Get a secure archiver app

1. Rar Extractor Free Mac
2. How To Open Rar Files

Quickly Open RAR Files On Mac Unfortunately, you can’t open a RAR archive with Mac’s default tools due to the format’s closed proprietary nature. RAR itself is an acronym for Roshal Archive, as it was developed by a Russian software engineer Eugene Roshal. WinRAR is one of the leading programmes to compress files on Windows, Mac, and Android devices.The latest version of free WinRAR download supports various file formats, including ZIP, RAR, TAR, ISO, LZH, CAB, ARJ, UUE, ACE, and RAR5. If there is a way to open.rar files on your Mac without downloading software then you can be able to use a built-in utility on your Mac to open RAR files. But this feature is not available on Mac and you have to download an app such as Unarchiver to open.rar files. The Unarchiver is the most popular app to open and extract.rar files.

All of us from time to time receive digital archive packages, whether they are downloaded online or get sent over by our friends. Occasionally, we might be even packaging and distributing archives ourselves. But few of us stop and think why exactly do we do this.

In general, archives help us achieve two essential goals: decrease file size and unite a group of files into a single package. The first goal relies heavily on a compression algorithm and thus differs from format to format, whereas the second goal is equally achievable by all popular archivers on the market.

There are literally dozens of archiving formats in existence, but it’s likely that you’ll only ever meet two: ZIP and RAR. ZIP has been around for more than 30 years and is easily readable by your Mac’s default archiving utility. RAR, on the other hand, is a proprietary archiving format that requires a RAR opener for Mac to operate. So how do you open .rar on Mac?

Quickly Open RAR Files On Mac

Unfortunately, you can’t open a RAR archive with Mac’s default tools due to the format’s closed proprietary nature. RAR itself is an acronym for Roshal Archive, as it was developed by a Russian software engineer Eugene Roshal.

In terms of usability, RAR is not as popular as ZIP, but offers a better compression algorithm and, most importantly, works with large files. While ZIP taps out at around 2 GB, RAR can take up to 8 EiB (the number so large it’s practically infinite). The price you pay is having to find and download a sort of WinRAR for Mac utility.

Open any file on Mac

New to Mac? Download Setapp, an advanced Mac app toolkit that has file openers fitting your needs.

Rar Extractor Free Mac

Start with a well-known RAR extractor for Mac

While the actual WinRAR for Mac doesn’t exist, as it only works on Windows, there is no shortage of archivers that support RAR files.

An example that comes to mind immediately when someone thinks of how to zip a file on Mac is Unarchiver.

Unarchiver is a free simple tool that lets you, well, unarchive hundreds of file formats, including RAR. Originally developed by Dag Agren over 10 years ago, it quickly gained millions of users due to its unobtrusive interface and fast performance. To open .rar on Mac with Unarchiver:

1. Download the app and place it in the Applications folder
2. Right-click on the archive you need to unpack and choose Open With > The Unarchiver
3. The files will unpack in the same folder

Due to its simplicity, however, Unarchiver omits a lot of features. For instance, it doesn’t itself compress files and doesn’t allow to set passwords or peek inside the zipped folder. So if you’re working with archives on a regular basis, it’s much better to use an actual full-featured unarchiver for Mac.

Use a pro-level Mac unarchiver

When you need to do more than simply find out how to unzip files on Mac, you need to use apps that were designed with all the extra functionality in mind. One of those apps is Archiver.

Archiver can easily open RAR files on Mac, but also create new archives, compress them, encrypt them, and split them into multiple volumes.

Best unarchiver for Mac

How To Open Rar Files

Grab Archiver—free to try with Setapp. Simplicity and unrivaled file opening power in a single app for Mac.

Starting with Archiver is a no-brainer due to its intuitive drag-and-drop interface:

1. Launch Archiver from Applications
2. Drop your RAR archive right onto the app’s window
3. You’ll see all the files in the archive. Optionally, you can just drag some of the files onto your Desktop even without unarchiving.
4. To open .rar on Mac, simply choose Extract, select the destination, and then click Done

Alternatively, if you want to create a RAR archive:

1. Drop files onto the Archiver window and click Archive
2. Choose RAR out of the formats offered. Select the name and compression level.
3. Optionally check the Encrypt box and set a password for your archive
4. Click Archive

Another neat Archiver feature is the ability to split your archives into multiple volumes. This is handy when you need to send a large file, like a movie, over email. To do that, simply choose Split when adding your archive to the app and select the appropriate size for each resulting archive.

Build your unarchiving workflow

Without a doubt, Archiver significantly expands on the functionality of the Unarchiver. But it’s still mostly suited for one-off files and archives. If your line of work requires you to use archives on a daily basis, you need a RAR opener for Mac that supports presets, such as BetterZip.

BetterZip is a robust Mac unarchiver that supports all the same functionality when compared to Archive, with one significant distinction — preset workflows.

With BetterZip, it’s easy to create complex action sequences for all kinds of archives and process dozens of them in seconds. To create your own preset with BetterZip:

1. Go Preferences > Presets
2. Explore the saved presets in Extract and Saved
3. Add new ones by clicking the plus sign

To use a preset, simply drop the files onto BetterZip and then click and hold either Save or Extract button in the top menu to select one of the available options.

Zip and unzip files with ease

Now you that know how to unzip a file on Mac and even create your own archiving presets, you can enjoy the benefits of archiving files more often. It’s generally a good idea to archive files whenever you send them, sort of like putting your parcel in a safe package before going to the post office in real life.

Archived files are less susceptible to errors and damage, and more likely to arrive to your recipient in mind condition: especially when it concerns folders with multiple files and media, such as movies and music.

Use a full-featured RAR extractor for Mac that executes the archiving tasks quickly and gives you many more archiving options overall. Whether you choose Archiver or BetterZip, how to open RAR files on Mac, or in fact any files, won’t be a problem anymore.

Best of all, both Archiver and BetterZip are available for you to try free on Setapp, a platform of more than 150 top Mac apps that solve any problem you happen to come across. Pack your files and send them away!

Meantime, prepare for all the awesome things you can do with Setapp.

Sign Up