How to convert KMZ to GPX
- Drop the KMZ file exactly as it arrived; there is no need to extract it first.
- Confirm the route on the preview, where paths convert to tracks and points to waypoints.
- Choose GPX and convert, then transfer the download to your device.
What changes when you convert KMZ to GPX
| What | KMZ → GPX | |
|---|---|---|
| Geometry | Changes | Points and lines transfer directly. GPX has no polygon type, so polygons are converted to their boundary as line tracks rather than being dropped. |
| Attributes | Changes | GPX has a fixed schema, so only its native fields (name, description, elevation, time) are filled. Extra columns are not written. |
| Styling & labels | Dropped | KMZ colors, icons and description balloons are presentation, not data. GPX stores the underlying features, so styling is dropped (the geometry and attributes remain). |
| Coordinate system | Kept | Both formats are fixed to WGS84 longitude/latitude (EPSG:4326), so the coordinates are copied across without any reprojection. |
| Elevation (Z) | Kept | 3D Z values carry from KMZ into GPX wherever the source records them. |
| File structure | Kept | A single, self-contained .gpx file you can move around on its own. |
Why convert KMZ to GPX?
A KMZ is how Google Earth hands someone a finished map: the KML document zipped together with its icons and images into one small file. Navigation hardware never learned to read it, while GPX is the language a Garmin, a running watch and apps like Strava and Komoot all share. Converting pulls the placemarks and paths out of the archive and rewrites them as waypoints and tracks that keep the exact coordinates the map was drawn with.
Coordinate system handling
The zip wrapper contributes no coordinate information; the geometry lives in the KML document inside, which the Google Earth specification fixes to WGS84 longitude and latitude. GPX shares that datum by definition, so unpacking the archive and rewriting placemarks as waypoints moves the numbers without altering a single digit.
Projected coordinates never hide inside a KMZ either, because whichever tool built the archive, Google Earth, Google My Maps or a GIS export, already reprojected to WGS84 the moment it wrote the KML. No source system exists to declare on this page and no setting can go wrong; the datum decision was made upstream and the conversion honors it.
What to check when converting KMZ to GPX
A KMZ can hold things GPX has no room for. Custom icons and photos go, since GPX stores no images; ground overlays and 3D tours are not carried; a filled area arrives as a track along its edge; rich descriptions and custom data shrink to GPX's small fixed set of fields. Points and line paths carry across cleanly, which covers most navigation use, so keep the KMZ for everything else.
Troubleshooting KMZ to GPX
- The converter refuses a file that opens fine in Google Earth. Mail programs and download tools sometimes wrap a KMZ inside a second zip or swap its extension along the way. Unzip the outer layer once when one exists, restore the .kmz ending, and drop the file again; the document inside usually survived the trip untouched.
- The output is several times larger than the archive that went in. A KMZ is compressed and GPX is bare XML text, so most of the size jump is the zip coming off, with long HTML description balloons adding the rest. Clear or shorten the descriptions in Google Earth before converting when a device balks at the file size.
- Several waypoints came out sharing a single name. One placemark can bundle many pins as a multigeometry, and each pin becomes its own waypoint carrying the shared label. Split the placemark into individual points in Google Earth and rename them there, so every waypoint lands with a label of its own.
- Turn-by-turn guidance begins at the far end of the trail. The path was traced from finish to start, and vertex order is preserved exactly as drawn. Reverse the path in Google Earth before converting, or use the invert route option most handhelds and apps offer at the trailhead.
About the formats
A KMZ is the zipped Google Earth file you get after plotting a route or marking waypoints on satellite imagery. GPX is what a Garmin unit or Strava expects instead. This conversion pulls the placemarks and paths out of the compressed .kml inside and rewrites them as GPX waypoints, routes and tracks. The result turns a map you designed on screen into something a handheld GPS or fitness app can actually follow in the field.
Frequently asked questions
The GPX came out empty, so what went wrong?
Some KMZ files are mostly imagery overlays, so open the file in Google Earth and confirm it holds placemarks or paths before converting.
Will one conversion work for several apps at once?
Yes. Garmin Connect, Strava, Komoot and GPSBabel all read the same GPX.
Do the coordinates need reprojecting on the way through?
No. Both formats use WGS84, so the values are copied as they are.
Can I load the resulting GPX straight onto a Garmin device?
Yes. GPX is the native format for Garmin handhelds and watches, so copy the file to the unit or import it through Garmin Connect.
Related converters
Ready to convert?
Drop a file and download the result in seconds. Nothing is uploaded, nothing is stored.