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PKG ZIP
File conversion

Convert PKG to ZIP

Verified by Adam B.· reviewed by FE Editorial ·updated Jun 26, 2026
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Is it possible to convert PKG to ZIP?
Yes - PKG converts to ZIP.

Use 7-Zip on Windows to open the .pkg as a XAR archive, extract its contents, then compress the extracted folder as a ZIP. The resulting ZIP holds the raw installer payload and support files - useful for inspection or transport, not for installation.

Also to ZIP: KGL · IMAZINGAPP · LOCKER

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Tested on macOS, Windows & Linux
Last verified Oct 2026

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Why convert PKG to ZIP?

Extracting a .pkg to ZIP is mainly useful for inspecting or transporting the installer contents on a Windows or Linux machine where Apple's Installer is unavailable. Repacking into ZIP does not preserve the installer logic or scripts, so the output is a read-only archive of the package internals.

How to convert PKG to ZIP

7-Zip FREE

Right-click the .pkg, choose 7-Zip > Open archive to browse the XAR contents, extract everything to a folder, then right-click that folder and choose 7-Zip > Add to archive with format set to ZIP.

Pacifist APP

Open the .pkg in Pacifist, use File > Extract to export the files to a staging folder, then right-click that folder in Finder and choose Compress to produce a ZIP.

About these formats

.PKG macOS Installer Package

A PKG file is a macOS Installer package - it installs software on a Mac. Double-click it to run Apple's Installer app, which will walk you through setup (admin password usually required).…

Open .PKG details →
.ZIP ZIP Archive

A ZIP file is a compressed archive that stores one or more files in a single smaller package. On Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android you can open it without installing anything - just…

Open .ZIP details →

Quality & what to watch

  • A macOS .pkg is XAR format (magic bytes xar!), not ZIP - 7-Zip handles it directly because XAR is an open archive format.
  • The Payload file inside the extracted folder is itself a gzip-compressed cpio archive; a second extraction step is needed to reach the actual installed files.
  • Repacking into ZIP does not preserve installer logic - install scripts, the BOM, and the Distribution XML are present as files but no OS will execute them from a ZIP.

Frequently asked questions

Does the resulting ZIP work as an installer?
No - the ZIP holds the raw payload and support files but the installer logic is not preserved; nothing can be installed from it directly.
Can I extract a `.pkg` on Linux?
Yes. Use the xar command-line tool to unpack the XAR archive, then cat Payload | gunzip | cpio -id to reach the installed files.
What is inside a `.pkg` file?
A flat .pkg contains a gzip-compressed cpio Payload, a Bill of Materials (BOM), a PackageInfo or Distribution XML manifest, and optional pre/post-install shell scripts.
What about older `.pkg` files from before Mac OS X 10.5?
Pre-Leopard packages are folder bundles named .pkg, not single-file XAR archives - you can ZIP them directly with any archiver.