.tgz files
.tgz file
Gzipped Tar Archive
Shorthand for .tar.gz — a tar bundle compressed with gzip.
What opens a .tgz file
- Windows
- File Explorer (built in, Windows 11), 7-Zip, WinRAR
- macOS
- Archive Utility (built in), Keka, tar -xzf (Terminal)
- Linux
- Archive Manager / File Roller (built in), Ark, tar -xzf
What a .tgz file is
TGZ exists because early DOS and Windows filesystems allowed only one three-letter extension, so .tar.gz was shortened. It is the standard way source code and Linux packages are distributed. Extraction is a two-stage job — ungzip, then untar — which every modern archive tool does in one step.
Converting it
A .tgz file is commonly converted to .zip, .7z, .tar or .gz. It is a binary format, so a text editor will show unreadable characters rather than its contents.
Details
- Extension
- .tgz
- Full name
- Gzipped Tar Archive
- Category
- Archives
- MIME type
- application/gzip
- Created by
- GNU Project
- Format
- Binary
Common questions
- How do I open a .tgz file?
- On Windows use File Explorer (built in, Windows 11); on macOS use Archive Utility (built in); on Linux use Archive Manager / File Roller (built in). Shorthand for .tar.gz — a tar bundle compressed with gzip.
- What is a .tgz file?
- Gzipped Tar Archive. TGZ exists because early DOS and Windows filesystems allowed only one three-letter extension, so .tar.gz was shortened. It is the standard way source code and Linux packages are distributed.
- Can I convert a .tgz file?
- Yes. It is usually converted to .zip, .7z, .tar or .gz, either by exporting from one of the programs listed above or with a format converter.
Related pages
- .zip — ZIP Archive The universal compressed folder — every operating system opens one with no extra
- .rar — RAR Archive A proprietary archive format with better compression than ZIP and strong recover
- .7z — 7-Zip Archive The open, high-compression archive format from 7-Zip, with proper AES-256 encryp
- .gz — Gzip Compressed File A single compressed file — it holds no folder structure of its own.
- .tar — Tape Archive A Unix bundle of files with no compression at all — usually paired with gzip.
- .xz — XZ Compressed File LZMA2 compression — the tightest of the common Unix single-file compressors.
- .bz2 — Bzip2 Compressed File A compressed single file, slower than gzip but usually smaller.
- .sfx — Self-Extracting Archive Module The stub program archivers glue onto an archive to make it extract itself.
Sources
- Media Types Registry — IANA
- Official vendor product documentation — At One Place