Free online SXW to PDF converter

Older OpenOffice.org and StarOffice documents may not open reliably in current office software, while PDF is accepted by most operating systems, printers, and submission systems. Converting an SXW file creates a fixed-layout copy that can be shared without requiring the recipient to install compatible word-processing software.

What the SXW format is

SXW is the native Writer document format used by OpenOffice.org and StarOffice 6 and 7. It stores editable text, styles, tables, images, and page-layout data in a compressed XML-based package. SXW files are most common in older archives and documents created before .odt became the default OpenDocument Text format.

LibreOffice Writer can usually open and edit SXW files directly. Older OpenOffice.org and StarOffice releases may provide closer compatibility with files containing obsolete layout features, but they are no longer the preferred software for routine conversion.

What the PDF format is

PDF is a page-description format that preserves page size, positioning, fonts, images, and page breaks across different operating systems and applications. It is suitable for printing, emailing, submission systems, and reference copies that should not depend on SXW-compatible software.

PDF is not normally intended for continued word-processing edits. It can contain selectable text, comments, forms, and other interactive features, but an ordinary export does not preserve the document as an editable Writer file. Keep the original SXW file if future editing or source verification is required.

How to convert SXW to PDF

Using LibreOffice Writer

1. Install and open LibreOffice.
2. Open the .sxw file with Writer using File → Open. If the file manager does not associate SXW with Writer, open it from inside the application.
3. Check page size, page breaks, fonts, tables, headers, footers, fields, and embedded images before exporting.
4. Choose File → Export as PDF, or use Writer's PDF toolbar button.
5. Choose the output filename and, when needed, set the page range, image resolution, PDF version, accessibility options, password protection, or PDF/A settings for archival workflows.
6. Open the resulting .pdf in a PDF viewer and compare its pagination and content with the source document.

Using the command line

LibreOffice can convert individual files or batches without opening its graphical interface:

soffice --headless --convert-to pdf --outdir output document.sxw

Replace output with an existing destination directory and document.sxw with the input path. LibreOffice normally creates a PDF with the same base name. Quote paths containing spaces, and use the platform-specific soffice executable path if it is not available in the system path.

Using the built-in online converter

You can convert the file on 101convert.com for free without installing software: upload the SXW file, choose PDF as the output format, start the conversion, and download the generated file. Do not upload confidential, personal, or legally sensitive documents unless the service's current handling, storage, and deletion terms are acceptable.

Quality and compatibility limits

Very old SXW files can contain fonts, drawing objects, fields, or layout behavior that modern LibreOffice interprets differently. Missing fonts are a common cause of changed line wrapping and pagination; installing the original fonts before opening the file can reduce these differences.

Inspect complex tables, positioned objects, headers, footers, footnotes, page breaks, and embedded images after opening and again after export. Tracked changes, comments, macros, and fields may be displayed differently or lose their editable behavior in PDF. A PDF export also does not guarantee that fonts are embedded or that the result meets PDF/A requirements, so verify the export settings when exact reproduction or formal archiving is required.