Install an app with 7z extraction support, such as Zip Opener. Save the .7z file to Files, share it to the app, and extract its contents. Renaming the archive to .zip will not make it a ZIP file.
A file ending in .7z is a compressed archive. It may contain a single document or a whole folder of files. Extracting it makes those original files available; opening the archive itself is different from opening a document inside it.
Extract a .7z archive
- Finish downloading the .7z file.
Save the archive from your browser, email, or messaging app to Files. If it is in iCloud Drive, make sure the archive has downloaded to your iPhone before continuing.
- Import it into Zip Opener.
Download Zip Opener from the App Store. Locate the archive in Files, touch and hold it, then choose Share and select Zip Opener. Check More in the app row if needed.
- Choose the extraction action.
Select the imported .7z archive in Zip Opener and extract it. Keep enough free storage for both the original archive and the files it contains.
- Preview or share the result.
Find the extracted files in the app. Open supported file types to preview them, or share them to an app that supports their individual formats.
What about the Files app?
If Files does not extract a .7z download, use an app that explicitly lists 7z support. Zip Opener’s listing confirms 7z extraction, but does not specify every encryption method or multi-part archive variant. This guide covers a standard, single-file .7z archive.
If the archive won’t open
The file will not extract.
Check the file downloaded completely, download it again if necessary, and free up storage. An extracted folder can take substantially more space than its compressed archive.
The 7z archive is encrypted or has several parts.
Support for encrypted 7z and split archives is not confirmed here. Ask the sender for a standard single-file archive, or contact support with the archive type and error message. Do not send private files or passwords.
Meet your next archive opener.
Extract ZIP, RAR, and 7z. Work with protected ZIP and RAR archives when you have their passwords.
Download on theApp StoreFree download. In-app purchases. iOS 15 or later.
Common questions
Is a 7z file the same as a ZIP?
No. Both can contain compressed files, but they are different archive formats. An app must support the format you want to extract.
Will an extracted Windows program run on iPhone?
Extracting an archive does not make its contents compatible with iOS. A document may open in a suitable app; a Windows executable will not become an iPhone app.
Sources & further help
Product capabilities: Zip Opener on the App Store. Built-in ZIP steps: Apple’s guide to creating and opening ZIP files. Menu labels can vary with iOS and app versions. For help with an error, visit support.