How to extract a zip file on windows will guide you in the process of extracting compressed files. You can extract one or more files from zip files.

How to extract a zip file on windows
How to extract a zip file on windows

How to extract a zip file on windows? This is a question that plagues many novices that are just starting to understand computers. Fortunately, Windows 10 is a straightforward operating system that was designed to simplify processes such as the extraction of zip files.

What is a Zip File?

A zip file is a format that allows you to compress files. People compress files to reduce the storage space they consume on their hard drives. It is also easier to send zip files over the internet. You can store anything in a zip file, including documents and pictures. You can either compress one file or multiple files in a single folder, further simplifying storage and transmission.

Creating a Zip File

Learning how to create a zip file will shed some light on the extraction process. The steps are fairly straightforward:

  1. Find the file you want to compress.
  2. Right-click the file to open a menu.
  3. Look for the ‘Send to’ option. Placing the mouse pointer over this option will open another menu. Look for ‘Compressed or Zipped Folder’. Click this option.
  4. Windows 10 will create a Zip File in the same location as the file you just compressed.
  5. You can rename this file. You can also repeat this process with multiple files.

How to Extract a Zip File on Windows?

You don’t have to extract your compressed files to use them. In many ways, a zip file acts just like an ordinary folder. You can double-click it to open it if you want to view its contents. However, in some cases, there are limitations to what you can do with compressed files.

Extracting the compressed files gives you more freedom with regards to adding new content, editing old content, and saving your altered files. Extracting a zip file involves the following:

Extracting All Files

If you have multiple files in a zip folder, it is normally easier to extract them at all once rather than one at a time:

  1. Start by right-clicking the zip file
  2. This will open a menu. Look for the ‘Extract All’ option and click it.
  3. Windows 10 will open a dialogue box. It will ask you to identify a location where it will deposit the extracted files.
  4. Click ‘Browse’ to find and select a suitable location for the extracted files.
  5. Click ‘Extract’. This will extract the files to your chosen destination.

Extracting Single Files

If you want to extra a single file, this is what you should do:

  1. Double-click the zip file to open it.
  2. Find the item you want to extract.
  3. Right-click the item to open a menu. Click ‘Cut’ or ‘Copy’. Move the mouse pointer to the location that will hold the extracted item.
  4. Right-click and click ‘Paste’. This will extract the individual item to the new location.

If that sounds unnecessarily complicated, you can try a simpler approach. Click your chosen item, drag it out of the zip file, and drop it in another location such as the desktop or a new folder.