Free online CFG to TXT converter

A device, application, or import tool may accept only a .txt file even when the available settings file ends in .cfg. The usual requirement is a readable, shareable copy of the configuration rather than a change to its syntax.

What the CFG format is

.cfg is a generic filename extension for configuration files, not one standardized format. Games, servers, operating-system utilities, developer tools, and hardware software use CFG files for paths, ports, options, preferences, and startup parameters.

CFG files commonly contain key=value pairs, INI-style sections, comments, JSON-like data, XML, or application-specific syntax. The extension does not identify the encoding or guarantee that the contents are text; some applications use CFG for binary, compressed, or encrypted data. A text editor should show readable settings before you attempt a text-file conversion.

What the TXT format is

.txt identifies a generic plain-text file with no standardized structure or document formatting such as fonts, images, and page layout. Notepad, TextEdit, Notepad++, Visual Studio Code, command-line tools, and most operating systems can open TXT files without specialized software.

TXT is useful for manual inspection, basic editing, sharing, and archival copies. It does not translate configuration commands, validate settings, remove comments, or convert one configuration syntax into another. The extension also does not specify the encoding: a TXT file may use UTF-8, Windows-1252, another legacy encoding, or a different character encoding supported by the target program.

How to convert CFG to TXT

Rename a byte-preserving copy

1. Back up the original .cfg file, especially if software depends on it.
2. In Windows File Explorer, enable View → Show → File name extensions. Rename, for example, settings.cfg to settings.txt. On macOS or Linux, use the file manager or run cp settings.cfg settings.txt.
3. Open the copy in a plain-text editor and confirm that its contents are readable.

Renaming changes only the filename; it preserves the original bytes, encoding, line endings, and any binary data. This is the best method when the receiving program needs identical contents under a different extension. In Windows, check that the result is not accidentally named settings.txt.cfg.

Save a text copy with a chosen encoding

1. Open the CFG file in Notepad++, Visual Studio Code, or another plain-text editor. Do not use Microsoft Word or a similar word processor, because it can add formatting and alter the file structure.
2. Check that characters, delimiters, backslashes, comments, and section markers display correctly. If characters are corrupted, identify the source encoding before saving; saving an incorrectly decoded file can permanently replace characters.
3. Choose File → Save As, enter a name ending in .txt, and select the encoding required by the receiving program. Use UTF-8 when the program supports it and the source has been decoded correctly.
4. Reopen the saved file and verify non-ASCII characters, blank lines, line endings, and the final newline if the target software requires one.

In Notepad++, Encoding → Convert to UTF-8 changes the encoding before saving; an encoding-detection or display option alone does not convert the file. Saving may also change line endings or add a byte-order mark, so retain the original CFG file.

Convert with command-line tools

For a byte-preserving copy in PowerShell, use:

Copy-Item .\settings.cfg .\settings.txt

When the source encoding is known and UTF-8 output is required, use an encoding-aware tool such as:

iconv -f WINDOWS-1252 -t UTF-8 settings.cfg > settings.txt

Replace WINDOWS-1252 with the actual source encoding. An incorrect source-encoding assumption can corrupt characters. Commands that read and rewrite text may also change line endings and encoding, so use them only when those changes are acceptable.

Use 101convert

You can convert the file on 101convert.com for free without installing software. Upload the CFG file, select TXT as the output format, start the conversion, and download the result. Use this option only for non-sensitive files; configuration files may contain passwords, API keys, private paths, server addresses, or proprietary settings.

Quality and compatibility limits

A TXT copy does not become a different configuration language. Software may reject it because it checks the .cfg extension or requires particular sections, delimiters, ordering, commands, encoding, or line endings. If the destination expects a defined schema, use the creating program's documented export function instead of changing the extension.

If the CFG file appears as unreadable binary data, renaming or saving it as TXT will not make it readable and may destroy it. Use the application or device that created the file, and do not open binary data in a text editor for saving. Where exact preservation matters, compare the copy with the original and keep the original CFG for any software that still requires it.