Document
What is a .wps file?
A .wps file is a Microsoft Works Word Processor 1-3 for DOS and 2 for Windows. This is a document format, so it holds text and layout meant to be read. Confusingly, this extension has been used by 5 different formats over the years — they're all listed below.
This extension has been used by more than one format
5 different formats have claimed .wps over the years, so two files with the same extension aren't necessarily the same kind of thing.
- Microsoft Works Word Processor 1-3 for DOS and 2 for WindowsNo version recorded · fmt/163
- Microsoft Works Word Processor 3-4 for WindowsNo version recorded · fmt/233
- Microsoft Works Word Processor 5-6No version recorded · fmt/258
- Microsoft Works Word Processor MacintoshVersion 3 · fmt/272
- Microsoft Works Word Processor MacintoshVersion 4 · fmt/273
How to open a .wps file
- Try LibreOffice (free, Windows/Mac/Linux) — it opens an enormous range of current and historic document formats.
- Microsoft Word and Google Docs handle most mainstream document types.
- If nothing opens it, open it in a text editor: many older document formats have readable text inside.
The registry records this extension against Microsoft Works Word Processor 1-3 for DOS and 2 for Windows, Microsoft Works Word Processor 3-4 for Windows, Microsoft Works Word Processor 5-6 and others, so software from that family is the most likely match.
How to convert a .wps file
- Once it opens in LibreOffice or Word, Save As .docx or .pdf to get it into a format you can use anywhere.
The technical record
For archivists, developers and the merely curious: these are the PRONOM registry entries for .wps.
| Format name | Version | MIME type | PUID |
|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Works Word Processor 1-3 for DOS and 2 for Windows | — | — | fmt/163 |
| Microsoft Works Word Processor 3-4 for Windows | — | — | fmt/233 |
| Microsoft Works Word Processor 5-6 | — | — | fmt/258 |
| Microsoft Works Word Processor Macintosh | 3 | — | fmt/272 |
| Microsoft Works Word Processor Macintosh | 4 | — | fmt/273 |