What is the FODT file format?
.fodt is the flat XML variant of the standard ZIP-packaged OpenDocument Text format. Instead of bundling content, styles, settings and metadata into a ZIP archive, a .fodt file merges all those components into a single, uncompressed XML document. The root element is <office:document>, and every sub-document that .odt stores as separate ZIP entries appears here as nested XML sections.
Because the file is plain UTF-8 XML with no compression wrapper, it integrates naturally with version-control systems - git diff produces meaningful, human-readable diffs rather than binary noise. This makes .fodt a practical choice for collaborative writing workflows stored in git repositories, and for XSLT or XQuery processing pipelines that need to transform document content without first unpacking a ZIP archive.
The main trade-off is file size: embedded images are base64-encoded inline, which can inflate a .fodt file several times larger than the equivalent .odt. For documents with heavy image content, the ZIP-packaged .odt remains more practical for everyday use.
LibreOffice Writer and Apache OpenOffice Writer open and save .fodt transparently. The format is governed by the OASIS ODF standard (currently ODF 1.3, published 2021) and is semantically identical to .odt - the same XML namespaces and elements apply. The ODF version is declared in the office:version attribute of the root element. Sibling flat formats include .fods (spreadsheet) and .fodp (presentation).
Security & safety
RISK: LOWFODT is plain XML text - it is not an executable and cannot contain macros in the traditional sense (the <office:scripts> element can embed LibreOffice Basic, which LibreOffice disables by default). Because the content is visible as text, malicious payloads are less easily hidden than in binary formats. The main practical risk is the same as .odt: embedded macros, which are blocked by default in both LibreOffice and Word.
Format details
in a nutshellPrograms that open FODT files
Windows5 apps
Microsoft Word
Paid Rename the .fodt to .odt, then open in Word (supported since Word 2007). Word does not register the .fodt extension - the rename trick is necessary. 
Windows Notepad
Built-in Can open as plain text to inspect the XML, but offers no document rendering or formatting support. 
LibreOffice Writer
Open-source Opens .fodt natively - File > Open or double-click (after associating the extension). Save As > Flat XML ODF Text to keep FODT format, or Save As .odt to convert to ZIP-packaged. 
Apache OpenOffice Writer
Open-source Opens and saves FODT. Barely maintained (ODF 1.2 only) - prefer LibreOffice for active development.
Notepad++ (XML viewing/editing)
Open-source Open as XML to inspect or manually edit the flat ODF structure. Not for everyday document editing - use LibreOffice for that. 
macOS3 apps
TextEdit
Built-in Can open FODT as plain XML text for inspection; no document rendering (it's not an XML editor for ODF). Better for viewing structure than editing content. 
NeoOffice
Paid NeoOffice is a macOS-native fork of OpenOffice/LibreOffice; opens FODT. Actively maintained but less widely used than LibreOffice.
LibreOffice Writer
Open-source Native FODT support on macOS (Apple silicon and Intel). Reference implementation. 
Linux3 apps
gedit (XML view)
Open-source Open the .fodt to view/edit raw XML; no document rendering. Useful for developers inspecting ODF structure. 
Google Docs
Free Rename the .fodt to .odt and upload to Google Drive, then open with Google Docs. Direct .fodt upload may not be recognized. Technical details
deep spec| MIME type | application/vnd.oasis.opendocument.text-flat-xml |
| Encoding | UTF-8 XML (plain text, no binary wrapper) |
| Compression | None - content stored entirely uncompressed |
| Container | Single XML file; no ZIP wrapper |
| Root element | <office:document> merges body, styles, metadata and settings into one XML tree |
| Image embedding | Base64-encoded inline within the XML; inflates size significantly versus .odt |
| ODF version support | ODF 1.0 through ODF 1.3; version declared in office:version attribute |
| File identification | XML declaration followed by <office:document> root with office:mimetype attribute set to the ODT MIME string |
| Encryption | None - ZIP-packaged .odt supports optional encryption; .fodt does not |
| Typical file size | 10 KB - several MB (larger than .odt equivalent due to absent compression) |
| Version-control use | Fully diff-able with git diff and other text diff tools; preferred for VCS workflows |
| Standard body | OASIS OpenDocument Format (ODF 1.3, 2021) |
| Sibling flat formats | .fods (spreadsheet), .fodp (presentation), .fodc (chart) |
| Platform support | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Released | 2005 (ODF 1.0, OASIS); flat variants defined in the same spec as the ZIP-based package |
| Latest version | ODF 1.3 (OASIS standard, 2021) |
| Open standard | Yes · royalty-free |
| Specification | www.oasis-open.org |
FODT conversions
Community Q&A
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