diff --git a/cmd/nerdctl/container/container_create_linux_test.go b/cmd/nerdctl/container/container_create_linux_test.go
index 6e8dbe2b491..2da8ae92302 100644
--- a/cmd/nerdctl/container/container_create_linux_test.go
+++ b/cmd/nerdctl/container/container_create_linux_test.go
@@ -29,6 +29,7 @@ import (
 
 	"github.com/containerd/containerd/v2/defaults"
 
+	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/cmd/nerdctl/helpers"
 	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/testutil"
 	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/testutil/nerdtest"
 	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/testutil/nettestutil"
@@ -306,3 +307,34 @@ func TestIssue2993(t *testing.T) {
 
 	testCase.Run(t)
 }
+
+func TestCreateFromOCIArchive(t *testing.T) {
+	testutil.RequiresBuild(t)
+	testutil.RegisterBuildCacheCleanup(t)
+
+	// Docker does not support creating containers from OCI archive.
+	testutil.DockerIncompatible(t)
+
+	base := testutil.NewBase(t)
+	imageName := testutil.Identifier(t)
+	containerName := testutil.Identifier(t)
+
+	teardown := func() {
+		base.Cmd("rm", "-f", containerName).Run()
+		base.Cmd("rmi", "-f", imageName).Run()
+	}
+	defer teardown()
+	teardown()
+
+	const sentinel = "test-nerdctl-create-from-oci-archive"
+	dockerfile := fmt.Sprintf(`FROM %s
+	CMD ["echo", "%s"]`, testutil.CommonImage, sentinel)
+
+	buildCtx := helpers.CreateBuildContext(t, dockerfile)
+	tag := fmt.Sprintf("%s:latest", imageName)
+	tarPath := fmt.Sprintf("%s/%s.tar", buildCtx, imageName)
+
+	base.Cmd("build", "--tag", tag, fmt.Sprintf("--output=type=oci,dest=%s", tarPath), buildCtx).AssertOK()
+	base.Cmd("create", "--rm", "--name", containerName, fmt.Sprintf("oci-archive://%s", tarPath)).AssertOK()
+	base.Cmd("start", "--attach", containerName).AssertOutContains("test-nerdctl-create-from-oci-archive")
+}
diff --git a/cmd/nerdctl/container/container_run_test.go b/cmd/nerdctl/container/container_run_test.go
index 4d796fa750e..b7054c77722 100644
--- a/cmd/nerdctl/container/container_run_test.go
+++ b/cmd/nerdctl/container/container_run_test.go
@@ -658,3 +658,31 @@ func TestRunQuiet(t *testing.T) {
 
 	assert.Assert(t, wasQuiet(result.Combined(), sentinel), "Found %s in container run output", sentinel)
 }
+
+func TestRunFromOCIArchive(t *testing.T) {
+	testutil.RequiresBuild(t)
+	testutil.RegisterBuildCacheCleanup(t)
+
+	// Docker does not support running container images from OCI archive.
+	testutil.DockerIncompatible(t)
+
+	base := testutil.NewBase(t)
+	imageName := testutil.Identifier(t)
+
+	teardown := func() {
+		base.Cmd("rmi", "-f", imageName).Run()
+	}
+	defer teardown()
+	teardown()
+
+	const sentinel = "test-nerdctl-run-from-oci-archive"
+	dockerfile := fmt.Sprintf(`FROM %s
+	CMD ["echo", "%s"]`, testutil.CommonImage, sentinel)
+
+	buildCtx := helpers.CreateBuildContext(t, dockerfile)
+	tag := fmt.Sprintf("%s:latest", imageName)
+	tarPath := fmt.Sprintf("%s/%s.tar", buildCtx, imageName)
+
+	base.Cmd("build", "--tag", tag, fmt.Sprintf("--output=type=oci,dest=%s", tarPath), buildCtx).AssertOK()
+	base.Cmd("run", "--rm", fmt.Sprintf("oci-archive://%s", tarPath)).AssertOutContainsAll(fmt.Sprintf("Loaded image: %s", tag), sentinel)
+}
diff --git a/cmd/nerdctl/image/image_load.go b/cmd/nerdctl/image/image_load.go
index cd0698a3270..3ff8b18a892 100644
--- a/cmd/nerdctl/image/image_load.go
+++ b/cmd/nerdctl/image/image_load.go
@@ -23,7 +23,7 @@ import (
 	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/cmd/nerdctl/helpers"
 	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/api/types"
 	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/clientutil"
-	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/cmd/image"
+	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/imgutil/load"
 )
 
 func NewLoadCommand() *cobra.Command {
@@ -94,5 +94,6 @@ func loadAction(cmd *cobra.Command, _ []string) error {
 	}
 	defer cancel()
 
