Remove Formatting from a Word Document
Strip the fonts, colors and styles from a Word document and keep only the text. Free, and nothing is uploaded.
Your TXT files are ready
100% Private
Your documents are converted in your browser — nothing is uploaded.
Instant
Files convert on your device, with no waiting for uploads.
Free & Unlimited
No account and no limits on how often you use it.
How to convert DOCX to TXT
Three quick steps. Nothing to install and nothing leaves your device.
Add your DOCX files
Click the upload area or drag one or more .docx files onto it.
Choose settings
Pick how paragraphs are spaced and which text encoding to use.
Convert and download
Press Convert, then download each TXT file or all of them as a ZIP.
Get the text of a Word document without its formatting
Converting a .docx file to TXT removes all formatting: fonts, sizes, colors, bold, italic, styles and images. What is left is the text, with its paragraph breaks and line breaks.
- Plain text pastes into emails, web editors and chat apps without carrying any style with it.
- Your original .docx is not changed. The tool makes a new .txt file.
- Formatting cannot be brought back from the TXT file, so keep the original document.
More DOCX to TXT options
Why convert DOCX to TXT?
A Word document carries a lot more than words: fonts, styles, images, headers, comments and hidden formatting data. Plain text strips all of that away and leaves only the content, which is exactly what many tools and workflows need.
- Paste into any app cleanly. Text copied from Word often drags along odd fonts, colors and spacing. A TXT file pastes into emails, CMS editors, chat apps and code editors with no leftover formatting.
- Much smaller files. A DOCX is a zipped bundle of XML and media. The same words as a TXT file are usually a fraction of the size, which is handy for email limits and quick sharing.
- Feed text to other software. Scripts, databases, search indexes, translation tools and AI tools generally prefer plain text over a Word package.
- Open it anywhere, forever. A .txt file opens on every phone, computer and operating system, and will still open decades from now without Word installed.
- Keep sensitive documents private. This converter runs entirely in your browser, so contracts, reports and personal notes are never uploaded to a server.
How this tool extracts your text
A .docx file is really a ZIP archive. Inside it, word/document.xml holds the main body of your document. ConvertKit Lite opens the archive in your browser, reads that XML, and walks through it one block at a time.
- Paragraphs become lines of text, with an optional blank line between them so the result stays easy to read.
- Line breaks and tabs are preserved, so manual breaks and tab-aligned text keep their layout.
- Bulleted and numbered lists are turned into lines that start with a • marker.
- Tables become one line per row, with cells separated by tabs. Paste the result into Excel or Google Sheets and the columns reappear.
- Tracked changes keep inserted text and drop deleted text, so you get the clean, final version of the document.
Because the whole process happens on your device, it is fast and works even with a slow connection once the page has loaded. Need the opposite direction or another format? Try PDF to Word or RTF to PDF.
Tips if your text looks wrong
- Accented or non-English characters look broken? Choose UTF-8 with BOM before converting. Older Windows programs such as legacy Notepad need the BOM to detect UTF-8.
- Got an old .doc file? Open it in Word, choose Save As, pick .docx, and then convert the new file here.
- Text missing from the output? Headers, footers, footnotes, comments and text boxes are not part of the main body, so they are not extracted. Move that text into the main document first if you need it.
- Too many blank lines? Switch Paragraph spacing to No extra blank lines for a tighter result.
- Scanned document or photo of text? If a DOCX only contains images of text, there is no real text to extract. You would need OCR software first.
- Converting a whole folder? Select several DOCX files at once and download them together as a single ZIP.
Frequently asked questions
Quick answers about the ConvertKit Lite DOCX to TXT tool.
Are my documents uploaded to a server?
No. The text is extracted in your browser, so your files stay on your device.
What is kept and what is lost when converting DOCX to TXT?
All text, paragraph and line breaks, tabs, list items and table rows are kept. Fonts, colors, bold and italic, images, headers and footers are not part of plain text.
How are tables handled?
Each table row becomes one line, with the cells separated by tabs. You can paste it into a spreadsheet to restore the columns.
Can I open old .doc files?
No. This tool reads the modern .docx format only. Open a .doc file in Word and save it as .docx first.
Which encoding should I choose?
UTF-8 works almost everywhere. Choose UTF-8 with BOM only if an older Windows program shows broken accented characters.
Can I convert many files at once?
Yes. Add several DOCX files, convert them together, and download each TXT file or one ZIP.
Is there a file size limit?
There is no fixed limit because nothing is uploaded. Very large documents are limited only by your device's memory, so close other heavy tabs if a huge file is slow.
Does it work with non-English text?
Yes. Text in any language is kept, including accents, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Japanese and emoji. Use UTF-8 and open the file in a modern text editor.
Can I convert a password-protected DOCX?
No. Encrypted documents cannot be read in the browser. Open the file in Word, remove the password, save a copy, and convert that copy.
Are images, headers and footers included?
No. TXT can only store text, so images, headers, footers, comments and text boxes are left out. The main body text is kept.
Does it work on phones and tablets?
Yes. The converter runs in any modern browser on Android, iPhone, iPad, Windows, Mac and Linux with no app to install.
Is the DOCX to TXT converter really free?
Yes. It is free with no account, no watermark and no limit on how many files you convert.
Will my original Word file change?
No. The tool reads your .docx file and makes a new .txt file. The original stays as it was.
Can I get the formatting back later?
No. A TXT file cannot store formatting, so keep your original document if you may need it.