AZip Review: a Powerful Free and Portable File Compressor

In general, we usually work on our computer with a multitude of files such as images, audios, text documents, PDF documents that end up taking up a lot of space. In addition to the space occupied by a large number of independent files, it never hurts to have all of them together in the same file. This is something that we can comfortably do with a file compressor and decompressor like AZip .

What is it and what features does AZip have

azip compressor

AZip is a Zip file compression and decompression program, characterized by its simplicity , with a minimum set of options, with the idea of keeping the user interface as clean as possible, without having it overloaded with additional options that we will not use and that distract the user from the exclusive task of the application: add, extract and delete files.

This application is completely free and portable . It has unique features like built-in content search, smart file update, or file rebuild.

Functions included in AZip

AZip’s features include the super fast file search function. In this way, we can search for content within a compressed file without having to extract it and without using a file explorer for them. During the search even temporary files are not extracted, everything happens quickly and memory.

It also incorporates a function to intelligently update files with which we can change only new and modified files. We will also have the possibility of recompressing files , obtaining even smaller ZIP files. In addition, it incorporates compression methods compatible with: Reduce, Shrink, Implode, Deflate, Deflate64, BZip2 and LZMA.

With AZip we can work with multiple documents and easily switch to tree view or vice versa as we find it more comfortable and productive.

Unzip a file with AZip

Unzipping a file with AZip is extremely simple. We just have to run the program and its main menu will appear. Now we must click on Open archive , clicking on the icon of an open folder that is in the upper left or in the toolbar, click File and then Open archive . Now we select the compressed file that we want to decompress. It will open and we will see all the content on the right side. Next, we right click on the folder that we are going to decompress and select Extract folder. Finally, we indicate the path where we want the file to be unzipped and click OK.

Recompress a file with AZip

With AZip we have the option to recompress a ZIP file so that it takes up even less space. To do this, we must first select a compressed file again from the Extract folder . Subsequently, we must click on Recompress archive , which has its icon in the toolbar. We can also access it from the Tools section at the top. Once clicked, the file will begin to re-read.

How to download AZip

AZip is an open source, free and portable application so it does not need installation and we can use it from any computer. We can download it from the SourceForge project page. The file is small, taking up just over 2MB , so the file downloads in seconds. It runs under the Windows operating system and is compatible with other ZIP compressors, regardless of the operating system.

Alternatives to AZip

As we have mentioned, AZip is an interesting Zip file compressor and decompressor that is very easy to use, although we can also choose some of these alternatives :

  • WinRAR : It is probably the most popular and widely used archive compressor , compatible with RAR and ZIP archives, as well as other compression algorithms. It is a payment program that costs 20 euros, although we can use it for free and without limitations for 40 days. We can download it from the following link .
  • Bandizip : is a powerful program to compress and decompress multi-format files , with special features such as editing certain file formats or multi-volume compression . It has a free version that we can download from this link . It also has a Professional version for advanced users that costs $ 30.
  • 7-Zip : it is a well-known multi-format open source file compressor and decompressor that we can use from any computer in an unlimited way. It offers a higher degree of understanding than other similar programs. You can download it completely free from here .
  • PeaZip : is a free compressor and decompressor that stands out for its ease of use and its compatibility with more than 100 different formats, and offers the possibility of opening, viewing and extracting compressed files. You can download it from their website .
  • WinZip : is one of the longest-running and best-known programs for compressing and decompressing files, which stands out for its speed, ease of use and its ability to support a large number of formats, compressing exclusively in Zip format. You can download a free 21-day trial version from this link . Its price is 36 euros and it also has a Professional version for advanced users that costs 60 euros.