WordPad was a free rich text editor built into every version of Microsoft Windows from Windows 95 through Windows 10. It lived in the middle ground between the plain-text Notepad and the full-featured Microsoft Word — capable of basic formatting without requiring an Office subscription. After three decades, Microsoft removed it from Windows 11 in 2023. Here is everything you need to know about what WordPad was and where to find the best replacement today.
A Brief History of WordPad
WordPad shipped with Windows 95 as a replacement for the older Write application. Over the next 28 years it appeared in every Windows release — Windows 98, XP, Vista, 7, 8, 8.1, and 10 — largely unchanged. It supported the Rich Text Format (RTF) standard, which meant documents could retain bold, italic, font sizes, and colors when opened in other programs.
Microsoft never invested heavily in WordPad. It received a ribbon-style toolbar update in Windows 7 but otherwise stayed the same lightweight editor it had always been.
In September 2023, Microsoft announced WordPad was deprecated and removed it from Windows 11 build 26020 onward. The official recommendation was to use Notepad for plain text and Microsoft Word for rich text — neither of which is free for most users.
Key Features WordPad Had
WordPad was simple by modern standards, but it covered the basics:
- Rich text formatting — bold, italic, underline, font family, font size, and text color
- RTF and DOCX support — open and save Word documents in older formats
- Image embedding — insert pictures directly into a document
- Bulleted lists — basic unordered list support
- Print — print directly to any connected printer with standard margins
- Ruler — visual indent and margin control
What it did not support: tables, headers and footers, spell check, tracked changes, or cloud saving.
Why Microsoft Removed WordPad From Windows 11
Microsoft's official statement called WordPad a "deprecated" feature — one that would no longer receive active development and would eventually be removed. The practical reasons are straightforward:
- Low usage — most users had migrated to Word, Google Docs, or web-based editors
- Limited format support — WordPad could not open modern .docx files reliably
- No active development — the codebase had not received meaningful updates in over a decade
- Overlap with Notepad — for quick text tasks, Notepad served the same purpose
The removal left users who relied on WordPad for quick, formatted documents without a built-in option.
The Best Online Alternative: wordpad.online
Online WordPad fills the gap WordPad left — and goes further. It runs entirely in your browser with no installation and no account required.
| Feature | Classic WordPad | Online WordPad |
|---|---|---|
| Bold, italic, underline | Yes | Yes |
| Tables | No | Yes |
| Export to .docx | Limited | Yes |
| Export to HTML | No | Yes |
| Works on Mac / Linux | No | Yes |
| Requires Windows | Yes | No |
| Free | Yes | Yes |
| Auto-save | No | Yes |
Online WordPad includes everything the original had — plus tables, images, export to Word format, print with custom margins, and a slash-command menu for fast formatting. Your document auto-saves to your browser so nothing is lost if you close the tab accidentally.
It works on Windows 11, macOS, Linux, Chromebook, and iPad. No Microsoft account, no subscription, no download.
How to Open WordPad Online Right Now
You do not need to hunt through Windows settings or install anything. Just open the editor and start typing. Your document is ready in under a second.