---
title: "Create TAR Files Online — Private, No Upload | Compress Pro"
description: "Bundle files into a plain .tar archive right in your browser — the unix standard for grouping files, uncompressed by design. Free, private, local."
canonical: https://compress-pro.com/create-tar
---

# Create TAR archives.

> Bundle files into a tar archive — built on your device.

A tar file glues many files into one stream without compressing them — the format unix tooling has expected since the tape-drive era. Drop files, download one .tar. **Built entirely in your browser**; combine it with gzip or xz here too if you want it compressed.

**No uploads · No ads · Free & open source.**

## How it works

1. Drop files anywhere on the page, click to browse, or paste with Ctrl/⌘ + V.
2. Pick a quality or preset — or set an exact target size and let the tool find it.
3. Compress, compare before/after, and download — individually or as a ZIP.

## tar, tar.gz, tgz — the family tree

tar bundles; gzip/bzip2/xz compress the bundle. tar.gz (or .tgz — same thing) is the everyday combination, and [Create TAR.GZ](https://compress-pro.com/create-tar-gz) builds it in one step. A plain tar from this page can also be compressed later with [Gzip](https://compress-pro.com/gzip-files) — the result is byte-for-byte a tar.gz.

## Frequently asked questions

### Why is my tar as big as the inputs combined?

Because tar does not compress — it only concatenates files with headers. That is by design: compression is a separate layer (gzip, bzip2, xz) applied over the tar. Pick TAR.GZ on this page instead if you want the compressed kind.

### When is a plain uncompressed tar actually right?

When the consumer expects one: docker build contexts, some upload APIs, streaming pipelines, and cases where the content is already compressed (photos, video) so a gzip layer would only waste time.

### Does it preserve folder structure?

Files land at the archive root with their names — the browser does not hand websites full folder trees on drop. For nested structure, tar an existing archive after converting it, or accept the flat layout most transfers actually need.

### Is it private?

Yes. Archives are built and converted entirely in your browser — neither the archive nor the files inside it are ever uploaded, and any password you set is applied locally. The server does nothing but deliver this page. Want proof? Run one file through, switch your connection off, and run another — it still works.

## Related tools

- [Create TAR.GZ tarballs](https://compress-pro.com/create-tar-gz)
- [Gzip files](https://compress-pro.com/gzip-files)
- [Zip & Unzip files](https://compress-pro.com/zip-files)

---

Part of [Compress Pro](https://compress-pro.com/) — every tool page has a markdown twin at `<page url>.md`. Full tool index: [llms.txt](https://compress-pro.com/llms.txt)