File RollerLinux
vs
PeaZipWindows
File Roller as a Linux alternative to PeaZip
Updated
Our verdict
File Roller works well as a basic replacement for PeaZip on a GNOME‑based desktop. It handles the most common archive types (ZIP, TAR, GZIP, BZIP2, XZ) and integrates with the file manager, making everyday compression and extraction painless. Power users who rely on PeaZip’s broader format list, native PEA archives, advanced encryption, batch operations, or built‑in splitting/merging will find it lacking, but for typical office or home tasks File Roller is a solid, free alternative.
- License
- GPL-2.0+
- Price
- Free
- Latest version
- 44.7 (June 22, 2026)
- Rating
- —
What works the same
- Open and extract ZIP archives","Create and extract TAR‑based archives (tar, tar.gz, tar.bz2, tar.xz)","Password‑protect ZIP files","Integrates with the desktop file manager (Nautilus)","Supports drag‑and‑drop operations
What is different
- No native support for PeaZip’s .pea format","Limited encryption (only ZIP password protection, no AES‑256 for other formats)","No built‑in batch‑processing UI for multiple archives","No direct archive splitting/merging tools","RAR extraction depends on external unrar backend, not guaranteed out‑of‑the‑box
Opening your PeaZip files
File Roller can open most PeaZip‑created archives that use standard formats such as ZIP, 7z (via the 7z backend), TAR, GZIP, BZIP2 and XZ. It cannot create or reliably extract PeaZip’s proprietary .pea files, and handling of some obscure formats may require installing additional command‑line tools. If a PeaZip archive uses a supported format, File Roller will treat it like any other archive; otherwise you’ll need to fall back to the command line or keep PeaZip installed.
Switching from PeaZip to File Roller, step by step
- Install File Roller from your distro’s repository or Flathub
- Associate common archive extensions with File Roller (right‑click → Open With → File Roller)
- Test opening a few existing ZIP and TAR archives to confirm integration
- If you need RAR support, install the unrar package and retry extraction
- For any .pea files, keep PeaZip installed or convert them to a standard format using PeaZip before switching
Key features of File Roller
- Open and extract common archive formats (zip, tar, gzip, bzip2, xz)
- Create new archives in zip, tar, and compressed tar formats
- Add files to existing archives
- View archive contents without extraction
- Password-protect zip files
- Integrates with GNOME Files (Nautilus)
- Supports drag-and-drop from file manager
- Can use command-line backends like tar, gzip, 7z
How to install File Roller on Linux
flatpak install flathub org.gnome.FileRollersudo apt install file-rollersudo apt install file-rollersudo dnf install file-rollersudo pacman -S file-rollersudo zypper install file-rollerFrequently asked questions
Can File Roller encrypt archives like PeaZip?
File Roller only offers password protection for ZIP files, which uses weak encryption. It does not provide the stronger AES‑256 encryption that PeaZip offers for many formats.
What about splitting large archives?
File Roller has no GUI option to split or join archives; you would need to use command‑line tools such as split, cat, or 7z for that purpose.
Is batch processing possible?
There is no built‑in batch‑process UI. You can script repetitive tasks with the command‑line tools that File Roller calls, but the graphical interface handles one archive at a time.
3 other alternatives to PeaZip
PeaZipPeaZip is a free, open-source archive manager for Linux and other platforms that handles over 200 archive…Open sourceFreeFlatpakPeaZip vs PeaZip
ArkArk is KDE's graphical archive manager for creating, extracting and browsing many archive formats.Open sourceFreeFlatpakArk vs PeaZip
P7ZIPp7zip is the Linux command‑line port of the 7‑Zip archiver, supporting 7z and many other formats.Open sourceFreeP7ZIP vs PeaZip