BZ to ZIP Converter
Convert BZ to ZIP online for free. Fast, secure, and high-quality conversion with no sign-up or software required.
Maximum file size is 1GB
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Three steps to your converted file
Everything happens in your browser tab - upload, pick a format, download. The heavy lifting runs on our servers.
Upload your file
Drag and drop, click to browse, or paste a URL. Batches take up to 20 files at once - 230+ input formats across video, audio, image, document, and archive types.
Choose an output format
Pick from over a hundred output formats. Filter by category or search by name - every option is open to everyone, no account needed.
Convert & download
Hit Convert and grab your download link moments later. Originals are erased when the job completes; results are cleared within about an hour.
What is a BZ file?
The BZ file extension represents a compressed archive created by the original bzip utility, developed by Julian Seward in 1996. This format utilizes the Burrows-Wheeler Transform (BWT) for block-sorting text permutation, followed by Move-to-Front (MTF) transforms and arithmetic coding to achieve high-density lossless compression. The BZ format is the predecessor to the more standard bzip2 (.bz2); it was deprecated and superseded shortly after release due to patent concerns surrounding the use of arithmetic coding, which was subsequently replaced by Huffman coding in bzip2. Unlike ZIP archives, BZ files typically compress a single stream or file and do not natively support directory archiving without a container format like TAR.
How to open a BZ file
Modern operating systems do not provide native decoding support for the legacy BZ format due to its obsolescence and the prevalence of bzip2. To extract data from a BZ file, users require third-party file compression software capable of handling legacy block-sorting algorithms. 7-Zip is the recommended utility for Windows environments due to its comprehensive backward compatibility, while macOS users should utilize The Unarchiver. In Linux and Unix-like environments, the standard bzip2 command-line utility often retains backward compatibility to decompress these files using the -d flag.
BZ Technical Info
- Full Name
- Bzip Compressed File
- Developed By
- Julian Seward
- Initial Release
- 1996
- MIME Type
- application/x-bzip
What is a ZIP file?
The ZIP format is an archive file format capable of lossless data compression, originally created by Phil Katz of PKWARE. It utilizes a Central Directory structure to catalog files and supports various compression algorithms, most notably DEFLATE (RFC 1951). The format is standardized under ISO/IEC 21320-1:2015 as a document container file and serves as the base structure for modern file types like .docx and .jar.
How to open a ZIP file
The ZIP format enjoys universal native support across all major operating systems, including Windows (File Explorer), macOS (Archive Utility), and Linux. No third-party software is strictly required for basic extraction, though power users often employ tools like 7-Zip or WinRAR to access advanced features like AES-256 encryption or multi-volume spanning.
ZIP Technical Info
- Full Name
- ZIP Archive
- Developed By
- Phil Katz (PKWARE)
- Initial Release
- 1989
- MIME Type
- application/zip
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Every BZ to ZIP conversion runs on our servers, so your device stays fast and the output quality stays intact.
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No queue, no waiting. Files are processed on high-performance servers and returned in seconds, even for large files.
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Developer API
Convert BZ to ZIP via API
Automate BZ to ZIP conversions in three steps: create a job, upload your file, then poll for the result.
# 1. Create job
curl -X POST https://api.runconvert.com/v3/jobs \
-H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"tag": "bz-to-zip",
"tasks": {
"upload-file": {
"operation": "import/upload"
},
"convert": {
"operation": "convert",
"input": "upload-file",
"output_format": "zip"
},
"export-result": {
"operation": "export/url",
"input": "convert"
}
}
}'
# 2. Upload your file (use upload_url from the response)
curl -X PUT "$UPLOAD_URL" --upload-file input.bz
# 3. Poll for result
curl https://api.runconvert.com/v3/jobs/$JOB_ID?include=tasks \
-H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"Replace YOUR_API_KEY with your RunConvert API key. Get your free API key at runconvert.com/api.