Convert Shapefile to KMZ
KMZ is KML in a ZIP: Google Earth reads it exactly the same, the file is a fraction of the size. Upload your Shapefile bundle, pick the label column, download one compact file that travels well by email.
A ZIP containing .shp, .shx, .dbf and ideally .prj — not the .shp file on its own.
KMZ or KML?
Same content, different packaging. Choose KMZ when the file will be sent, stored or is simply large — compression typically brings text-heavy KML down to a tenth, and Google Earth opens it directly. Choose KML when you want to open the result in a text editor, post-process it in a script, or feed it to a tool that expects plain XML. Nothing else differs: labels, attributes and coordinates are identical in both.
Pick the label column before you convert
Google Earth labels every placemark with the KML name field. This converter lets you map an attribute column to that field — name and description are preselected when your table has them. Without a mapping, every entry in the sidebar reads the same. The remaining columns are kept as ExtendedData in the balloon.
Coordinates end up in WGS 84 — always
The KML inside a KMZ knows exactly one coordinate system: WGS 84 (EPSG:4326). Whatever projected system your Shapefile uses, the conversion reprojects — which is why the .prj in your ZIP matters. If it is missing, the analysis warns with low confidence instead of guessing; a wrong source system shifts every point, and nothing in the output looks broken.
Related conversions
- Convert Shapefile to KML — uncompressed
- Convert KMZ to Shapefile — the other direction