-	return image.Load(ctx, client, options)
+	_, err = load.FromArchive(ctx, client, options)
+	return err
 }
diff --git a/docs/command-reference.md b/docs/command-reference.md
index 070c7db395e..1bd141aecc1 100644
--- a/docs/command-reference.md
+++ b/docs/command-reference.md
@@ -134,6 +134,7 @@ Run a command in a new container.
 Usage: `nerdctl run [OPTIONS] IMAGE [COMMAND] [ARG...]`
 
 :nerd_face: `ipfs://` prefix can be used for `IMAGE` to pull it from IPFS. See [`ipfs.md`](./ipfs.md) for details.
+:nerd_face: `oci-archive://` prefix can be used for `IMAGE` to specify a local file system path to an OCI formatted tarball.
 
 Basic flags:
 
@@ -423,6 +424,7 @@ Create a new container.
 Usage: `nerdctl create [OPTIONS] IMAGE [COMMAND] [ARG...]`
 
 :nerd_face: `ipfs://` prefix can be used for `IMAGE` to pull it from IPFS. See [`ipfs.md`](./ipfs.md) for details.
+:nerd_face: `oci-archive://` prefix can be used for `IMAGE` to specify a local file system path to an OCI formatted tarball.
 
 The `nerdctl create` command similar to `nerdctl run -d` except the container is never started. You can then use the `nerdctl start <container_id>` command to start the container at any point.
 
diff --git a/pkg/cmd/container/create.go b/pkg/cmd/container/create.go
index fe01cee7bd1..b0effcff12d 100644
--- a/pkg/cmd/container/create.go
+++ b/pkg/cmd/container/create.go
@@ -50,6 +50,7 @@ import (
 	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/flagutil"
 	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/idgen"
 	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/imgutil"
+	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/imgutil/load"
 	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/inspecttypes/dockercompat"
 	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/ipcutil"
 	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/labels"
@@ -123,6 +124,39 @@ func Create(ctx context.Context, client *containerd.Client, args []string, netMa
 	}
 	opts = append(opts, platformOpts...)
 
