---
tags:
  - macOS
  - Tahoe
  - textedit
  - plain-text
  - rich-text
  - settings
title: Plain Text vs. Rich Text in TextEdit on macOS Tahoe
---

# Plain Text vs. Rich Text in TextEdit on macOS Tahoe

TextEdit is the default text editor on macOS. It can handle both plain text (`.txt`) and rich text (`.rtf`) formats. Understanding the difference between these formats and how to configure TextEdit is key to avoiding formatting issues.

## Plain Text

Plain text files contain only characters, without any formatting information like fonts, sizes, or colors.

### Benefits of Plain Text
*   **Compatibility**: Can be opened and edited in any text editor on any operating system.
*   **Small File Size**: Plain text files are very small.
*   **Version Control**: Works perfectly with Git and other version control systems.
*   **Code**: Ideal for writing code, configuration files, and Markdown documents.

### Configuring TextEdit for Plain Text

1.  Open **TextEdit**.
2.  Go to **TextEdit > Settings** (or press `Cmd + ,`).
3.  In the "New Document" tab:
    *   Set "Format" to **Plain text**.
    *   Check the box for **"Ignore rich text commands in HTML files"**.
4.  In the "Open and Save" tab:
    *   Set "Saving files" to **".txt"**.
    *   Set "Plain text file encoding" to **"UTF-8"**.

### Creating a New Plain Text Document

To ensure a new document is plain text, go to **Format > Make Plain Text** (or press `Shift + Cmd + T`).

## Rich Text

Rich text files contain formatting information along with the text. This allows you to use different fonts, sizes, colors, and styles.

### Benefits of Rich Text
*   **Formatting**: Visually appealing documents with styled text and images.
*   **Templates**: Create letters, reports, and other documents with pre-designed layouts.
*   **WYSIWYG**: What You See Is What You Get.

### Configuring TextEdit for Rich Text

1.  Open **TextEdit**.
2.  Go to **TextEdit > Settings** (or press `Cmd + ,`).
3.  In the "New Document" tab:
    *   Set "Format" to **Rich text**.
4.  In the "Open and Save" tab:
    *   Set "Saving files" to **".rtf"**.

### Creating a New Rich Text Document

To ensure a new document is rich text, go to **Format > Make Rich Text** (or press `Shift + Cmd + T`).

## Converting Between Formats

*   To convert a rich text document to plain text: **Format > Make Plain Text** (or `Shift + Cmd + T`).
*   To convert a plain text document to rich text: **Format > Make Rich Text** (or `Shift + Cmd + T`).

## Related Guides
*   Markdown Editing on macOS Tahoe: .md vs .pages
*   The Native Terminal for Command Line Operations on macOS Tahoe