To download a TXT file, right-click the link to the file and choose “Save Link As” (or “Save Target As” in some browsers), then pick a folder and click Save. That’s the core method that works on any website, in any browser, and it saves the plain-text file directly to your computer or phone.
How to download a txt file from a direct link
The most common way to download a TXT file is from a direct link on a webpage. This works when you see a link that points to a file ending in .txt or a link that triggers a download. Instead of left-clicking the link (which often opens the text in your browser), you’ll right-click it to access the browser’s context menu.
- Position your mouse cursor over the download link for the TXT file.
- Right-click the link (on a Mac, hold
Controland click). - From the menu that appears, choose Save Link As (in Chrome, Edge, and most browsers) or Save Target As (in Firefox).
- In the dialog box that opens, choose the destination folder where you want the file saved. You can also rename the file here if you wish.
- Click Save. The TXT file will download to the selected folder.
This method gives you full control over where the file goes and what it’s called, and it avoids accidentally opening the file in your browser instead of saving it.
How to save an entire web page as a txt file
Sometimes you don’t want a linked TXT file, you want to save the text content of a whole webpage as a plain-text file. This is useful for offline reading, archiving articles, or extracting text from a page that doesn’t offer a direct download.
In Firefox, saving a page as text is built in. Open the page you want to save, then click the menu button (three horizontal lines) and choose Save Page As. In the dialog that appears, look for the Format or Save as type dropdown menu and select Text Files (the file will have a .txt extension). Then choose a folder and click Save. The entire page’s text, headings, paragraphs, and all, will be saved as a plain-text file.
Microsoft Edge doesn’t offer a direct “Save as Text file” option for web pages. A simple workaround is to use Edge’s Immersive Reader mode (click the book icon in the address bar or press F9). This strips away ads, images, and sidebars, leaving only the article’s text. From there, select all the text (Ctrl+A), copy it (Ctrl+C), paste it into Notepad or any text editor, and save the file as a .txt file. This is handy for saving a clean, readable version of an article or a recipe.
Keep in mind that saving a web page as a plain-text file will remove all formatting and hyperlinks. You’ll get the raw text, with no bold, italics, or clickable links. If you need the original layout, save the page as HTML instead.
How to download a txt file from Google Drive
If your TXT file is stored in Google Drive, downloading it back to your computer is straightforward. This is useful when you need a local copy of a text file you’ve uploaded or received as a shared document.
- Go to
drive.google.comand sign in to your Google account. - Navigate to the TXT file you want to download. You can use the search bar or browse your folders.
- Right-click the file (or select it and click the three-dot menu).
- Choose Download from the context menu.
The file will be saved to your browser’s default download location. If you select multiple files or a folder in Google Drive, they will be compressed into a single .zip file, which you’ll need to unzip after downloading. Note that if the file owner has disabled downloading (for users with comment or view access only), you won’t see the Download option, you’ll only be able to view the file.
How to download a txt file from OneDrive
OneDrive, Microsoft’s cloud storage, works similarly to Google Drive but has its own download process. This is handy when you’re syncing documents between your PC and the cloud, or when someone shares a TXT file with you via OneDrive.
- Open
onedrive.comand sign in with your Microsoft account. - Select the file by clicking the circle that appears to its left.
- Click the Download button in the top navigation bar (or right-click the file and choose Download).
Your browser will download the file to the default Downloads folder. If you select multiple files or a folder in OneDrive, they will be downloaded as a .zip file, which you’ll need to extract to access the individual TXT files. This is particularly useful for backing up several text files at once.
Where to find your downloaded txt file
After you complete any download, the file is typically saved to your computer’s default Downloads folder, unless you chose a different location during the save dialog. This is true for all browsers, Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Safari, and for downloads from the web, Google Drive, or OneDrive.
To access it quickly, open your file manager (File Explorer on Windows, Finder on Mac) and look for the Downloads folder in the sidebar. You can also press Ctrl+J (or Cmd+J on a Mac) in most browsers to see your download history and click the file to open its location. If you saved the TXT file to a custom folder during the save dialog, navigate to that folder instead. If you can’t find it, use your operating system’s search function to look for the file name, it will appear in the results.
