How to Change the Default from Wordpad to Word on Windows 10

Last Updated: December 6, 2021

Oh no! Your .dox or .txt document is opening in WordPad, so what do you do? Since WordPad can open these and other file formats (like .rtf), you just need to change some default app settings to change Word as your default. This wikiHow article will teach you how to change the default app from WordPad to Word in Windows 10.

Steps

1
Open Settings. Press Win + I on your keyboard to open the Settings window. Alternatively, you can click the gear icon in the Start menu.
2
Click Apps. It's next to a list icon.

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3
Click Default Apps. You'll see this menu option in the menu on the left side of the window next to a list icon with an arrow on it.
4
Click Choose default apps by file type. This menu option is at the bottom of the menu under "Reset."
- You'll see file types listed on the left side of the window next to the default app used to open them.
5
Change the app next to ".docx, .rtf, and .txt" to Word. If the default is WordPad, click it, then select Word from the drop-down list.
- If you don't have an active Microsoft 365 subscription, you'll see a prompt to open the store.
- If there's no default listed, click Choose a default and select Word from the list.^{[1]
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