Free online CFG to TEXT converter

A program may store settings in a CFG file while a user needs a broadly compatible copy for editing, sharing, or archiving. Converting a text-based CFG file to TEXT normally preserves the readable content and saves it with a .txt or .text extension.

What the CFG format is

CFG is a configuration-file extension used by applications, games, servers, operating systems, and development tools. A text-based CFG file commonly contains key-value pairs, sections, comments, paths, and startup options. Users and administrators encounter these files in application or profile directories, beside installed programs, or after exporting settings.

CFG has no universal syntax. One file may resemble INI, JSON, XML, or shell configuration syntax, while another uses rules specific to its application. The creating program may require exact key names, capitalization, delimiters, ordering, comments, or a particular filename.

What the TEXT format is

TEXT generally means an unformatted plain-text file, usually saved with .txt or .text. It stores characters without fonts, page layout, images, formulas, or word-processor metadata.

Plain-text files open in Notepad, TextEdit, Notepad++, Visual Studio Code, Vim, and other text editors. They are useful for readable copies, documentation, logs, source snippets, version control, and archival because they do not require a specialized configuration editor.

How to convert CFG to TEXT

For a CFG that is already plain text, conversion is usually a filename and encoding operation rather than a structural transformation.

1. Make a backup of the original CFG file.
2. Open it in a plain-text editor such as Notepad, Notepad++, Visual Studio Code, or Vim. In TextEdit, use plain-text mode rather than rich text. Do not use a word processor that can add formatting.
3. Confirm that the contents are readable text and not binary data, compressed data, or encoded output.
4. Choose File → Save As.
5. Enter a name such as settings.txt or settings.text. In Windows Notepad, select All files as the file type if necessary, so it does not append another .txt extension.
6. Select UTF-8 unless the receiving program requires a different encoding, then save the file.

You can also use the built-in converter on 101convert.com for free without installing software: add the CFG file, start the CFG-to-TEXT conversion, and download the resulting plain-text file. Review the output before using it as a configuration file, and avoid uploading files that contain passwords, tokens, private paths, or other sensitive settings.

Copying the file without changing its contents

If only a second extension is needed and the bytes must remain unchanged, copy the file from a command line instead of opening and resaving it:

cp settings.cfg settings.txt

On Windows Command Prompt, use:

copy settings.cfg settings.txt

These commands create a second filename with the same content; they do not parse the CFG syntax or convert its character encoding. Use a text editor or an encoding-aware utility when UTF-8 conversion is required.

Compatibility and quality limitations

Renaming or copying a CFG file preserves its original configuration syntax, but it does not make that syntax interchangeable with another format. A program that expects settings.cfg may ignore settings.txt, even when both files contain identical text. Keep the original filename and extension when the file must be loaded by the creating application.

Check character encoding and line endings if the TEXT copy will be edited and later returned to the application. Saving as UTF-8 can break older software that expects ANSI, Windows-1252, or another legacy encoding. Changing LF line endings to CRLF, or the reverse, can also affect strict parsers.

A CFG extension can identify a binary or application-specific file rather than plain text. If an editor shows unreadable bytes, use the program that created the file to export its settings or documentation; a plain-text converter cannot produce meaningful text from an unknown binary structure.