Rar Extract For Mac
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. Compressed files are a great way of sharing a lot of content in a small packet. These packets are of.zip and.rar formats. Most of the computers are designedly able to deal with the Zip files. However, to extract Rar files, they need a specialized catalyst. So, in this article, I’m going to tell you how to open RAR files on Mac PC. In the next section, I will show you an easy way to extract RAR files on Mac using The Unarchiver. The Unarchiver for Mac. The Unarchiver is a free and light app that you can find in the utility section of the Mac App Store. It has a simple, easy-to-use interface, and it is an open source project. How to Extract and Open RAR Files on MacOS. Download Extractor - Unarchive Files for macOS 10.8 or later and enjoy it on your Mac. Extractor is an indispensable utility app that can be used to unarchive a range of files such as Zip, Rar, Tar, Gzip, 7z and more at lightning speed.
So you tried to open a .rar file you downloaded on the Internet, or received from a colleague/friend via email. Then you get a weird error on your Mac, because the file couldn’t be opened.
It’s really disappointing. I’ve been there many times, since I use my MacBook Pro to communicate with others who are probably on a PC. In fact, I also ran into the same problem when I switched from PC to Mac a few years ago.
Luckily, I managed to fix it with an amazing app called The Unarchiver, the best RAR extractor app for Mac. Plus, it’s still free. Meanwhile, I also tested dozens of other applications on my Mac, and filtered those that are 100% free and easy to use and you can read more below.
NEW UPDATE
Hi there, Thanks for reading this article. It’s been two years since I first published this post. Things have changed a lot when it comes to unrar apps for Mac. I was hoping Apple macOS could add this feature to its built-in Archive Utility app, unfortunately, it seems that Apple macOS team doesn’t plan to do this. My MacBook Pro is now with the latest 10.13 High Sierra, and I have to rely on third-party apps to extract RAR files.
As for the best rar extractor app for Mac, the recommendation stays the same — The Unarchiver. It’s still free to download and use. Mac makeup kit set. However, it’s worth noting that the app has been acquired by MacPaw (the maker of CleanMyMac, an awesome Mac cleaning app) and is now part of the MacPaw family. You can read more from this press release.
Also, I just found a more powerful app called BetterZip 4 — which allows Mac users to not only extract many types of archives, but you can also use it to create archives or preview content of an archive without extracting. Those additional features are not available in The Unarchiver or Archive Utility. I recommend BetterZip to those of you who often need to handle a different kind of files on a PC and Mac. Note: BetterZip isn’t freeware ($24.95 for the paid version), but a free trial is offered. You can get BetterZip 4 from Setapp here.
What about the other apps listed below? I tried to check them now and then, just to make sure they’re usable and the information is accurate. But I find it so time-consuming because every year or so Apple releases a new version of macOS (to date, it’s High Sierra 10.13.2), those apps that fail to be updated often can’t run or malfunction. Therefore, I’d discourage you to check them out unless you are interested. That said, I’ll try my best to keep the content on this post as fresh as possible.
What is an RAR File?
RAR is a compressed file short for Roshal Archive; it’s a proprietary file format developed by Eugene Roshal, a genius software engineer. Simply put, a .rar file is like a big data container that holds a set of individual files and folders inside.
Why use RAR? Because it reduces the size of your files and folders while keeping all the content 100% intact. With a RAR, it’s much easier to store on removable media or transferred over the Internet.
According to this comparison image provided by Compression Ratings, RAR files achieve much higher compression, especially on multimedia files. They are also easier to split or to recover once corrupted than other alternatives like ZIP or 7Zip files.
How to Open an RAR Archive on Mac?
Unlike other archive files, for example, a ZIP archive can be directly created or extracted by using the default function on Mac (here’s a tutorial), a RAR file can only be opened using third-party software…which, unfortunately, Apple hasn’t built into the Archive Utility, yet.
