What Is an HWP File & How to Open It

Have you ever received files with the .hwp extension from a Korean or downloaded them from online platforms? You must be stuck on the HWP meaning and how to use this file type. Don’t let the trivial things affect your business and mood. Read this SwifDoo PDF post to instantly get “what an HWP file is" and learn how to open and convert one.

What Is an HWP File?

HWP stands for or is the abbreviation of Hangul Word Processor. An HWP (.hwp) file means a native document created by the Hangul Word Processor software (now Hancom Office). It’s also called a Hanword Document.

Hangul is the alphabet in the Korean language. The word processing program lets users write and save documents in Hangul. South Korea’s Hancom company developed software to create and edit documents, like Microsoft Word. The HWP file type is often used by the South Korean government but is not very popular outside of this country. That's why there is a need to convert HWP to PDF.

Similar to Microsoft Word files, HWP files allow users to add or edit text, images, and other objects and apply formatting. The difference lies in their ability to contain the Korean language. Besides the HWP file format, Hancom has similar HWPX and HWT formats.

How to Open an HWP File

Hangul Word Processor users may send you files without knowing you don’t have the application for the default file format. Don't worry; discover the several HWP viewers and readers introduced below and see how to open HWP files easily.

Hancom Office is the basic HWP file opener and reader available for Android, iOS, macOS, Windows, and Linux systems. Go to File > Open in the Hancom Office application, select the file, and click Open to open a Hangul Word Processor file.

You can open an HWP file online from any device, such as Windows, using the free web-based Thinkfree Office Viewer from Hancom. Open the website, upload your file, and the content will be displayed. Or, download and install the freeware, right-click to choose Open with > Thinkfree Office Viewer to open the HWP file on your iPhone, Linux, Mac, or Android,

Cloud HWP Viewer is a cloud-based HWP file viewer that allows you to open HWP files online for free without software installation. Open the https://appzend.herokuapp.com/hwpviewer/ page, drop your file onto the rectangular area, and the online tool will convert and present the content in seconds.

OpenOffice or Libre Office write applications allow you to open Hancom Word Processor files saved with Hangul '97.  

Hanword HWP document converter for Microsoft Word: download and install it, open your Microsoft Word, choose HWP 5.0, type in the file open filter, and select your HWP file.  

How to Convert HWP to PDF

With the HWP definition and the file opening ways in mind, you can convert the format to PDF using online converters.

Go to Hancom Docs in your browser, sign in with an account, upload and open the HWP file, and click File > Download as PDF to convert the HWP file to PDF.

Using another HWP to PDF converter, Allinpdf, drop the HWP file to the converter page, select the output format as PDF, and click OK.

Alternatively, you can open your file with an HWP program like Thinkfree Office Viewer or others, screenshot the pages, and combine the screenshots into one PDF in one click.