+	if _, err := referenceutil.Parse(args[0]); errors.Is(err, referenceutil.ErrLoadOCIArchiveRequired) {
+		imageRef := args[0]
+
+		// Load and create the platform specified by the user.
+		// If none specified, fallback to the default platform.
+		platform := []string{}
+		if options.Platform != "" {
+			platform = append(platform, options.Platform)
+		}
+
+		images, err := load.FromOCIArchive(ctx, client, imageRef, types.ImageLoadOptions{
+			Stdout:       options.Stdout,
+			GOptions:     options.GOptions,
+			Platform:     platform,
+			AllPlatforms: false,
+			Quiet:        options.ImagePullOpt.Quiet,
+		})
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, nil, err
+		} else if len(images) == 0 {
+			// This is a regression and should not occur.
+			return nil, nil, errors.New("OCI archive did not contain any images")
+		}
+
+		image := images[0].Name
+		// Multiple images loaded from the provided archive. Default to the first image found.
+		if len(images) != 1 {
+			log.L.Warnf("multiple images are found for the platform, defaulting to image %s...", image)
+		}
+
+		args[0] = image
+	}
+
 	var ensuredImage *imgutil.EnsuredImage
 	if !options.Rootfs {
 		var platformSS []string // len: 0 or 1
diff --git a/pkg/cmd/image/load.go b/pkg/cmd/image/load.go
deleted file mode 100644
index 649a37102b9..00000000000
--- a/pkg/cmd/image/load.go
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,112 +0,0 @@
-/*
-   Copyright The containerd Authors.
-
-   Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
-   you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
-   You may obtain a copy of the License at
-
-       http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
-
-   Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
-   distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
-   WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
-   See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
-   limitations under the License.
-*/
-
-package image
-
-import (
-	"context"
-	"errors"
-	"fmt"
-	"io"
-	"os"
-
-	containerd "github.com/containerd/containerd/v2/client"
-	"github.com/containerd/containerd/v2/core/images"
-	"github.com/containerd/containerd/v2/core/images/archive"
-	"github.com/containerd/containerd/v2/pkg/archive/compression"
-	"github.com/containerd/platforms"
-
-	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/api/types"
-	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/imgutil"
-	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/platformutil"
-)
-
-type readCounter struct {
-	io.Reader
-	N int
-}
-
-func (r *readCounter) Read(p []byte) (int, error) {
-	n, err := r.Reader.Read(p)
-	if n > 0 {
-		r.N += n
-	}
-	return n, err
-}
-
-func Load(ctx context.Context, client *containerd.Client, options types.ImageLoadOptions) error {
-	if options.Input != "" {
-		f, err := os.Open(options.Input)
-		if err != nil {
-			return err
-		}
-		defer f.Close()
-		options.Stdin = f
-	} else {
-		// check if stdin is empty.
-		stdinStat, err := os.Stdin.Stat()
-		if err != nil {
-			return err
-		}
-		if stdinStat.Size() == 0 && (stdinStat.Mode()&os.ModeNamedPipe) == 0 {
-			return errors.New("stdin is empty and input flag is not specified")
-		}
-	}
-	decompressor, err := compression.DecompressStream(options.Stdin)
-	if err != nil {
-		return err
-	}
-	platMC, err := platformutil.NewMatchComparer(options.AllPlatforms, options.Platform)
-	if err != nil {
-		return err
-	}
-	return loadImage(ctx, client, decompressor, platMC, options)
-}
-
-func loadImage(ctx context.Context, client *containerd.Client, in io.Reader, platMC platforms.MatchComparer, options types.ImageLoadOptions) error {
-	// In addition to passing WithImagePlatform() to client.Import(), we also need to pass WithDefaultPlatform() to NewClient().
-	// Otherwise unpacking may fail.
-	r := &readCounter{Reader: in}
-	imgs, err := client.Import(ctx, r, containerd.WithDigestRef(archive.DigestTranslator(options.GOptions.Snapshotter)), containerd.WithSkipDigestRef(func(name string) bool { return name != "" }), containerd.WithImportPlatform(platMC))
-	if err != nil {
-		if r.N == 0 {
-			// Avoid confusing "unrecognized image format"
-			return errors.New("no image was built")
-		}
-		if errors.Is(err, images.ErrEmptyWalk) {
-			err = fmt.Errorf("%w (Hint: set `--platform=PLATFORM` or `--all-platforms`)", err)
-		}
-		return err
-	}
-	for _, img := range imgs {
-		image := containerd.NewImageWithPlatform(client, img, platMC)
-
-		// TODO: Show unpack status
-		if !options.Quiet {
-			fmt.Fprintf(options.Stdout, "unpacking %s (%s)...\n", img.Name, img.Target.Digest)
-		}
-		err = image.Unpack(ctx, options.GOptions.Snapshotter)
-		if err != nil {
-			return err
-		}
-
-		// Loaded message is shown even when quiet.
-		repo, tag := imgutil.ParseRepoTag(img.Name)
-		fmt.Fprintf(options.Stdout, "Loaded image: %s:%s\n", repo, tag)
-	}
-
-	return nil
-}
diff --git a/pkg/imgutil/load/load.go b/pkg/imgutil/load/load.go
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..0afb322f4e4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/pkg/imgutil/load/load.go
@@ -0,0 +1,151 @@
+/*
+   Copyright The containerd Authors.
+
+   Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+   you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+   You may obtain a copy of the License at
+
+       http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+
+   Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+   distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+   WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+   See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+   limitations under the License.
+*/
+
+package load
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"errors"
+	"fmt"
+	"io"
+	"os"
+	"strings"
+
+	containerd "github.com/containerd/containerd/v2/client"
+	"github.com/containerd/containerd/v2/core/images"
+	"github.com/containerd/containerd/v2/core/images/archive"
+	"github.com/containerd/containerd/v2/pkg/archive/compression"
+	"github.com/containerd/platforms"
+
+	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/api/types"
+	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/imgutil"
+	"github.com/containerd/nerdctl/v2/pkg/platformutil"
+)
+
+// FromArchive loads and unpacks the images from the tar archive specified in image load options.
+func FromArchive(ctx context.Context, client *containerd.Client, options types.ImageLoadOptions) ([]images.Image, error) {
+	if options.Input != "" {
+		f, err := os.Open(options.Input)
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, err
+		}
+		defer f.Close()
+		options.Stdin = f
+	} else {
+		// check if stdin is empty.
+		stdinStat, err := os.Stdin.Stat()
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, err
+		}
+		if stdinStat.Size() == 0 && (stdinStat.Mode()&os.ModeNamedPipe) == 0 {
+			return nil, errors.New("stdin is empty and input flag is not specified")
+		}
+	}
+	decompressor, err := compression.DecompressStream(options.Stdin)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	platMC, err := platformutil.NewMatchComparer(options.AllPlatforms, options.Platform)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	imgs, err := importImages(ctx, client, decompressor, options.GOptions.Snapshotter, platMC)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	unpackedImages := make([]images.Image, 0, len(imgs))
+	for _, img := range imgs {
+		err := unpackImage(ctx, client, img, platMC, options)
+		if err != nil {
+			return unpackedImages, fmt.Errorf("error unpacking image (%s): %w", img.Name, err)
+		}
+		unpackedImages = append(unpackedImages, img)
+	}
+	return unpackedImages, nil
+}
+
+// FromOCIArchive loads and unpacks the images from the OCI formatted archive at the provided file system path.
+func FromOCIArchive(ctx context.Context, client *containerd.Client, pathToOCIArchive string, options types.ImageLoadOptions) ([]images.Image, error) {
+	const ociArchivePrefix = "oci-archive://"
+	pathToOCIArchive = strings.TrimPrefix(pathToOCIArchive, ociArchivePrefix)
+
+	const separator = ":"
+	if strings.Contains(pathToOCIArchive, separator) {
+		subs := strings.Split(pathToOCIArchive, separator)
+		if len(subs) != 2 {
+			return nil, errors.New("too many seperators found in oci-archive path")
+		}
+		pathToOCIArchive = subs[0]
+	}
+
+	options.Input = pathToOCIArchive
+
+	return FromArchive(ctx, client, options)
+}
+
+type readCounter struct {
+	io.Reader
+	N int
+}
+
+func (r *readCounter) Read(p []byte) (int, error) {
+	n, err := r.Reader.Read(p)
+	if n > 0 {
+		r.N += n
+	}
+	return n, err
+}
+
+func importImages(ctx context.Context, client *containerd.Client, in io.Reader, snapshotter string, platformMC platforms.MatchComparer) ([]images.Image, error) {
+	// In addition to passing WithImagePlatform() to client.Import(), we also need to pass WithDefaultPlatform() to NewClient().
+	// Otherwise unpacking may fail.
+	r := &readCounter{Reader: in}
+	imgs, err := client.Import(ctx, r,
+		containerd.WithDigestRef(archive.DigestTranslator(snapshotter)),
+		containerd.WithSkipDigestRef(func(name string) bool { return name != "" }),
+		containerd.WithImportPlatform(platformMC),
+	)
+	if err != nil {
+		if r.N == 0 {
+			// Avoid confusing "unrecognized image format"
+			return nil, errors.New("no image was built")
+		}
+		if errors.Is(err, images.ErrEmptyWalk) {
+			err = fmt.Errorf("%w (Hint: set `--platform=PLATFORM` or `--all-platforms`)", err)
+		}
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	return imgs, nil
+}
+
+func unpackImage(ctx context.Context, client *containerd.Client, model images.Image, platform platforms.MatchComparer, options types.ImageLoadOptions) error {
+	image := containerd.NewImageWithPlatform(client, model, platform)
+
+	if !options.Quiet {
+		fmt.Fprintf(options.Stdout, "unpacking %s (%s)...\n", model.Name, model.Target.Digest)
+	}
+
+	err := image.Unpack(ctx, options.GOptions.Snapshotter)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+
+	// Loaded message is shown even when quiet.
+	repo, tag := imgutil.ParseRepoTag(model.Name)
+	fmt.Fprintf(options.Stdout, "Loaded image: %s:%s\n", repo, tag)
+
+	return nil
+}
diff --git a/pkg/referenceutil/referenceutil.go b/pkg/referenceutil/referenceutil.go
index 33df62f2358..4047a2ccad5 100644
--- a/pkg/referenceutil/referenceutil.go
+++ b/pkg/referenceutil/referenceutil.go
@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@
 package referenceutil
 
