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Convert DOC to TXT - Extract Pure Text from Word Files

Strip formatting and extract clean text from Word documents instantly.

Step 1: Upload your files

You can also Drag and drop files.

Step 2: Choose format
Step 3: Convert files

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Need Just the Text?

Word documents contain far more than text. Fonts, styles, headers, footers, images, and formatting code all bloat DOC files. Sometimes you need none of that-just the words themselves.

Converting DOC to TXT strips everything away and leaves you with pure, portable text. In our testing, a 500KB Word document becomes a 15KB text file containing identical content minus the formatting overhead.

How to Convert DOC to TXT

  1. Upload your DOC file - Drag and drop or click to select your Word document
  2. Select TXT as output - Choose plain text format for maximum compatibility
  3. Download your text file - Get clean, readable text instantly

No Microsoft Word required. No account needed. Convert directly in your browser on any device.

Why Convert Word to Plain Text?

DOC files are proprietary Microsoft format from 1995-2007. While widely supported, they carry baggage that plain text avoids entirely:

  • Universal opening - TXT files open in any text editor on any operating system
  • Tiny file size - Remove formatting bloat, keep only content
  • No software dependencies - No Word, no LibreOffice, no special apps needed
  • Clean data extraction - Perfect for importing text into databases or code
  • Archive longevity - Plain text remains readable decades from now

In our testing, TXT files from 1990s systems open perfectly on modern computers. The same cannot always be said for DOC files.

Technical Comparison: DOC vs TXT

Understanding what each format contains helps you choose wisely:

FeatureDOCTXT
File sizeLarge (includes formatting)Minimal (text only)
FormattingRich (fonts, colors, styles)None
ImagesEmbeddedNot supported
CompatibilityNeeds Word or compatible appOpens anywhere
EncodingBinary proprietaryASCII/UTF-8
Edit withWord processorsAny text editor

DOC is for authoring documents. TXT is for storing and transferring raw text content.

Common Use Cases

Programming and Development

Need to import document content into code? TXT integrates cleanly with scripts, databases, and applications. No parsing libraries needed-just read the file directly.

Data Migration

Moving content between systems often fails with formatted documents. Plain text transfers without corruption, encoding issues, or compatibility problems.

Text Analysis

Running word counts, content analysis, or natural language processing? TXT provides clean input without markup interfering with your results.

Legacy System Integration

Older systems and embedded devices often accept only plain text. Converting DOC to TXT bridges the gap between modern Word documents and legacy infrastructure.

Email and Messaging

Pasting formatted Word content into emails creates inconsistent formatting. Copy from TXT files for clean, predictable results every time.

What Gets Removed During Conversion

Converting to plain text is intentionally lossy. Here is what the conversion strips out:

  • Fonts and text styling - Bold, italic, underline, colors all disappear
  • Images and graphics - TXT cannot store visual elements
  • Tables - Converted to tab-separated or space-aligned text
  • Headers and footers - Removed entirely or merged into body text
  • Page formatting - Margins, columns, page breaks gone
  • Comments and track changes - Revision history stripped out

This is the point. If you need formatting, use DOC to DOCX or DOC to PDF instead.

Encoding and Character Handling

Our converter outputs UTF-8 encoded TXT files by default. This encoding supports:

  • All standard English characters
  • International characters (accents, umlauts, special letters)
  • Non-Latin scripts (Cyrillic, Greek, Asian characters)
  • Special symbols and punctuation

In our testing, documents containing mixed languages and special characters convert without data loss. The UTF-8 standard ensures broad compatibility with modern systems.

Batch Conversion

Have multiple Word documents to convert? Upload several DOC files at once and download them all as TXT. Batch conversion saves time when processing document archives or migrating content libraries.

Each file converts independently-one problematic document will not affect the others in your batch.

Alternative Conversions

TXT is not always the right choice. Consider these alternatives:

  • DOC to DOCX - Modernize format while keeping formatting intact
  • DOC to PDF - Lock formatting for sharing and printing
  • DOC to RTF - Portable rich text that works across platforms
  • DOC to HTML - Web-ready content with preserved structure

Choose TXT when you specifically need raw text without any formatting overhead.

Works on Every Device

Convert DOC to TXT directly in your browser:

  • Windows, Mac, Linux, Chromebook
  • Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge
  • iPhone, iPad, Android tablets and phones

No downloads, no installations, no plugins. Your documents stay on your device throughout the conversion process.

Pro Tip

Before converting important documents, check for embedded content you might lose. Headers, footers, text boxes, and comments all contain text that may or may not transfer to TXT depending on how the document was structured.

Common Mistake

Converting formatted reports or resumes to TXT then wondering why they look wrong. TXT is for data extraction and compatibility, not document preservation. Use PDF or DOCX if you need to maintain appearance.

Best For

Extracting document content for databases, code processing, text analysis, or transfer to legacy systems. Perfect when you need the words without any formatting complexity.

Not Recommended

Do not use DOC to TXT if you need to preserve any visual formatting, share a professional-looking document, or keep images and tables intact. Choose PDF or DOCX conversion instead.

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, completely. TXT is a plain text format that stores only characters and basic line breaks. All fonts, colors, styles, images, and layout information are removed. This is intentional-TXT provides pure text content without formatting overhead.

No. You must remove password protection from the DOC file before conversion. If you have the password, open the document in Word, remove protection, save it, then convert. We cannot bypass document security.

Tables are converted to plain text, typically with tab characters separating columns and line breaks separating rows. The visual grid structure disappears, but the data remains in a readable format that works in spreadsheet programs.

Yes. Our converter outputs UTF-8 encoded TXT files, which support international characters, accents, special symbols, and non-Latin scripts. Characters that existed in your DOC file will appear correctly in the TXT output.

DOC is Microsoft's older binary format (1995-2007). DOCX is the newer XML-based format introduced with Office 2007. Both convert to TXT the same way-you get plain text regardless of which Word format you start with.

Yes. Upload several DOC files and convert them all to TXT in a single batch. Each file processes independently, so one problematic document will not affect the others.

No. Our converter works entirely in your browser without any software installation. It handles DOC files directly without requiring Word, LibreOffice, or any other application on your device.

Significantly smaller. A typical Word document with formatting is 10-50 times larger than the equivalent plain text. In our testing, a 500KB DOC file typically becomes a 15-20KB TXT file containing identical text content.

UTF-8 by default. This encoding supports virtually all characters and languages while remaining compatible with most modern systems. UTF-8 is the de facto standard for text files on the web and in software development.

Yes. The converter works in mobile browsers including Safari on iPhone/iPad and Chrome on Android. No app installation required-just upload your DOC file and download the TXT result.

Images are removed entirely. TXT files cannot contain images-they store only text characters. If you need to preserve images, convert to PDF instead, which maintains both text and graphics.

Conversion happens in your browser using JavaScript. Your documents are processed locally on your device and are not uploaded to external servers. This ensures privacy and faster processing.

DOC Conversions & Related Converters

Quick access to the most commonly used file conversions.