How to use WordPad

WordPad is a basic text-editing app you can use to create and edit files, include text with different fonts and colors, insert pictures, and add links to other files.

WordPad window WordPad window

To open WordPad

  1. Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and then tap Search. (If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and then click Search.)

  2. Enter WordPad in the search box, tap or click Apps, and then tap or click WordPad.

Create, open, and save files

You can use WordPad to open and save text files (.txt), rich text files (.rtf), Word documents (.docx), and OpenDocument text files (.odt). Files in other formats will open as plain text files and might not appear as expected. The following table shows the steps to create, open, and save files.

To Do this

Create a new file

Tap or click File, and then tap or click New.

Open a file

Tap or click File, and then tap or click Open.

Save a file

Tap or click File, and then tap or click Save.

Save a file under a different name or format

Tap or click Save as.

Warning

Warning

Some features—like headers, footers, and annotations—aren’t supported in WordPad. If you open a file with these features and then save the file in WordPad, you’ll lose the content in these features. If you want to change such a file, but don’t want to lose the original content, tap or click Save as and save the file with a different name. That way you can make changes to a copy of the file while keeping the content in the original file intact.

Unsupported features:

  • Headers and footers

  • Footnotes and endnotes

  • Glossary document entries

  • Annotations, including comments, revisions, and bookmarks

  • Mail merge data fields and instructions

  • Specific document settings

  • Fields

  • Document metadata

  • DrawingML, MathML, and custom XML content in Office Open XML format text documents

  • Chart content, mathematical content, and graphic content in OpenDocument format text documents

  • Embedded fonts

  • Intra-document links

The following will also change:

  • Multilevel lists will be transformed to single-level bulleted lists but the indentation stays the same.

  • The background color of a paragraph will be changed to look like the text has been highlighted instead.

Top of page

Format files

Use the steps in the following table to change the formatting in your files.

To Do this

Change how text looks

Pick the text you want to change, and then use the options (like bold, font size, color) on the Home tab in the Font group.

To add bullets or numbers, or change how your text is aligned

Pick the text you want to edit and then use the buttons on the Home tab in the Paragraph group.

To can change the orientation of your file from vertical to horizontal or the other way around

Tap or click File, and then tap or click Page setup. In the Page setup dialog box, choose Portrait (vertical) or Landscape (horizontal).

Note

Note

For more info about what each button does, press and hold the button for a description (or if you’re using a mouse, point to the button).

Top of page

Insert dates, pictures, and links

Liven up your file with pictures, insert useful info like charts and graphs, and link or embed other files. Use the steps in the following table.

To Do this

Insert the current date, time, pictures, or drawings

Use the buttons on the Home tab in the Insert group.

Link to another file or embed it

Tap or click Insert object. In the Insert Object dialog box, tap or click Create from file, tap or click Browse to find the file, and then tap or click Link to insert and view the entire contents of the file. If you just want an icon of the file to appear, tap or click Icon.

Insert a drawing

On the Home tab, in the Insert group, click Paint drawing. Create the drawing that you want to insert and then close Paint.
Top of page

View files

Clicking or tapping the View tab gives you different options. You can:

  • Make your text larger or smaller using the Zoom group.

  • See or hide the ruler (appears on top of a WordPad file) and status bar (appears at the bottom).

  • Change the word wrap settings or the ruler’s unit of measurement.

Tips

Tips

  • To view your file as individual pages instead of one big sheet, tap or click File, tap or point to Print, and then tap or click Print preview. While this option is mostly used to see what the file looks like before you print it, it’s a handy way to view your file differently.

  • To quickly zoom in and out of your file, tap or click the Zoom in or Zoom out buttons on the Zoom slider in the status bar.

Zoom slider in the status bar Zoom slider
Top of page

Print files

  • To print a file, tap or click File, and then tap or click Print.

  • If you want to see what your file will look like before you print it, tap or click File, tap or point to Print, and then tap or click Print preview.

  • If you want to print page numbers or change the paper size and orientation, tap or click File, and then tap or click Page setup.

Note

Note

If you have trouble printing, see How to solve printing problems in Windows.

Top of page
Was this helpful?
Thank you.
Do you want to add anything else?
Thank you. Your feedback helps us to continually improve our content.
1200 400 How can we make this more helpful for you? Submit Skip this Do you want to add anything else? Submit No thanks