That’s why there are plenty of third-party applications available on the Internet that claim to be able to do that. Some are dated, while some require you to pay.
Thanks to those smart, yet kind developers, we have quite a lot of free options to get the job done without taking a penny out of the pocket. I’ve tested many and here are the 10 best free apps that still work.
10 Free RAR Extractor Apps That Work on Mac
Note: Some of the apps below are open source, and the authors accept donations. If you find the one you use is really awesome, kindly show your appreciation. Hundreds of hours were spent to make that product work well.
1. The Unarchiver
The Unarchiver is my favorite. Like the name indicates, it unpacks almost any archive instantly without launching the app. The app is very powerful, even does what the built-in Archive Utility can’t — extracts RAR archives. It also supports handling filenames in foreign character sets.
2. B1 Free Archiever
Another great open source app, the B1 Free Archiver serves as an all-in-one program for managing file archives. As you can see from the screenshot above, this tool allows you to create, open and extract archives. It opens .rar, .zip, and 35 other file formats. Besides Mac, there are also versions for Windows, Linux, and Android.
3. UnRarX
UnRarX is a simple utility designed to expand .rar files and restore corrupted or missing archives with .par and .par2 files. It has an extraction function as well. To do this, simply open the program, drag your archive files into the interface, and UnRarX will unpack the content to the specified destination.
4. StuffIt Expander Mac
StuffIt Expander for Mac allows you to uncompress both Zip and RAR archives. I found the app very easy to use. Once the program is installed, you should see an icon (as shown on the top of the above screenshot). Click on it. Next select the file, specify the destination to store your extracted files, and you’re done.
5. MacPar deLuxe
Another great tool that can open RAR files, and do a lot beyond! Originally developed to recover missing or corrupted information by processing “par” and “par2” files, MacPAR deLuxe is able to unpack the data with its built-in unrar engine. If you are a Macintosh user who frequently downloads or uploads binary files, then most likely you’ll love this utility program. You can get it from its official site here.
6. iZip for Mac
iZip is another powerful yet effective tool built from the ground up for Mac users to compress/decompress, secure, and share files easily. It supports all kinds of archive formats including RAR, ZIP, ZIPX, TAR, and 7ZIP. To unzip a file, just drag and drop it into the software main interface. Another window will pop up with the extracted files. Super fast!
7. RAR Extractor Free
RAR Extractor Free is an app that specializes in extracting Rar, Zip, Tar, 7-zip, Gzip, Bzip2 files conveniently and safely. Once you download and launch the app, you’ll see a pop-up window that asks you to specify an “unarchive” location. To load your files, you’ll need to move to the top left and click “Open.”
8. SimplyRAR (Mac)
SimplyRAR is another awesome archiving app for Mac OS. As its name suggests, SimplyRAR is a simple to use program that makes archiving and unarchiving files a breeze. Open it by dropping the file into the application, choosing a compression method, and pulling the trigger. The downside of the app is that it will be difficult to get support from the developer, as it appears they’re no longer in business.
9. RAR Expander
RAR Expander (Mac) is a clean GUI utility for creating and expanding RAR archives. It supports single, multi-part or password-protected archives. It also features AppleScript support and includes example scripts to help you handle multiple archives at once.
Rar Extract Macos
10. Zipeg
Zipeg is also handy yet free. What I really like is its ability to preview an entire file before extracting it. It also supports password protected and multipart files. Note: To open the software, you’ll need to install the legacy Java SE 6 runtime (see this Apple support article).
What’s Your Favorite UnRAR Tool?
Does the recommended one help you extract or unzip your RAR files? Or do you find a better unarchiver app for Mac than the ones listed above? Let me know by leaving a quick comment below.
How to unrar file on a Mac? This is the question that came up my mind when I got my first MacBook Pro. Actually, extracting RAR files on a Mac can be as easy as pie or as complicated as a 5000-piece jigsaw puzzle, but it depends on the tool that you use to uncompress and extract the contents of the file. While some tools will make you run circles but never give you what you want, there are ways to properly extract RAR files on a Mac. Let's talk about two different but effective ways to do this.
