What is the Difference between ZIP and GZIP?

So what is the difference between ZIP and GZIP? Before we discuss their differences, let’s first define ZIP and GZIP and why they are there. ZIP and GZIP are two of the most popular ways of compressing files. Well, you probably already know that. But if you’re wondering why you need to compress files, well, you compress files, to save space mostly, and so to reduce the time for transferring files. ZIP and GZIP both perform this function of compressing files. However, the way they compress the files are different.

Then, what is the difference between ZIP and GZIP in their ways of compressing? ZIP compresses files individually then archives them into one. Archiving is different from compressing. Compressing simply reduces the size while archiving combines the different files into one. ZIP can do both. GZIP, on the other hand, only compresses files. When using GZIP, you have to employ the help of another tool to do the archiving, usually TAR. This is the basic difference between ZIP and GZIP. ZIP compresses then archives the files. GZIP compresses the files after they have been archived into one file by TAR.