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RTF Word Swap

RTF to Word

Your file never leaves this device. Conversion runs in your browser. The document itself is not uploaded.

1 · Choose a RTF file

…or drop a RTF file here

.rtf · stays in this tab

2 · Convert

3 · Download

Choose a file to convert. It is not uploaded.

FAQ and format details
Why convert RTF to Word?

You were given WordPad files, mail-merge output, or macOS Rich Text. The rest of the org lives in .docx. Converting here avoids opening each file in Word just to Save As, and it keeps the work on your machine.

How this conversion runs

RTF → HTML hub → WordprocessingML. You get Heading styles only if the HTML guessed headings (RTF size changes are not automatically h1). Bold/italic map cleanly. Tables are weak if they were RTF rows rather than HTML tables.

Keep in mind for RTF → Word

You will not recover a Word template that was once saved as RTF. Themes, headers, and fields stay gone. If the source is already a .docx renamed, this will fail the RTF signature check.

After you have a Word file

Open in Word, apply a template, and add heading styles. If LibreOffice is the shop standard, RTF→ODT is the sibling conversion.

Should I use Word's converter instead?

Word knows more RTF. Use it for legally sensitive layout. Use this page for a local, predictable subset and a file you do not want to upload.

Do mail-merge fields survive?

No. You get the last displayed text, not MERGEFIELD codes.

This pair at a glance
Accepts
.rtf
Writes
.docx · application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document
Read fidelity
medium (RTF → HTML)
Write fidelity
high (HTML → Word)
Source size
Plan for files under 7.6 MB

The file is read in this tab. It is not uploaded.

Something off with this pair? Send feedback.

About Rich Text Format and Microsoft Word (Office Open XML)

Source file

Rich Text Format

A text-based interchange format from Microsoft for basic rich text: fonts, colors, bold/italic, and simple pictures.

RTF was designed so Word, WordPad, TextEdit, and mail clients could exchange formatted text without the full Word binary. It is verbose (control words like \b, \i, \par) but human-inspectable. Fidelity is lower than DOCX: no modern styles, limited tables, and vendor-specific extensions.

Extensions
.rtf
MIME types
application/rtf, text/rtf
Kind
text · mixed
Category
word processing
Standard
Open format · since 1987
Comfortable size
Up to about 7.6 MB in this browser converter
Read into HTML
medium fidelity · implemented — Control-word subset: paragraphs, bold/italic/underline/strike/sub/sup, Unicode escapes, simple lists and tables, PNG/JPEG picts, and HYPERLINK fields.

What this format can hold

  • paragraphs
  • lists
  • inline formatting
  • images
  • tables

Usually dropped on the way in

  • embedded ole
  • page setup
  • complex tables
  • theme fonts

Apps that consume RTF

  • Microsoft Word (Microsoft) — creates and opens on Windows, macOS
  • WordPad (Microsoft) — creates and opens on Windows
  • TextEdit (Apple) — creates and opens on macOS
  • LibreOffice Writer (The Document Foundation) — creates and opens on Windows, macOS, Linux
  • Apple Notes (Apple) — creates and opens on macOS, iOS

Catalog notes

  • WordPad-era RTF is the target subset — not the full Word RTF dump.
  • WMF/EMF and OLE picts are skipped; PNG/JPEG picts are inlined as data URLs.

Destination file

Microsoft Word (Office Open XML)

The default Word format since 2007: a ZIP package of XML parts for body text, styles, media, and document settings.

DOCX (Office Open XML WordprocessingML) replaced the binary .doc format. It is the interchange format for business documents: resumes, contracts, manuscripts. Word, Google Docs, LibreOffice, Pages, and OnlyOffice all read and write it. Macros live in a sibling .docm type, which this converter does not execute or emit.

Extensions
.docx
MIME types
application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document
Kind
zip · binary
Category
word processing
Standard
Open format · since 2006
Comfortable size
Up to about 24 MB in this browser converter
Written from HTML
high fidelity · implemented — A constrained HTML subset is mapped onto WordprocessingML runs and paragraphs.

What this format can hold

  • headings
  • paragraphs
  • lists
  • tables
  • links
  • images
  • inline formatting
  • headers footers
  • styles
  • comments
  • track changes

Usually dropped on the way out

  • css positioning
  • custom fonts as linked webfonts
  • page layout

Apps that consume Word

  • Microsoft Word (Microsoft) — creates and opens on Windows, macOS, Web, iOS, Android
  • Google Docs (Google) — creates and opens on Web, iOS, Android
  • LibreOffice Writer (The Document Foundation) — creates and opens on Windows, macOS, Linux
  • Apple Pages (Apple) — creates and opens on macOS, iOS
  • OnlyOffice — creates and opens on Windows, macOS, Linux, Web
  • WPS Office (Kingsoft) — creates and opens on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android

Catalog notes

  • .docm, .dotx, and .dotm are not accepted; strip macros before converting.
  • ZIP sniffing is shared with ODT and EPUB — the engine also checks [Content_Types].xml for WordprocessingML.
Other conversions

Other conversions from RTF: HTMLMarkdownOpenDocumentPDFEPUB

Other ways to get Word: HTMLMarkdownOpenDocumentPDFEPUB