Features:  

IZArc can password protect archives, split them into multiple volumes and covert them from one archive type to another. You can even create self-extracting archives and repair damaged ZIP files.

We really like how easy it is to convert archives from one file extension to another. Simply select your archive, and direct it where you want it to you want it to go. And you can easily compress or extract files using IZArc through Windows Explorer.

In future versions, we would like to see IZArc include functionality for batch conversion and extraction directly in the application. However, you can batch extract or convert using Windows Explorer and hotkeys.

Compression:  

In our ZIP compression test, IZArc performed just a tad above average with the most compression occurring in Word documents and Excel spreadsheets.

Compression Formats:  

Considering the name of the program, we were a little surprised that IZArc doesn’t support compression to the ARC archive. However, it does cover most of the other archive bases like ZIP, 7z and TAR.

Extraction Formats:  

IZArc can probably extract more formats than any other product we reviewed, ranging from the common archives like ZIP and RAR to the uncommon ones like PK3 and HA. The full list of formats IZArc extracts is quite impressive.

Ease of Use:  

IZArc has a bit of a learning curve. We first noticed that when you drag your file to be compressed, you have to be sure to change your directory path to your desired folder and rename your archive, as otherwise, you’ll get an error message. Also, we noticed that when your files are finished compressing, there is nothing that indicates the function has taken place. Your folder doesn’t automatically open and your archive is not displayed in IZArc’s screen.

Additionally, IZArc froze our test computer at least once when trying to use the compress and mail feature.

Help and Support:  

IZArc is free software, therefore help and support is usually sacrificed. However, IZArc does include a user guide online FAQ, active forums and even an email address, but it’s suggested you double check the forums and help guide before contacting the email. It’s unlikely you’ll get a timely response.

If you are familiar with file compression software IZArc will probably work just fine for you. It has a decent feature set and a number of customizable settings. However, the everyday user will probably get confused and frustrated quite quickly.

To learn more about file compression software see our top three reviews, WinZip, WinRAR and ALZip.