SDW Converter

Convert SDW files online for free

Select File
Drop or upload your .SDW file

Online File Converter

✈

How to convert your SDW file

Click the "Select File" button above, and choose your SDW file.
You'll see a preview.
Click the "Convert file to..." button to save your file in the format you want.

Convert SDW to another file type

The converter easily converts your SDW file to various formats - free and online. No LibreOffice or or other Text software needed.

SDW to PDF
SDW to XLSX
SDW to STC
SDW to DOTX
SDW to PXL
SDW to DOC
SDW to FODT
SDW to XLC
SDW to STW
SDW to TAB
SDW to WPT
SDW to RTF
SDW to FODG
SDW to XLW
SDW to STD
SDW to STI
SDW to UOS
SDW to ODF
SDW to UOT
SDW to FODS
SDW to DOCM
SDW to XLM
SDW to PPT
SDW to PPS
SDW to ODG
SDW to SLK
SDW to ODS
SDW to UOF
SDW to ODT
SDW to HTML
SDW to POT
SDW to SXI
SDW to TXT
SDW to TSV
SDW to EMF
SDW to MML
SDW to XHTML
SDW to DOCX
SDW to HTM
SDW to XML
SDW to XLS
SDW to SXM
SDW to DIF
SDW to XLT
SDW to DOT
SDW to SXC
SDW to CSV
SDW to ODB
SDW to PDB
SDW to UOP
SDW to PPTX
SDW to SXW
SDW to ODP
SDW to FODP
SDW to SYLK
SDW to SXD
SDW to MET
SDW to DOTM
SDW to PSW

Convert a file to SDW

To convert other file formats to the "Legacy Document & GIS Data" file type, you need software like LibreOffice or a similar tool.

About SDW files

The .sdw extension most commonly identifies a StarWriter Document, a legacy word processing format created by StarOffice (versions 5.x and earlier). These binary files date back to the late 1990s, predating the modern XML-based ODT standard used by OpenOffice and LibreOffice.

The Problem: Obsolescence & Compatibility

Because .SDW files utilize a proprietary binary structure rather than modern open standards, they are effectively "black boxes" to most current software.

Microsoft Word does not support .SDW natively, meaning you cannot simply double-click to open them.
Mobile Devices (iOS/Android) generally lack any viewer for this format.
Legacy Rot: As software evolves, support for these pre-2000 formats is often deprecated or moved to optional "legacy filters," risking permanent data loss if not converted.

The Solution: Conversion Targets

To preserve your content, you should convert .SDW files immediately using a compatible suite like LibreOffice:

For Editing: Convert to DOCX (Microsoft Word) or ODT (OpenDocument Text).
For Archiving: Convert to PDF to ensure the layout remains fixed and viewable on any device.

Secondary Use Case: GIS World Files

If your .sdw file is very small (under 1KB) and accompanies a SID image, it is likely a MrSID World File. This is a plain text file containing six lines of coordinate data used to georeference satellite imagery in GIS software like ArcGIS Pro. Do not convert this file to an image format; it must remain as text and stay in the same folder as the SID image to function correctly.

Use Convert.Guru to open and convert your SDW file.

Users also converted SID, SWRD, SWD, SDV, CDW, VOR, OTF, OTH and PDF files.

FAQ

If you want to convert SDW file to SHP, KML, KMZ, GPX, GEOJSON, TOPOJSON, TIF, TIFF, ECW, SID or IMG, you can use LibreOffice or similar software from the "Legacy Word Processing" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….

To convert LAZ, KMZ, DTM, CSV, DEM, PRJ, LAS, GPX, DSM, SHP, DBF or KML files to SDW, try LibreOffice or another comparable tool in the "Legacy Word Processing" category.

The SDW Converter Story

The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our SDW converter.