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Text Editing Showdown: Notepad vs. Notepad++ and Wordpad vs. Word

“Four different text editing applications? What’s with all these options? I just want to type!”

While your conundrum is very understandable, I’m here to set the record straight. These four programs have two very different intended uses: writing and coding. Wordpad and Microsoft Word are for writing, and Notepad and Notepad++ work better for coding.

I’m not going to pitch a writing program against a coding application here. They’re on two entirely different spectrums, so I won’t waste anybody’s time trying to compare them. However, the Word and Note programs are easily comparable to each other — and here, I’m going to show you which one is best.

Text Editing Showdown
The Notepad++ Logo

Note programs (Notepad vs. Notepad++)

Notepad

Notepad++

Files can be saved in .txt, .html, .css…

Tie

Tie

Files can be saved in .txt, .html, .css…

Word Wrap

Tie

Tie

Word Wrap automatically implemented

No individual line selection / line numbering

Winner

Line selection / line numbering

Can edit most files

Winner

Can edit all of them

File extensions have to be typed

Winner

File extensions can be selected from a menu

While both programs are free, one comes bundled with the operating system and the other is downloadable freeware. Notepad++’s additional features and interface make it the clear winner, though the user interface can be hard to navigate for unaccustomed users.

Winner: Notepad++

Text Editing Showdown
The Microsoft Word Logo

Word programs (Wordpad vs. Microsoft Word)

Wordpad

Microsoft Word

Limited formatting

Winner

Adds .html, .pdf and others

Bad compatibility with .docx, can’t open Word-exclusive files

Winner

Can open more files than Wordpad, has fewer compatibility issues

Limited text editing options

Winner

Line spacing, indent, clip art…

Free

Winner

Expensive

For students and professionals, Word is always the clear choice between these two. For people that don’t need to show their work to others or simply require basic formatting options, Wordpad is the obvious choice. If, however, one falls into the previous category and can’t afford Microsoft Word, LibreOffice and Google Docs are wonderful alternatives.

Winner: Microsoft Word

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