An Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloy with high zinc content was successfully produced by selective laser melting (SLM). A small amount of discontinuous η particles precipitates into the inter-dendritic areas, which is less than in the corresponding cast sample. After T6 heat treatment, almost all η particles dissolve in the Al-matrix. The hardness of the as-synthesized SLM material is 133 ± 6 HV0.05, similar to the homogenized cast sample, and it increases to 219 ± 4 HV0.05 after the T6 heat treatment. This value is higher than for the corresponding T6 cast sample, which indicates that SLM processing leads to a material with improved mechanical behavior. •Fabrication of Al-Zn-Mg-Cu (7XXX series with high Zn content) by selective laser melting.•Al-Zn-Mg-Cu samples produced by SLM and Cast show different microstructures.•Improved hardness for annealed SLM sample compared to the annealed cast samples.