HDR to TAR.GZ Converter
Processing entirely on your device — large files may take a moment.
Radiance HDR Image and Gzipped TAR Archive exist for different jobs: HDR (Radiance RGBE) stores floating-point high-dynamic-range pixels — the format of lighting data and HDRI environment maps. TAR.GZ is what open-source projects and Linux servers expect to receive.
Because the whole conversion happens on your device, it is instant, unlimited and genuinely private — no accounts, no watermarks, no files on anyone's server. Multiple files are converted in one go.
How HDR compares to TAR.GZ
| HDR | TAR.GZ | |
|---|---|---|
| Compression | RGBE (RLE runs) | gzip (DEFLATE) |
| Best for | Lighting data, environment maps | Source releases and backups |
How to convert HDR to TAR.GZ
- 1
Select your files
Select your HDR file — it never leaves your device.
- 2
Convert instantly
The engine packs the file, byte for byte, into a TAR.GZ container — no re-encoding, no quality change.
- 3
Download results
Download the finished TAR.GZ archive.
About the HDR format
HDR (Radiance RGBE) is the veteran high-dynamic-range format of lighting research and 3D rendering: pixels stored as a shared 8-bit exponent plus per-channel mantissas, letting one file hold both a sun and a shadow with no clipping. HDRI environment maps for 3D scenes are almost always HDR files.
Standard image viewers show it badly or not at all, because the values can exceed what a screen can display. Converting HDR to PNG tone-maps the file into an 8-bit preview — good for quick inspection, though the floating-point original remains the render-grade master.
+Strengths
- ✓True high-dynamic-range values
- ✓The standard of HDRI environment maps
- ✓Compact for its precision
!Limitations
- −Not display-ready — needs tone mapping
- −Viewer support is scarce
About the TAR.GZ format
TAR.GZ is the classic Unix distribution shape: a TAR bundle squeezed through gzip (DEFLATE-based). Every Linux package of source code, every Apache tarball, every data-science dataset arrives this way. Decompression is a pipeline — untar the gzip stream — and the format is understood everywhere Unix ideas went.
gzip compresses the whole archive as one stream, which keeps ratio decent for text-heavy trees but means reaching file #400 requires decompressing the previous 399. Modern alternatives (zstd) are faster at similar ratios, yet tar.gz remains the safest common denominator.
+Strengths
- ✓Universally understood on Unix-like systems
- ✓Good ratio for text and source trees
- ✓Preserves Unix permissions via TAR
!Limitations
- −Single stream — no random access
- −Slower than modern zstd
- −Two-step format (tar + gzip)
Why convert HDR to TAR.GZ?
There is a concrete reason this conversion exists: Not display-ready — needs tone mapping TAR.GZ sidesteps that — Universally understood on Unix-like systems If that is your situation, the tool above settles it in seconds, entirely on your device.
Frequently asked questions
Is this HDR to TAR.GZ converter really free?
Yes — completely free, with no sign-up, no watermark and no daily conversion limits. The site is supported by advertising.
Are my files uploaded to a server?
No. The conversion runs entirely inside your browser using WebAssembly, so your files never leave your device — that is what makes it instant and private.
Does it work on Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android?
Yes. Anything with a modern browser works: Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS. No software installation is required.
Will I lose quality converting HDR to TAR.GZ?
No — TAR.GZ is a lossless format, so every pixel of the converted image matches your original HDR file. You can also adjust the quality/size balance before converting when the target format supports compression.
Will transparent areas survive the conversion to TAR.GZ?
Transparency is kept whenever TAR.GZ actually supports an alpha channel. If the target format has none (like JPG), transparent areas are flattened onto a white background — that is a property of the format, not of this tool.
What happens to EXIF data and other metadata?
Conversions here re-encode the image, and re-encoding generally does not carry the original metadata over. If the EXIF data of your HDR files matters (camera model, GPS, timestamps), keep the original file as the master and treat the converted copy as the shareable version.