How to Convert Zip to Exe

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Make an executable file from a ZIP file

Written by Nicole Levine, MFA

Last Updated: April 8, 2025 Tested

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This wikiHow teaches you how to use a free app called Paquet Builder to convert a .Zip file to an .Exe file in Windows.

Quick Steps

Download and install Paquet Builder.
Download and install the menu extension.
Open the ZIP file in the File Explorer.
Right-click the file.
Select Compress into a self-extracting.exe.
Click Build.

1

Download Paquet Builder.

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Download Paquet Builder from https://www.installpackbuilder.com/download. To begin the download, click Download Now. A file called “pbinst.exe” will download to your computer.

2

Install Paquet Builder.

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To do this, open your Downloads folder, double-click pbinst.exe, and then follow the prompts to complete the installation.

3

Download the Explorer menu extension.

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To make the conversion easier, download the menu extension from https://www.installpackbuilder.com/explorer-menu-extension. Once the page loads, click the Download button that displays your version of Windows (32 or 64-bit). A file called “pbextsetup.exe” will download to your computer.

4

Install the menu extension.

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Open your Downloads folder again, double-click pbextsetup.exe to run the wizard, then follow the prompts to complete the installation.

5

Open File Explorer.

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The File Explorer will appear.

6

Navigate to the ZIP file.

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Don't do anything else just yet.

7

Right-click the ZIP file.

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A menu will appear.

8

Select "Compress into a Self-Extracting .exe."

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It’s near the center of the menu. This opens Paquet Builder.

9

Name the file.

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If you want to password-protect the file, type a password into the “Optional Encryption Password” box.

10

Click "Build" to create the file.

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It’s at the bottom-right corner of the window.

11

Select "Use Freeware Edition" to use the free features of the app.

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This begins the conversion. Once the process is complete, a new file will appear in the current folder with the same name, except instead of ending with .Zip, it will end in .Exe.