ORG vs TEXTILE
A detailed comparison of Org-mode and Textile Markup — file size, quality, compatibility, and which format to choose for your workflow.
Org-mode
Documents & TextOrg-mode is a markup language and organizational system created for GNU Emacs. It combines document authoring with task management, literate programming, and reproducible research in a plain text format with a powerful outlining structure.
About ORG filesTextile Markup
Documents & TextTextile is a lightweight markup language that generates HTML from a human-readable syntax. It was popularized by the Textpattern CMS and the Redmine project management tool, offering a cleaner writing experience than raw HTML.
About TEXTILE filesStrengths Comparison
ORG Strengths
- All-in-one productivity format — tasks, notes, agenda, papers.
- Plain UTF-8 text — diff-friendly, version-controllable.
- Literate programming with tangle/weave.
- Exports to HTML, PDF, LaTeX, ODT, Markdown, Beamer.
- Active open-source community with decades of extensions.
TEXTILE Strengths
- More expressive than Markdown in classical usage (tables, footnotes, classes).
- Mature implementation in RedCloth (Ruby), php-textile, js-textile.
- Core format of Redmine — millions of daily users.
- Clean human-readable syntax.
Limitations
ORG Limitations
- Emacs-centric — full power requires Emacs; other editors see syntax but miss features.
- Steep learning curve alongside Emacs itself.
- Limited mobile support (Orgzly on Android is the main option).
- Power comes from ecosystem, not format — not portable to Notion/Obsidian cleanly.
TEXTILE Limitations
- Market share decimated by Markdown since the mid-2000s.
- Not as widely supported outside the Ruby/Rails ecosystem.
- No CommonMark-style spec — implementations differ on edge cases.
- Rarely added to new projects in 2026.
Technical Specifications
| Specification | ORG | TEXTILE |
|---|---|---|
| MIME type | text/org | text/x-textile |
| Extension | .org | — |
| Encoding | UTF-8 | UTF-8 |
| Native environment | GNU Emacs Org-mode | — |
| Creator | Carsten Dominik (2003) | — |
| Extensions | — | .textile |
| Implementations | — | RedCloth (Ruby), php-textile, js-textile |
| Primary users | — | Redmine, Textpattern, early Rails |
Typical File Sizes
ORG
- Daily notes file 2-50 KB
- Research project aggregate 100 KB - 2 MB
- Literate-programming document with output 500 KB - 10 MB
TEXTILE
- Blog post 3-30 KB
- Redmine wiki page 5-50 KB
Ready to convert?
Convert between ORG and TEXTILE online, free, and without installing anything. Encrypted upload, automatic deletion after 2 hours.
Frequently Asked Questions
ORG (Org-mode) is a document format used to store paginated text, with optional formatting, tables, images, hyperlinks, headers and footers. It sits in the documents & text family and is typically associated with a specific office suite or publishing pipeline that defined the format and ships the canonical reader.
TEXTILE (Textile Markup) is a document format used to store paginated text, with optional formatting, tables, images, hyperlinks, headers and footers. It sits in the documents & text family and is typically associated with a specific office suite or publishing pipeline that defined the format and ships the canonical reader.
Modern office suites — Microsoft Word, Google Docs, LibreOffice Writer, Apple Pages — open most ORG files with reasonable fidelity. If your installed software does not support ORG, convert to DOCX or PDF first using KaijuConverter; both open in virtually every reader, including free online viewers.
Modern office suites — Microsoft Word, Google Docs, LibreOffice Writer, Apple Pages — open most TEXTILE files with reasonable fidelity. If your installed software does not support TEXTILE, convert to DOCX or PDF first using KaijuConverter; both open in virtually every reader, including free online viewers.
Upload the ORG to KaijuConverter and pick DOCX, PDF, ODT, RTF, HTML, Markdown, or plain text. Our pipeline runs LibreOffice headlessly plus pandoc for text formats — the same engines behind professional document pipelines. Styles, tables, images, and hyperlinks survive the conversion intact.
Yes, to a high degree. Standard fonts, headings, lists, tables, images, hyperlinks and page structure transfer cleanly. Custom fonts substitute to the closest match if not embedded; obscure layout features unique to ORG (frames, legacy macros) may flatten to static content in the target format.