CreateObject("Shell.Application").Namespace(ZipPath).CopyHere FilePath This method does not support passwords . You’ll get an unprotected ZIP every time. So we need an alternative. Method 1: Using Command‑Line 7‑Zip (Most Reliable) 7‑Zip is a free, powerful archiver. Its command‑line version 7z.exe supports AES‑256 encryption with passwords. Step 1: Install 7‑Zip Download and install 7‑Zip. The default path is C:\Program Files\7-Zip\7z.exe . Step 2: VBA Code Sub ZipWithPassword_7Zip() Dim FileToZip As String Dim ZipFileName As String Dim Password As String Dim SevenZipPath As String Dim Cmd As String ' --- Configuration --- FileToZip = "C:\Temp\Confidential.xlsx" ' File or folder to zip ZipFileName = "C:\Temp\Confidential.zip" Password = "MyStrongP@ssw0rd" SevenZipPath = "C:\Program Files\7-Zip\7z.exe"
' --- Build command --- ' a = add, -tzip = zip format, -p = password, -mx=9 = max compression Cmd = """" & SevenZipPath & """ a -tzip """ & ZipFileName & """ """ & _ FileToZip & """ -p" & Password & " -mx=9 -y"
Dim wsh As Object Set wsh = CreateObject("WScript.Shell") wsh.Run cmd, 0, True
If you work with sensitive data in Excel, you’ve probably needed to compress and secure multiple files into a single ZIP archive—complete with a password. While Excel VBA doesn’t have a native ZipFile object with password support, you can still achieve this using external tools or clever workarounds.
In this post, I’ll walk you through three reliable methods to create password‑protected ZIP files directly from Excel VBA. The standard VBA approach for zipping uses Windows Shell:
' Delete existing ZIP if present If Dir(outputZip) <> "" Then Kill outputZip
sevenZipExe = "C:\Program Files\7-Zip\7z.exe"
