A compression program or compression utility is a software program that compresses and decompresses various file types.

Most operating systems include tools for compressing and uncompressing files. For example, latest versions of Microsoft Windows include a compression utility for creating and extracting .zip files and Linux has tools for both .tar.gz and .zip. Other compressed files, like .7z and .rar, require a third-party compression utility to be installed, such as the ones listed below.

Example of compression utilities

  • 7-Zip
  • Bzip
  • PKZIP
  • WinAce
  • WinZip
  • WinRAR

Compressed file, Software terms

  • How to compress or make files into one file.
  • How to compress a large video file.
  • How to extract or decompress a compressed file.
  • See the compact command page for the Windows compress command.