Next Level Open Source

WordCraft

Productivity · 27 Oct 2026

WordCraft is a free, open-source word processor with a ribbon, styles, tables, track changes and mail merge, and it reads and writes .docx files. It runs on macOS, Windows and Linux.

WebsiteInstall guide
WordCraft's main window: a document called The Open Studio Handbook, with the ribbon and styles gallery above, a navigation panel on the left and the page in the middle.

Picture and logo: WordCraft (getartcraft.com)

Is it right for you?

People who want to write and edit documents on their own computer without paying for software, and who share files as .docx, and are happy to use a project that is still in development.

Replaces some features, but not everything.

Look elsewhere if you need:

  • You need a mature, finished tool: the project labels WordCraft in development.

What you can do with it

  • Write with a familiar ribbon (a toolbar of tabs and groups) and a live gallery of styles.
  • Open and save .docx files directly, import and export .odt, .rtf, .html, .md and .txt, and export PDF with selectable text.
  • Review documents with margin comments, tracked changes you can accept or reject, document comparison and offline spelling and grammar checks.
  • Add contents pages, footnotes, citations, bibliographies (APA, MLA, Chicago and IEEE), indexes and captions.
  • Control the app from other programs through a command-line tool, a JSON control channel and an MCP server (a standard way for AI tools to use an app).

Running cost

Running
Where it runs

Nothing to pay for this place itself.

Usage
API usage and online services

No API or online services are recorded. That may mean none are needed, or that we have not checked.

Price estimation

$0.00/month

About $0.00 a month on average, in USD. Over 1 year (12 months) that is $0.

Upfront, paid once
$0
Fixed monthly costs
$0 / month
Usage-based (API) costs
none recorded

Software licence: The project says WordCraft is free and open source.

What this assumes

Typical use. Your own computer: The software runs on a computer you already own.

    • You already own the computer, so its price is not counted.
    • Electricity is not counted: it depends on your computer and where you live.

    An estimate built from these assumptions, not a quote.

    Getting started

    Choose how much technical work suits you. Easy takes you to the project’s own ready-made option; the other levels show what you need first and a prompt you can give an AI coding agent.

    Ways to install it

    Running
    ArtCraft Launcher
    Where
    Your own computer
    API usage
    None needed

    Download the ArtCraft Launcher, a small app that installs WordCraft for you, picks the right version for your computer and keeps it updated.