Mind map formats Thoughtline opens
Last updated 27 September 2026
Bring your mind maps with you. Thoughtline opens the files other mind map apps save, and before anything is imported the preview tells you exactly what did not come across — so you are never surprised later.
Importing
- SimpleMind
.smmx (and bare SimpleMind XML) - Comes across: Topics, notes, positions, folded branches
- Left behind: Crosslinks, icons, images and styles
- FreeMind / Freeplane
.mm - Comes across: Topics, notes, folded branches; details shown under a topic move to the top of its note
- Left behind: Icons, node links, arrow links, cloud outlines, colours and fonts
- OPML
.opml - Comes across: Topics, notes, checked items
- Left behind: Colours and styles
- Markdown and plain text
.md, .txt, or pasted text - Comes across: Indentation (tabs or spaces), bullets, numbered lists, headings, task boxes, and "> " lines as notes
- Left behind: Inline formatting — **bold**, _italics_ and [links](…) arrive as the characters typed
- Thoughtline
.thoughtline, or a backup file - Comes across: Everything: topics, notes, icons, styles, checkboxes, crosslinks, layout
- Left behind: Pictures on topics (backups do not carry image files)
Importing is free. Open a file from the Import screen (My Maps → ⋮ → Import a file), or paste an indented list and it becomes a map.
Exporting
Free:
- PDF — one page, ready to print or hand in
- PNG and SVG images of the map
- Markdown — nested bullets, with notes, for notes apps and documents
- Plain text — a tab-indented outline Thoughtline can read back
- Thoughtline file — the whole map, exactly as it is
With Thoughtline Pro: OPML and FreeMind (.mm) export, and a notes appendix and a checklist page in the PDF.