Extract text from XLR files
To convert your XLR file to another format, you need Microsoft Works or other Spreadsheet software.
To convert other file formats to the "Legacy Data File" file type, you need software like Microsoft Works or a similar tool.
XLR files are legacy spreadsheets generated by Microsoft Works, a discontinued productivity suite that served as a lower-cost alternative to Microsoft Office between 1987 and 2009. While these files function similarly to early Excel spreadsheets - containing rows, columns, formulas, and charts - they are stored in a proprietary binary format that modern software struggles to handle.
The real problem for users today is compatibility. Microsoft officially retired the Works format, and modern versions of Microsoft Excel (2013 and later) often cannot open .XLR files directly due to tightened security policies and the removal of legacy import filters. Users attempting to open these files often encounter cryptic error messages or find that complex formatting and formulas are stripped away. Because .XLR files are not text-based, they cannot be opened in a text editor.
To access this data, conversion is usually the only viable path. For editing in modern environments, convert to .XLR or XLSX. If you need to import the raw data into a database or another system, converting to CSV is the most reliable method as it removes potential formatting corruptions. For simple viewing or archiving without risking layout shifts, convert the spreadsheet to PDF.
Convert.Guru analyzes your XLR file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted WKS, WPS, WDB, UPS, BDB, BCM, XLS, USB and PDF files.
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 XLR converter.