best data on archiving results using two or three methods is given. In this case, the position of each of the archivers in the ranking of program effectiveness in terms of the degree of data compression is displayed and, in parallel, the degree of compression is shown, as well as the compression time and decompression time.
Of course, the listed parameters largely depend on the chosen archiving methods - those that provided a good compression ratio in an acceptable time were selected as such during testing. The table shows that WinZip (Zipx Best Method) compresses even slightly better than 7-Zip and WinRAR, but the latter this operation twice as fast as competitors. Therefore, if the user is not faced with the task of achieving a minimum archive size, then WinRAR is preferable. As for the 7-Zip archiver, which is traditionally accused of the slowness of the compression process, it turns out that this statement is not entirely true - of course, 7-Zip compresses for quite a long time (for example, longer than WinRAR), but faster than WinAce.
Conclusion
There are many criteria by which archivers can be evaluated. Some users will prioritize the level of compression, others - speed, others will prefer a solution that fully supports all common formats, and others will choose the program with the most user-friendly interface and the most comfortable option for performing compression/decompression processes. In general, there are as many opinions as there are people. Therefore, we would not dare to name the best of the archivers considered - everything is not so simple here and to a large extent depends on what archival formats you have to work with. But if we focus on ease of use, we found working in WinRAR the most comfortable. In addition, this archiver creates archives with a fairly high compression ratio in a reasonable time. However, WinRAR is inferior to a number of other archivers in terms of encryption reliability, and therefore “secret service agents” are better off choosing something more reliable - for example, the PowerArchiver archiver. The latter made a very good impression on us - both in terms of support for formats, the presence of wide functionality, the ability to restore damaged archives of most formats, etc., and in terms of the efficiency of compression of ZIP archives.
The impression from WinAce is twofold: on the one hand, the archiver is easy to use and multifunctional, but on the other hand, in terms of compression/decompression efficiency, it now lags behind solutions that continue to be developed and updated.
In WinZip, we are not inspired by the lack of functionality for batch unpacking archives and temporarily pausing the archiving/unpacking process, as well as the inability to restore damaged archives.
As for the free archivers 7-Zip and IZArc, we cannot name the best among them, since these archivers are too different. 7-Zip is simple and easy to use and provides excellent compression results at an acceptable speed of operation, although choosing a high compression ratio increases the archiving time significantly. However, it cannot handle ACE archives and cannot restore damaged archives. IZArc supports a huge number of archive formats and can unpack images in ISO, BIN, NRG, etc. formats. However, the principle of creating self-extracting and multi-volume archives is not very convenient. In addition, the disadvantage of IZArc is the lack of batch unpacking of archives and the ability to temporarily pause the archiving/unpacking process. At the same time, 7-Zip and IZArc archivers are the best of free solutions, they are truly functional, easy to use and show impressive results when tested.
Download an archiver for Windows 7? What could be simpler? Everyone is used to the mega-popular WinRar and has not noticed for a long time that it is not free even for non-commercial use. But it’s not WinRar alone. We have made a selection of the best free archivers that are not inferior in functionality and can easily replace their paid competitor. It's time to stop piracy and download one of the best archivers from our article for free.
Main functions of archivers
The archiver is computer program, which allows you to pack files into archives and unpack them back.
Main functions of archivers:
- Compression. To save money free space on storage media and speeding up data transfer over the Internet. The degree of data compression depends on the compression algorithm, which differs for each archiver.
- Encryption and data protection. To improve the security of information storage and transmission.
- Packing files into a single archive or splitting them into blocks of equal size. For ease of data transfer.
The best free archivers
Previously, the paid WinRar was indeed the best archiver. In recent years the situation has changed significantly. Yes, WinRar is still good, but it has serious free competitors. They are in no way inferior in most respects, and sometimes even surpass the former industry leader. In this section we offer to download archivers for WIndows 7 completely free of charge.
7zip
At the moment, 7-zip is rightfully called the best free archiver. Its main advantage is the high degree of data compression, which is achieved thanks to its own compression algorithm in the 7z format.
Main features:
- The most effective data encryption algorithm. Own archive format 7z.
- Supports most popular formats, including RAR 3, used in paid WinRar.
- Creation of self-extracting archives in 7z format. Convenient to use if you don’t have an archiver handy for unpacking later.
- Own file manager for ease of working with archives.
- Windows integration. Archive any file from its context menu.
Download:
Download 7-zip 9.22 for windows7 32 bitDownload 7-zip 9.22 for windows7 64 bit
WinArc
A relatively new free archiver that offers good functionality. During installation, it is advisable to uninstall additional components from Yandex.
Main features:
- Multi-format. Supports more than 450 formats.
- Function for regulating RAM usage during archiving. Helps with archiving large amounts of data.
- 4 encryption algorithms. For reliable protection information.
- Increased archiving speed.
PeaZip
Another interesting archiver. To install the Russian interface language, you need to select “Localization” in the “Options” menu and open the file ru.txt.
Main features:
- There is a portable version. Convenient to use without installation.
- Pea's own format. Flexible encryption system and integrity control.
- Supports a large number of formats.
- Data encryption standard AES-256. For reliable information protection.
- Search the archive without unpacking.
- Password and key generator. The program itself can come up with a strong password in accordance with all the rules used to protect data.