 import (
+	"errors"
 	"path"
 	"strings"
 
@@ -31,6 +32,8 @@ const IPFSProtocol Protocol = "ipfs"
 const IPNSProtocol Protocol = "ipns"
 const shortIDLength = 5
 
+var ErrLoadOCIArchiveRequired = errors.New("image must be loaded from archive before parsing image reference")
+
 type ImageReference struct {
 	Protocol    Protocol
 	Digest      digest.Digest
@@ -97,6 +100,10 @@ func Parse(rawRef string) (*ImageReference, error) {
 	} else if strings.HasPrefix(rawRef, "ipns://") {
 		ir.Protocol = IPNSProtocol
 		rawRef = rawRef[7:]
+	} else if strings.HasPrefix(rawRef, "oci-archive://") {
+		// The image must be loaded from the specified archive path first
+		// before parsing the image reference specified in its OCI image manifest.
+		return nil, ErrLoadOCIArchiveRequired
 	}
 	if decodedCID, err := cid.Decode(rawRef); err == nil {
 		ir.Protocol = IPFSProtocol
diff --git a/pkg/referenceutil/referenceutil_test.go b/pkg/referenceutil/referenceutil_test.go
index 699d1c3f487..8c066434857 100644
--- a/pkg/referenceutil/referenceutil_test.go
+++ b/pkg/referenceutil/referenceutil_test.go
@@ -273,6 +273,9 @@ func TestReferenceUtil(t *testing.T) {
 			Tag:          "latest",
 			ExplicitTag:  "",
 		},
+		"oci-archive:///tmp/build/saved-image.tar": {
+			Error: "image must be loaded from archive before parsing image reference",
+		},
 	}
 
 	for k, v := range needles {