Programs to open CBZ files
The best solution for open CBZ is to rely on the programs to be installed on your computer. These software are real comic readers that allow you to browse your books in CBZ format. Here are some that might be right for you.
ComicRack (Windows)
Among the programs to open CBZ files there is certainly more widespread ComicRack, a free software for Windows PCs that offers numerous features, such as full-screen viewing, customizable keyboard shortcuts, and sharing your library.
To download ComicRack on your computer, connected to the official website of the program, click on the item Downloads present in the top menu, press the button Windows and, on the newly opened page, click the button Download present accanto alla voce ComicRack for Windows [Version].
Once the download is complete, double-click the file ComicRackSetup [version] .exe e pigia sui pulsnti Next e I agree, then press the buttons Next e install to start the installation, wait for it to complete and press the button Finish to close the window and start the program.
You are now ready to open your CBZ files with ComicRack. When you first start the program, you can read its getting started guide and learn about its features. If, on the other hand, you want to go straight to reading your digital comic, click on X present at the top left, select the item apri located in the top menu and click on the option Open file from the menu that appears. Then select the CBZ file you want to open and press the button apri to view it.
Alternatively, select the item Folders at the bottom, click on the folder where the file is contained and double-click on cover of the comic of your interest to start reading it. Using the buttons at the top right, you can activate the full screen function, scroll through the pages (you can also do it using the directional arrows on your keyboard), take advantage of the zoom in and zoom out functions and rotate the pages 90 °.
YACReader (Windows / macOS / Linux)
YACReader is among the best programs to open files in CBZ format. It is available for free for Windows PCs, macOS and Linux and supports all major digital comic formats, as well as offering many interesting features, such as the ability to organize your library by tags and start reading in full screen.
To download YACReader, connected to the software website, click on the item Downloads present in the top menu and presses the icon of arrow pointing down to start downloading YACReader.
Now, you're got a PC Windows, double-click the file YACReader- [version] .exe, pigia sul pulsating Run and click your bottone Next, then put the check mark next to the item I accept the agreement, click here Next for five consecutive times and presses the button install to install the program.
If you use a MacInstead, open the dmg package just downloaded, click the button Agree and trascina l'icona di YACReader in the folder Applications macOS, then right-click on the program icon and select the item apri from the menu that appears (this is necessary only at the first start, to bypass the macOS restrictions for programs that come from non-certified developers).
After starting the program, click on the letter O of your keyboard and select the CBZ file to import to YACReader. Alternatively, you can also open a digital comic by clicking on the icon speech bubble present at the top left and selecting the file to open.
Workarounds for open CBZ files
In addition to the programs I suggested in the previous paragraphs, they exist alternatives to open CBZ files. As mentioned above, in fact, CBZ files are not only files in ZIP format which, in turn, are archives of images that can be extracted using programs for managing compressed archives: here are some of the most interesting.
7-Zip (Windows)
One of the best solutions to open compressed archives on Windows is 7-Zip, a free software that, unlike the name, allows you to open not only files in ZIP format, but also CBZ, 7z, DMG, RAR and numerous others.
To download 7-Zip to your computer, connect to the program website and click on the entry Download for the version of Windows installed on your computer. Once the download is complete, double-click the file 7z [version] .exe, pigia sul pulsating install, wait for the installation to complete and click the button Close to close the window.
Now you can extract the content of the CBZ file of your interest. Right-click on the file in question, select the entry 7-Zip from the menu that appears and click on the option Extract the files. In the new window that opens, indicate the folder to which to extract them in the field Extract to, pigia sul pulsating OK And that's it. Then open the folder containing the extracted files to view the images that made up the CBZ file.
The Unarchiver (macOS)
The Unarchiver is the ideal solution for extracting images contained in a CBZ file on macOS. To download the software for free, launch the Mac App Store, type The Unarchiver in the field Research at the top right and presses the button Submit on the keyboard to start the search.
Now, click the buttons Get e Install app related to The Unarchiver (should be the first result) and wait for the installation to complete. To extract the contents of your CBZ file, right click on it and select the entries Open with e The Unarchiver from the menu that appears and, once the extraction is complete, the extracted files will be available in a subfolder with the same name as the CBZ file. If you want to know other solutions of this kind, you can read my dedicated to programs to open ZIP files.
App to open CBZ files
Have you downloaded a comic in CBZ format and would like to read it on your tablet or smartphone? No problem, they exist app to open CBZ files that allow you to read your comics from your mobile device, wherever you are: here are some of the ones you can consider.
- ComicRack (Android / iOS): is the mobile version of ComicRack, the software for reading digital comics I told you about earlier in its desktop variant. It supports files in CBZ, CBR, CB7, CBT, PDF and DJVU format and, with Windows PC, allows the synchronization of your comics via USB connection. For Android it is available both for free and in a paid version (5,99 euros), while for iPhone / iPad it costs 8,99 euros.
- ComicScreen - ComicViewer (Android): is one of the best free applications for reading comics from smartphones and tablets. It supports ZIP, RAR, CBZ, CBR files and major image formats, such as JPEG, GIF, PNG and BMP. It allows you to create folders for file storage and allows you to edit images. It is free with non-invasive banner ads.
- Perfect Viewer (Android): the ideal application for those who want to open files in ePub, JPEG, PNG, GIF, BMP, CBZ, CBR, ZIP, RAR, 7Z and many more from their smartphone or tablet. It allows you to link your accounts of the main cloud storage services, such as Google Drive, Dropbox and OneDrive. It can be downloaded for free.
- Comic Storm (iOS): another free application to read comics on your iPhone / iPad. It allows you to download and import comics from the web, via FTP, iTunes, Web Server and by connecting Comic Storm to services such as Google Drive, Dropbox and One Drive. To eliminate the banner ads, you need to purchase the Pro version at a cost of 5,49 euros.
- Manga Storm CBR (iOS): is an application that, despite its name, allows you to open not only CBR files, but also CBZ, PDF, RAR and ZIP. It allows you to import comics and files in supported formats via iTunes or FTP and allows connection with cloud storage services (Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive). It's free and features banner ads that you can remove with the in-app purchase of the version Manga Storm CBR Pro cost of 3,49 Euros.
- YACReader (iOS): as well as ComicRack, YACReader is also available as an application for iPhone and iPad, at a cost of € 2,29. In addition to supporting files in CBZ, CBR, ZIP, RAR and PDF format, it allows you to import comics from your computer via both iTunes and the desktop version of YACReader. It also allows you to synchronize your library with online storage services, such as Dropbox, Google Drive, Box and OneDrive.
