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RTF EPUB Swap

RTF to EPUB

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 EPUB?

Putting a long RTF letter or etext on a phone reader without Calibre. For a real book, you will still need to add chapter headings in HTML or Markdown after this, or before.

How this conversion runs

RTF → HTML → EPUB packager. Split on h1 only if those tags exist. WordPad RTF typically has no true headings, so expect one spine item.

Keep in mind for RTF → EPUB

A book-length RTF with 'Chapter 1' as bold text will not split. Convert RTF→HTML, add h1s, then HTML→EPUB. Images will be missing.

After you have a EPUB file

Open in Thorium. If it is one lump, edit structure as HTML. Calibre can still ingest the EPUB for Kindle later.

Can RTF outline levels become chapters?

Not automatically. This parser does not map \outlinelevel to h1. Add headings yourself in the HTML preview export.

Is this good for a novel in RTF?

As a first pack, yes. As a store-ready ebook, no — add chapters, metadata, and a cover in Sigil after you have real h1s.

This pair at a glance
Accepts
.rtf
Writes
.epub · application/epub+zip
Read fidelity
medium (RTF → HTML)
Write fidelity
high (HTML → EPUB)
Source size
Plan for files under 7.6 MB

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

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About Rich Text Format and EPUB

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

EPUB

The open ebook format: a ZIP of XHTML chapters, CSS, and a package manifest. What Apple Books, Google Play Books, and most non-Kindle readers consume.

EPUB 3 is HTML in a spine. That makes the HTML hub almost native: we concatenate or split XHTML documents and rewrite the OPF package. Kindle’s AZW/MOBI family is a different type and is not in this matrix.

Extensions
.epub
MIME types
application/epub+zip
Kind
zip · binary
Category
ebook
Standard
Open format · since 2007
Comfortable size
Up to about 38 MB in this browser converter
Written from HTML
high fidelity · implemented — Emits EPUB 3 with a single content document split on h1, plus nav.xhtml.

What this format can hold

  • headings
  • paragraphs
  • lists
  • links
  • images
  • inline formatting
  • chapters
  • table of contents

Usually dropped on the way out

  • multi file chapter map unless h1 split

Apps that consume EPUB

  • Apple Books (Apple) — opens on macOS, iOS
  • Google Play Books (Google) — opens on Web, Android, iOS
  • Calibre — creates and opens on Windows, macOS, Linux
  • Thorium Reader — opens on Windows, macOS, Linux
  • Foliate — opens on Linux
  • Kindle (via conversion) (Amazon) — opens on e-ink, iOS, Android
  • Sigil — creates on Windows, macOS, Linux

Catalog notes

  • DRM-encumbered EPUBs are rejected.
  • Kindle AZW3/MOBI is a later type, not an alias of EPUB.
Other conversions

Other conversions from RTF: HTMLMarkdownWordOpenDocumentPDF

Other ways to get EPUB: HTMLMarkdownWordOpenDocumentPDF