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. Jun 26, 2019 RAR is a proprietary archive format, so you need third-party software to open and extract it on your Mac. In this post, we show you our favorite software to use for this, as well as some alternative ways to open.rar files in macOS.
Compress and unpack any files on Mac with Archiver.
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.
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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:
Download the app and place it in the Applications folder
Right-click on the archive you need to unpack and choose Open With > The Unarchiver
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
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Starting with Archiver is a no-brainer due to its intuitive drag-and-drop interface:
Launch Archiver from Applications
Drop your RAR archive right onto the app’s window
You’ll see all the files in the archive. Optionally, you can just drag some of the files onto your Desktop even without unarchiving.
To open .rar on Mac, simply choose Extract, select the destination, and then click Done
Alternatively, if you want to create a RAR archive:
Drop files onto the Archiver window and click Archive
Choose RAR out of the formats offered. Select the name and compression level.
Optionally check the Encrypt box and set a password for your archive
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:
Go Preferences > Presets
Explore the saved presets in Extract and Saved
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.
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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!
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Hello friends, Today I will tell you a method on how to open RAR files on Mac. Users can use this method to use RAR files on their MacOS. These are the best and most trusted apps. You can open any type of RAR file on Mac for free. Yes! You heard it right! Both of these methods are free, and anyone can use them on their MacOS. I will suggest you try these methods once.
Contents
1 How to Open RAR Files on Mac 2018 – Top 2 Methods
In Macintosh, there is no such app that can open RAR files on Mac. Though, how does a Mac user should open RAR files on Mac? Well, in this section I will be explaining to you that how to open RAR files on Mac. If you are a Mac user, then this guide is going to help you a lot. However, we are going to use apps to open RAR files on Mac. There are a couple of methods that are discussed in this section of the article. So, scroll below and check the ways to know that how do you open RAR files on Mac.
Read more: How to Open Rar Files on Windows 10
Method 1 – Using Unarchiver
Unarchiver is a light weighted and easy to use app that can help a Mac user to open RAR files on Mac. Not only RAR file it can even open much more archived files such as zip, gzip, arc, arj, etc. This app can be easily found on the Apple store so that a Mac user will no anywhere else to download it. Below I have shared a guide to know how a Mac user should use Unarchiver app to open a RAR file on Mac.
Get the Unarchiver app from Apple Store on your Mac.
Now, install it on your Mac.
Then, select the RAR file.
Choose the Unarchiver app from Open With option.
Now, follow onscreen instructions to open the RAR file on your Mac.
Read more: Top 10 Best Free Zip Software to Compress Files & Folders
Method 2 – Using StuffIt Expander
StuffIt Expander is a utility app which is available for Macintosh to be used for unzipping or opening a zipped file on Mac. A mac user can take the help of StuffIt Expander to open a RAR file on Mac. It is a free app which is offered for Mac users to download and install it on Mac so that it can be used to open RAR files on Mac. The guide to know how to use this software to open RAR files on Mac is given below which you can follow.
Rar Download For Mac
Get the StuffIt Expander app from Apple Store.
Now, install StuffIt Expander app on your Mac.
Then, select the RAR file which you want to open.
After that, right-click on it and select Open with option.
Now, click on StuffIt Expander.
You will see that you have opened the RAR files on Mac.
Read more: How to Compress Large Files to Smaller Size
Last Words on How to Open RAR Files on Mac 2018 – Top 2 Methods
Using these ways you can now open RAR files on Mac. There is no inbuilt app installed for Mac users to open RAR files on Mac. So, they can use these methods to open a RAR file on Mac. However, these methods are straightforward to understand, as well as sincere to follow. Both the method is different from each other so that you can use another if one didn’t work for you. I hope now you have learned the way to open a RAR file on Mac. Share this article with the colleagues and let them know that how to open RAR files on Mac.