Part 1. How to Extract RAR File on Mac via Terminal
Although this method requires some preparation, when completed, it will allow you to easily unpackage RAR files directly from Terminal. If you're a developer and use Terminal a lot, then this is a good way to get compressed files unzipped directly from the command line. The instructions below show a detailed stepwise flow of what to do in order to add this capability to Terminal.
Step 1. Download the RAR for Mac OS X utility from RARLab and note down the file path of the download.
Step 2. Open Terminal (Applications >>Utilities >>Terminal; or Cmd+Spacebar to launch Spotlight and search for Terminal). Now enter the following command in Terminal: cd ~/Downloads/rarosx-5.6/rar
Note: Make sure you change the filename based on the version you downloaded.
Step 3. For Mac OS X versions until Yosemite, run the following command to install unRAR: sudo install -c -o $USER unrar /usr/local/bin
Step 4. Enter the root password if prompted at the previous command. To extract a file, use the following command, replacing the entire part with the file path with the appropriate one: unrar x /path/to/file.part01.rar
This is a great way to do it, of course, but extracting files on Mac OS X Yosemite and later macOS versions requires an additional step. Before executing Step 3 above, you will need to create the '/usr/local/bin' folder location since there's no default one. In addition, you need separate commands to open archives that are password-protected, which they usually are when the information inside is confidential.
Cons:
- Complex and not user friendly.
- Only for RAR files archived by WinRAR.
- Need to download extra tool from unknown sources.
- Failed on latest macOS build.
Part 2 : How to Open RAR File on Mac via CleanGeeker Unarchiver App
Believe it or not, even though the RAR extraction capability of CleanGeeker is superior to most other utilities, it is actually an add-on feature. Essentially a Mac memory and resource optimization tool, this software nevertheless has an excellent archive extraction feature.
TunesBro CleanGeeker is built for functionality, but the UI is quite appealing as well. The complex settings are mostly in the background so it's easy for novice users to learn how to use the software. This section shows you how to easily and quickly extract RAR on a Mac using CleanGeeker.
Highlights of TunesBro CleanGeeker
- Extract and open various archive files, including RAR, ZIP, GZ, TAR, TAR.GZ, etc.
- Boost Mac performance by cleaning up junk and tmp files.
- One-click find and remove duplicate files on local hard drive.
- Get more free memory by closing apps running in background.
Step 1Install and Open TunesBro CleanGeeker on Mac
Install CleanGeeker app on your Mac after downloading it from the official website of TunesBro. When you launch the program you'll see a home page with scan and clean functions. Below it, on the left-panel, you'll see tabs for other functions. Click on 'Unarchiver'.
Step 2Add RAR File to CleanGeeker
Select 'Open RAR' in the next window. Within the module, select the file to be extracted, specify the destination folder and click on 'Extract'. That's it. Your extracted files will now be available in the specified destination folder. You can see how easy it is to use, and you'll be done in just a couple of minutes.
Unzip Rar Files Mac
The real power in the software is what it can do to keep your Mac running optimally at all times. Periodic junk cleaning and deep cleaning your system will make sure that unwanted files and data aren't clogging up valuable memory space. Remove duplicates is also pretty fast ; digitally shred your private files and make them unrecoverable; even speed up your startup process. For extracting RAR files, it is one of the simplest and most powerful applications you'll find, and it supports zip, bzip, gzip and several other archive file formats.
Conclusion:
The choice is a simple one: you can either do it from the command line after installing unRAR and execute several processes before you can start extracting RAR files, or you can do it right away after installing CleanGeeker. Unless you're comfortable with command line work, the first method is not at all recommended. If you get a command wrong or a typo in a filename, it will prevent you from extracting anything after all that work. Besides, not many users are comfortable installing an app and then using it without a graphical interface.