Plain text file (TXT)
What is a TXT file?
A TXT file is the simplest document there is: just characters, with no fonts, colors, images or layout. Notes, logs, exported chats, code snippets and data dumps are often plain text. Because there's nothing to interpret, TXT files open on literally every device and will still be readable decades from now.
How to open a TXT file
- Windows
- Double-click to open in Notepad, which is built into every version of Windows.
- Mac
- Double-click to open in TextEdit, which comes with macOS.
- iPhone
- Tap it in the Files app to preview it; editors like Pages or Runestone can edit it.
- Android
- Open it from Files by Google, which shows a simple text preview, or use any text editor app.
Good for
- Opens on every device and system
- Tiny files
- Nothing hidden: what you see is all there is
Watch out for
- No bold, headings, images or layout
- Accented characters can break with the wrong encoding
- Long lines are hard to read or print
TXT file questions
Why do some characters in my text file look like gibberish?
The file was saved in one encoding and opened in another. Saving as UTF-8 avoids the problem for almost every language.
How do I print a long text file neatly?
Convert it to PDF with proper margins and wrapped lines, so nothing runs off the edge of the page.
Can I get the text out of a PDF as a TXT file?
Yes, if the PDF contains real text. Scanned PDFs need OCR first.