WordPad
WordPad is a word processor software included with Windows 95 and later, until Windows 11. Similarly to its predecessor Microsoft Write, it is a basic word processor, positioned as more advanced than the Notepad text editor by supporting rich text editing, but with a subset of the functionality of Microsoft Word.
The Logo of WordPad | |
WordPad running on Windows 11 | |
| Developer(s) | Microsoft |
|---|---|
| Initial release | August 24, 1995 |
| Stable release | |
| Repository | WordPad Sample: MFC WordPad Application (early version) |
| Written in | C++ |
| Operating system | Windows 95 and higher |
| Platform | IA-32, x86-64, and ARM |
| Predecessor | Microsoft Write |
| Type | Word processor |
Earlier versions primarily supported a subset of the Rich Text Format (RTF, .rtf) and Microsoft Word 6.0 formats, although current versions are also capable of saving Office Open XML (OOXML, .docx) and OpenDocument Text (.odt) files.
In 2023, Microsoft announced that it plans to remove WordPad from future versions of Windows. In January 2024, WordPad was no longer auto-installed with the release of the Windows 11 Build 26020 and it was announced that it will not be available for reinstallation.