Compressed ZIP or RAR files are very popular for storing sensitive data or for dividing larger files into many "fragments", downloadable separately. Unfortunately, compressing files can occasionally lead to some unexpected error, which in fact prevents us from accessing the compressed archive or from proceeding correctly with the extraction. If we happened in this scenario, we have created the guide that is right for you: we will show you here the best tools and free programs to extract and recover files from damaged and corrupt ZIP and RAR files . In this way, if we are provided with a compressed archive to be recovered at all costs, just keep one of the following programs on hand (but also all, in case the situation is desperate) to try to access and extract the files contained inside the ZIP or RAR archive.
How to recover files from damaged ZIP and RAR files
Below we have collected all the best programs and websites, strictly free, with which we can try to recover damaged or reported ZIP and RAR files as corrupt. Unfortunately none of these tools gives absolute certainty in recovery : if the damage is very serious, it may become impossible to recover the contents of the protected archives.
DiskInternals ZIP Repair
The first program to try to recover damaged ZIP and RAR files is DiskInternals ZIP Repair.
This program, specific for ZIP files, allows you to quickly recover the contents of the archive: simply install it, start it and choose, at the right time, the file to be recovered (by clicking on Browse, in the Corrupted file field) and the path where save the recovered file (by clicking on Browse, in the Repaired file field).
Finally, the program will proceed with the recovery: all we have to do is cross our fingers and hope to recover all the files kept in the damaged ZIP archive.
Recovery Toolbox for RAR
If, on the other hand, we need to recover a RAR archive, we recommend that you try the Recovery Toolbox for RAR tool.
Using this program is very simple: after installing it on our computer, start it, indicate the RAR file to be recovered and press Next . The program will start working (it may take some time, especially with large files); at the end of the scan, we will be shown all the files contained in the archive, we will only have to select Select all, click Next and indicate the computer folder where to store the recovered files.
Remo Repair RAR and ZIP
The manufacturers of Remo Repair have released a dedicated tool for both types of compressed archive: in fact, we can download both Remo Repair RAR and Remo Repair ZIP.
The program works in a similar way on both versions: all we have to do is open it, click on the Browse button, indicate the file to be recovered and finally click on Repair . After a few seconds of waiting, we will have a screen where all the files recovered from the archive are present: we will only have to click on the arrow-shaped symbol at the bottom right and indicate a folder where to store the recovered files.
EaseUS Data Recovery
If we are looking for a program capable of recovering both ZIP and RAR files, we can focus on EaseUS Data Recovery.
This program is designed to recover deleted files from partitions or recycle bin, but is also useful for recovering access to compressed files. To do this, simply open the program, select the Select Folder or Select Folder item and indicate the path where the compressed file or files to be recovered is kept (we can also create a new one for the occasion, so as to avoid having to recover even old deleted files).
Once the path is selected, we indicate a folder where to save the files in recovery and let the program work: if everything went in the right direction, we will see our compressed RAR and ZIP archives available in the recovery folder, ready to be opened.
This program works well if the ZIP and RAR files were intact and opened correctly in the past (since the program tries to restore an old version of the files): if the files have been downloaded already corrupt or damaged, we will hardly be able to open them.
Office Recovery (online)
If we don't want to use programs to attempt the recovery of ZIP and RAR files, we can try the online service offered by Office Recovery.
To use the service, simply click on Choose file, indicate the damaged or corrupt ZIP or RAR file, wait for the upload and then select the Upload safe and repair button .
If the file is unlocked, we will find the download link on the right side of the screen, immediately next to the button used a little while ago; all we have to do is download and verify that the compressed file is finally accessible. The site also allows you to recover damaged or corrupt DOC, XLS, PTT and PDF files, just upload one of these files instead of the compressed archive.
Conclusions
In this guide we have shown you all the free and effective tools to recover damaged or corrupt ZIP and RAR files. In the event that access to the compressed archive is password protected, these tools are not useful: we will have to try to force encryption and password using the tools recommended in our guide on Finding or removing passwords from protected ZIP and RAR files .If we are looking for a good free program to open RAR and ZIP files, we can read our guide on how to open RAR, ZIP and ISO with 7Zip, better alternative to Winrar and Winzip . To extract the contents of the ZIP and RAR files on our Android smartphone or iPhone, we advise you to continue reading our article on How to Open and create RAR and ZIP on Android and iPhone / iPad .
