HTML to Plain Text

What Is HTML to Plain Text?

An HTML to Plain Text converter extracts readable text from HTML code and removes the markup used to structure and format web pages. HTML elements such as headings, paragraphs, links, lists and emphasis tags are converted into their underlying text without retaining the HTML syntax.

This is useful when you need to extract the written content from a webpage, email template, HTML document or source code and use it somewhere that accepts plain text. Instead of manually deleting tags and cleaning the resulting content, the converter processes the HTML automatically in your browser.

Why Use HTML to Plain Text?

Converting HTML to plain text makes it easier to extract, copy and reuse readable content without carrying unwanted markup, styles or embedded code into another application.

How to Use HTML to Plain Text

Extract plain text from HTML in a few simple steps without manually removing the markup.

1. Paste your HTML — Enter or paste HTML source code into the input field.
2. Choose the formatting — Select readable or compact text and choose whether list markers should be preserved.
3. Convert to Text — Click Convert to Text to extract the readable content from the HTML.
4. Copy or download — Copy the result or download the extracted text as a .txt file.

Convert HTML to Plain Text Online

HTML is designed to describe the structure and presentation of content on the web, but HTML markup is not always useful when you only need the underlying written text. An HTML to text converter separates the readable content from the tags, attributes and other document markup so that it can be reused as plain text.

This can be particularly useful for extracting content from HTML emails, webpages, templates, CMS output and application-generated documents. The resulting text can be copied into text editors, documentation, notes, forms or other systems that do not accept HTML formatting.

What Is HTML?

HTML, or HyperText Markup Language, is the standard markup language used to structure content on websites and many HTML-based documents. Elements such as headings, paragraphs, links, lists and tables provide structure around the text displayed to users. HTML can also contain scripts, styles and other information that should not normally appear in plain-text output.

When to Convert HTML to Text

HTML to plain text conversion is useful when cleaning copied webpage content, extracting text from email templates, preparing content for systems that accept only plain text, reviewing HTML-generated documents or removing markup from source material. It can also help developers and content professionals quickly inspect the textual content contained inside HTML.

HTML to Plain Text Conversion Details

The converter parses the supplied HTML in your browser and extracts its text content. Script, style, noscript and template elements are excluded because their contents are generally code or document metadata rather than visible page text. Block-level elements can be separated with line breaks to maintain a readable representation of the original structure.

HTML entities and character references are interpreted by the browser's HTML parser, allowing encoded content to be represented as normal text where appropriate. The conversion does not preserve visual styling, colours, fonts, hyperlinks, images or other HTML presentation features. It is intended for extracting text rather than reproducing the original document layout.

Frequently Asked Questions