Free online TXT to CFG converter

Games, routers, desktop applications, and embedded devices may require settings to be stored in a file ending in .cfg. If the existing settings are in .txt, the task may involve only renaming the file, or it may require rewriting the contents to match the target program's configuration syntax.

What the TXT format is

.txt identifies a generic plain-text file, not a specific data structure. Notepad, TextEdit in plain-text mode, Linux editors, command-line tools, scripts, and export utilities create TXT files for notes, logs, lists, source fragments, tables, and settings.

TXT does not define the character encoding, line-ending convention, or syntax. A file may use UTF-8, UTF-16, Windows-1252, or another encoding, with LF, CRLF, or CR line endings. The extension alone does not tell a program how to interpret the contents.

What the CFG format is

.cfg is a filename convention for plain-text configuration files. Programs and devices use CFG files for options such as paths, ports, display settings, user preferences, and startup parameters. Their plain-text nature makes them lightweight and editable with ordinary text editors.

CFG has no universal syntax. Depending on the software, a file may require key=value entries, INI-style sections such as [Network], colon-separated values, JSON-like objects, or a proprietary grammar. The target application's documentation defines valid keys, separators, comments, section names, capitalization, quotation rules, value types, encoding, and line endings.

How to convert a TXT file to CFG

1. Back up the TXT file. Work on a copy so the original remains available if the application rejects the result.
2. Inspect the source in a plain-text editor. Notepad, Notepad++, Visual Studio Code, TextEdit in plain-text mode, and Linux editors are suitable. Do not use Microsoft Word or another rich-text editor, which can insert formatting, metadata, or incompatible characters.
3. Find a working CFG example. Use the target program's documentation or an automatically generated configuration file. Compare the required keys, sections, separators, comments, capitalization, paths, quoting, Boolean values, and numeric formats with the TXT contents.
4. Rewrite the contents when necessary. Remove notes, headings, tables, or explanatory text that the target parser does not support. For example, fullscreen: yes is not interchangeable with fullscreen=true unless the application documents both forms.
5. Save as plain text with the documented encoding. Use File → Save As and name the copy, for example, settings.cfg. Do not assume UTF-8: older programs may require Windows-1252, ASCII, UTF-16, or another encoding. Avoid adding a byte-order mark when the parser does not support one.
6. Check the filename. In Windows File Explorer, enable View → Show → File name extensions and confirm that the file is settings.cfg, not settings.cfg.txt. Reopen the saved file in a text editor to check that it contains no rich-text formatting or unexpected characters.
7. Install and test the file. Copy it to the location specified by the application or device documentation. Start the software, inspect its error log, and compare any reported line with a working CFG sample. Test noncritical settings first.

If the TXT contents already follow the target program's configuration grammar, changing the extension is sufficient. In Windows Command Prompt, use:

ren settings.txt settings.cfg

In macOS or Linux, use:

mv settings.txt settings.cfg

These commands rename the file only; they do not change its syntax, encoding, or line endings. For multiple files in PowerShell, use:

Get-ChildItem *.txt | Rename-Item -NewName { $_.BaseName + '.cfg' }

Tools for the conversion

Local editors such as Notepad++, Visual Studio Code, and standard operating-system text editors provide the necessary editing and encoding controls without altering the file into a rich-text document. Visual Studio Code also lets you change line endings from its status bar; use the target program's documented setting, commonly LF on Linux and macOS or CRLF on Windows.

The built-in converter on 101convert.com can convert the file for free without installing software when a simple text-file conversion or extension change is sufficient. Review the downloaded file in a text editor and do not rely on a converter to infer a proprietary CFG grammar. Avoid uploading passwords, API keys, device credentials, private addresses, or other confidential settings.

Quality and compatibility checks

There is no universal TXT-to-CFG transformation because .cfg does not specify one data language. Renaming a note, log, or unrelated text file does not make it valid configuration data. Converting the contents to INI, JSON, YAML, XML, or another language is correct only when the receiving application supports that language.

Preserve required comments, section headers, indentation, capitalization, quotation marks, blank lines, and final newline behavior. An encoding mismatch can produce garbled characters or cause a device to reject the file; line-ending differences and an unsupported UTF-8 byte-order mark can cause similar failures in older parsers. If the program rejects the file, compare it byte-for-byte or line-by-line with a known working configuration and follow the program's exact syntax and encoding requirements.