Untar Online — Extract TAR, TAR.GZ, and TGZ Files Free
Open TAR archives and extract individual files right in your browser. Supports .tar, .tar.gz, and .tgz — no Linux required. Runs entirely client-side, no uploads.
⏱ 5 min read · Complete guide below
Drop a TAR file here or click to browse
Supports .tar, .tar.gz, and .tgz archives
How to Extract TAR Files Online
- 1Drop your .tar, .tar.gz, or .tgz file onto the dropzone or click Browse.
- 2Click Extract Files. Compressed archives are automatically decompressed first.
- 3All files from the archive appear in a list with their names and sizes.
- 4Click Download next to any file to save it to your device.
TAR.GZ on Windows
Windows natively handles .tar files in Explorer (Windows 11+), but .tar.gz support is inconsistent. This browser tool fills that gap — paste your archive URL or drag the file in and download individual contents without installing 7-Zip or WSL.
What Is a TAR File, Exactly?
TAR stands for “tape archive,” a format that dates back to the earliest days of Unix when data was backed up onto magnetic tape. A TAR file bundles many files and folders into a single stream while preserving their names, directory structure, permissions, and timestamps. Crucially, plain TAR does not compress anything — it only concatenates. That is why you so often see it paired with a compressor: a .tar.gz (or .tgz) file is a TAR archive that has then been squeezed with gzip. The two-step design is deliberate and has survived for decades because it is simple, reliable, and streams efficiently — you can pipe a tarball straight through a compressor without ever writing an intermediate file.
TAR vs ZIP: When You'll Meet Each
If you work mostly on Windows, ZIP is the archive you know. TAR.GZ is the equivalent in the Linux, macOS, and open-source world, and you will run into it constantly once you download source code, container images, server backups, or scientific datasets. The practical difference is that ZIP compresses each file separately, while TAR.GZ compresses the whole bundle as one block — which usually yields a smaller archive for projects with many small, similar files, at the cost of not being able to extract a single file without reading the stream. Because this tool does the reading for you and then lists everything, you get the best of both: TAR.GZ's efficiency with ZIP-style pick-and-choose downloading.
Extracting Privately, With Nothing Installed
The reason to extract a tarball in the browser rather than on a website that asks you to upload it is simple: privacy. Server-based extractors receive a full copy of your archive, which is a real concern for source code, database dumps, or anything containing credentials. This tool performs the entire decompression and extraction locally using JavaScript, so the bytes never leave your machine. It also means there is no queue, no file-size cap imposed by a server, and no account to create — you can open an archive on a locked-down work laptop or a Chromebook exactly as easily as on a full Linux workstation.
Tips for Working with TAR Archives
Check the extension carefully
Files named .tar.gz and .tgz are identical. Both are supported. A plain .gz file (not a tarball) is not — use a different tool for those.
Downloaded source code
Most open-source repositories distribute release archives as .tar.gz. Extract here to inspect the source without installing git or npm.
Large archives on mobile
For archives over 200 MB on a phone, use a desktop browser — mobile tabs have tighter memory limits that can cause failures mid-extraction.
Need to create a TAR?
Use the companion TAR Online tool to bundle files into a .tar or .tar.gz archive with a single click.
Frequently Asked Questions
What formats does this support?
Plain TAR (.tar), GZIP-compressed TAR (.tar.gz), and TGZ (.tgz). BZIP2 and XZ compressed tarballs are not currently supported.
Are my files uploaded to a server?
No. Decompression and extraction both run entirely in your browser. Your files never leave your device.
Do I need Linux or macOS to open TAR files?
Not with this tool. It runs in any modern browser on Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, or Android.
Can I extract individual files rather than everything?
Yes. Each extracted file gets its own Download button in the results list, so you can save only the specific files you need.
What is the maximum archive size?
No server-side limit. The archive must fit in your browser tab's available memory, which is typically 1–2 GB on desktop browsers.
Does this handle nested directories inside the TAR?
The full file path (including any subdirectory prefixes) is preserved in the file name shown in the results. Files can be downloaded individually with their original names.
What is the difference between TAR and ZIP?
Both bundle multiple files into one archive, but they compress differently. ZIP compresses each file separately, so any single file can be pulled out quickly. TAR.GZ first concatenates everything into one TAR stream and then compresses the whole thing as a single block, which usually produces a smaller archive for projects made of many small similar files. TAR is the standard in the Linux and open-source world; ZIP is more common on Windows.
Can I extract .tar.bz2 or .tar.xz files?
Not yet. This tool supports plain TAR, gzip-compressed TAR (.tar.gz / .tgz). BZIP2 (.tar.bz2) and XZ (.tar.xz) use different compression algorithms that are not currently handled. If you have one of those, decompress the outer layer with a dedicated tool first, then extract the resulting .tar here.
Is it safe to extract TAR files downloaded from the internet?
Extracting an archive only unpacks its contents — it does not run anything — so listing and downloading files here is safe. The caution applies afterward: never run scripts or executables from an untrusted archive without inspecting them first. Because this tool extracts entirely in your browser and runs no code from inside the archive, the extraction step itself carries no risk to your system.
Why would I use this instead of the tar command?
The tar command is excellent if you already have a terminal and know the flags, but it is not always available — on a work-issued Windows laptop, a Chromebook, a phone, or a locked-down environment you may have no shell at all. This tool needs only a browser, requires no installation or admin rights, and gives you a clickable list of files instead of memorising flags like -xzvf.