WordPad

Not to be confused with Windows Notepad, Microsoft Write, or Microsoft Word.

WordPad
Screenshot of WordPad in Windows 11
Developer	Microsoft
Release	August 24, 1995 (August 24, 1995)
Final release	10.0.19041.6280 / August 21, 2025 (2025-08-21)
Written in	C++
Operating system	Windows 95 and higher
Platform	IA-32, x86-64, and ARM
Predecessor	Microsoft Write
Successor	Microsoft Word or Windows Notepad (suggested)
Type	Word processor
Repository	WordPad Sample: MFC WordPad Application (early version)

WordPad is a discontinued word processor application designed by Microsoft that was included in versions of Windows from Windows 95 through Windows 11, version 23H2. Similarly to its predecessor Microsoft Write, it served as 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. Microsoft removed WordPad starting with Windows 11 24H2 and it has no successor. In September 2026, Microsoft announced that support for WordPad on editions of Windows 10 which are not in the Long-Term Servicing Channel (LTSC) will end on May 11, 2027. Microsoft recommends the use of Microsoft Word for editing DOCX and RTF files and Notepad for editing TXT files instead.

Earlier versions primarily supported a subset of the Rich Text Format (RTF, .rtf) and Microsoft Word 6.0 formats, although later versions are also capable of saving Office Open XML (OOXML, .docx) and OpenDocument Text (.odt) files.