How to Make a CBZ File (It's Just a Renamed ZIP)
Create a CBZ in one minute: name your page images in order, zip them, rename to .cbz. Steps for Windows, macOS and Linux, plus metadata and e-reader tips.
A CBZ file is a ZIP archive of images with the extension changed — nothing
more. To make one: put your page images in a folder, name them so they sort
in reading order, compress the folder to a ZIP, and rename the result from
.zip to .cbz. Done. No special software, no export dialog, no paid
tool. Everything else in this post is detail: naming, metadata, editing an
existing CBZ, and what to do when the destination is an e-reader.
Short version
Name images 001.jpg, 002.jpg, ... → zip the images → rename .zip to
.cbz. That's the whole format. If you're making the CBZ in order to read
on a Kindle or Kobo, skip a step: e-readers don't open CBZ anyway, so
convert the result to a device-fit EPUB at
mangaconverter.com.
Step 1: name the pages in reading order
Comic readers display pages in alphabetical filename order, so numbering is
the one thing you must get right. Zero-pad the numbers: 1.jpg, 2.jpg, ... 10.jpg sorts as 1, 10, 2 and scrambles your book, while 001.jpg, 002.jpg, ... 010.jpg sorts correctly. Use JPEG or PNG (WebP works in
modern readers too), and make the cover 000.jpg or the first numbered
page.
Step 2: zip and rename
Windows: select all images → right-click → Send to → Compressed
(zipped) folder → rename the result to MyComic.cbz. If Windows hides
extensions, enable File name extensions in Explorer's View menu first,
or the rename won't actually change the type.
macOS: select the images → right-click → Compress → rename
Archive.zip to MyComic.cbz (confirm "Use .cbz" when asked).
Linux / command line:
zip -r MyComic.cbz ./pages/
Naming the output .cbz directly skips the rename.
One pitfall on every platform: zip the images, not a folder containing a folder. Readers handle nested folders inconsistently; flat is safest.
Step 3 (optional): add metadata
Series name, volume number, author and reading direction can live in a
ComicInfo.xml file placed inside the archive — library apps and servers
read it. It's optional: a CBZ with no metadata works everywhere, and
filename conventions (Series Name v01.cbz) carry you a long way. Add
metadata when your collection grows enough that an app needs to organize
it.
Editing an existing CBZ
Because it's just a ZIP, editing means re-opening the archive: rename it to
.zip (or open directly with 7-Zip/The Unarchiver), add, remove or reorder
images, and rename back. Removing scanner watermark pages or fixing a
misnumbered page takes a minute. Your originals are untouched if you work
on a copy — always keep one.
If the goal is reading on an e-reader, convert instead
Here's the step most guides skip: Kindle, Kobo and reMarkable devices don't open CBZ files at all. If you're building a CBZ as a vehicle to get pages onto an e-reader, the CBZ is only the halfway point. The finished move is converting it to an EPUB with pages sized for your exact screen — right-to-left order for manga, e-ink-tuned contrast, spreads handled.
That conversion is what the open-source Kindle Comic Converter engine (github.com/ciromattia/kcc) does, and MangaConverter runs it in the browser, free, with a live preview — your fresh CBZ goes in, a Kindle- or Kobo-ready file comes out. Amazon's Send to Kindle accepts the EPUB directly (checked August 2026).
Direct routes: CBZ to EPUB, CBZ to Kindle, CBZ to Kobo.
Related reading
- What is a CBZ file — the format in depth.
- CBR vs CBZ — why CBZ is the one to create.
- How to make a CBR file — and why you probably shouldn't bother.