Export Table to Rich Text Format (RTF)

Converts a data frame, data.table, or matrix to a Rich Text Format (.rtf) document using the flextable and officer packages. Creates widely compatible tables with extensive formatting options. RTF files can be opened and edited in Microsoft Word, LibreOffice, WordPad, and many other word processors. Particularly useful for regulatory submissions, cross-platform compatibility, and when maximum editability is required.

Usage

table2rtf(
  table,
  file,
  caption = NULL,
  font_size = 8,
  font_family = "Arial",
  format_headers = TRUE,
  bold_significant = TRUE,
  bold_variables = FALSE,
  p_threshold = 0.05,
  indent_groups = FALSE,
  condense_table = FALSE,
  condense_quantitative = FALSE,
  zebra_stripes = FALSE,
  dark_header = FALSE,
  paper = "letter",
  orientation = "portrait",
  width = NULL,
  align = NULL,
  return_ft = FALSE,
  ...
)

Arguments

table

Data frame, data.table, or matrix to export. Can be output from desctable(), survtable(), fit(), uniscreen(), fullfit(), compfit(), multifit(), or any tabular data.

file

Character string specifying the output RTF filename. Must have .rtf extension. Example: "results.rtf", "Table1.rtf".

caption

Character string. Optional caption displayed above the table in the RTF document. Default is NULL.

font_size

Numeric. Base font size in points for table content. Default is 8. Typical range: 8-12 points. Headers use slightly larger size.

font_family

Character string. Font family name for the table. Must be a font installed on the system. Default is "Arial". Common options: "Times New Roman", "Calibri", "Courier New".

format_headers

Logical. If TRUE, formats column headers by italicizing statistical notation ("n", "p"), converting underscores to spaces, and improving readability. Default is TRUE.

bold_significant

Logical. If TRUE, applies bold formatting to p-values below the significance threshold. Makes significant results stand out. Default is TRUE.

bold_variables

Logical. If TRUE, variable names are displayed in bold. Default is FALSE.

p_threshold

Numeric. Threshold for bold p-value formatting. Only used when bold_significant = TRUE. Default is 0.05.

indent_groups

Logical. If TRUE, indents factor levels under their parent variable using horizontal spacing, creating hierarchical display. Useful for categorical variables in regression tables. Default is FALSE.

condense_table

Logical. If TRUE, condenses table by showing only essential rows (single row for continuous, non-reference for binary). Automatically sets indent_groups = TRUE. Significantly reduces table height. Default is FALSE.

condense_quantitative

Logical. If TRUE, condenses continuous and survival variables into single rows while preserving all categorical variable rows (including binary). Only applies to descriptive tables from desctable(). Automatically sets indent_groups = TRUE. Unlike condense_table, this does not collapse binary categorical variables. Default is FALSE.

zebra_stripes

Logical. If TRUE, applies alternating row shading to different variables (not individual rows) for visual grouping. Default is FALSE.

dark_header

Logical. If TRUE, creates a dark background with light text for the header row, providing strong visual contrast. Default is FALSE.

paper

Character string specifying paper size:

"letter" - US Letter (8.5" × 11") [default]
"a4" - A4 (210 mm × 297 mm)
"legal" - US Legal (8.5" × 14")

orientation

Character string specifying page orientation:

"portrait" - Vertical [default]
"landscape" - Horizontal (for wide tables)

width

Numeric. Table width in inches. If NULL (default), automatically fits to content and page width. Specify to control exactly.

align

Character vector specifying column alignment for each column. Options: "left", "center", or "right". If NULL (default), automatically determines based on content (text left, numbers right). Example: c("left", "left", "center", "right", "right").

return_ft

Logical. If TRUE, returns the flextable object directly for further customization. If FALSE (default), returns invisibly with flextable as attribute. See Details for usage. Default is FALSE.

...

Additional arguments (currently unused, reserved for future extensions).

Value

Behavior depends on return_ft:

return_ft = FALSE

Invisibly returns a list with components:

file - Path to created file
caption - Caption text (if provided)

The flextable object is accessible via attr(result, "flextable")

return_ft = TRUE

Directly returns the flextable object for immediate further customization

In both cases, creates a .rtf file at the specified location.

Details

Package Requirements:

This function requires:

flextable - For creating formatted tables
officer - For RTF document generation

Install if needed:


install.packages(c("flextable", "officer"))

RTF Format Advantages:

RTF (Rich Text Format) is a universal document format with several advantages:

Maximum compatibility - Opens in virtually all word processors
Cross-platform - Works on Windows, Mac, Linux without conversion
Fully editable - Native text format, not embedded objects
Lightweight - Smaller file sizes than DOCX
Regulatory compliance - Widely accepted for submissions (FDA, EMA)
Long-term accessibility - Simple text-based format
Version control friendly - Text-based, works with diff tools

Applications that can open RTF files:

Microsoft Word (Windows, Mac)
LibreOffice Writer
Apache OpenOffice Writer
WordPad (Windows built-in)
TextEdit (Mac built-in)
Google Docs (with import)
Pages (Mac)
Many other word processors

Output Features:

The generated RTF document contains:

Fully editable table (native RTF table, not image)
Professional typography and spacing
Proper page setup (size, orientation, margins)
Caption (if provided) as separate paragraph above table
All formatting preserved but editable
Compatible with RTF 1.5 specification

Further Customization:

For programmatic customization beyond the built-in options, access the flextable object:

Method 1: Via attribute (default)


result <- table2rtf(table, "output.rtf")
ft <- attr(result, "flextable")

# Customize flextable
ft <- flextable::bold(ft, i = 1, j = 1, part = "body")
ft <- flextable::color(ft, i = 2, j = 3, color = "red")

# Re-save if needed
flextable::save_as_rtf(ft, path = "customized.rtf")

Method 2: Direct return


ft <- table2rtf(table, "output.rtf", return_ft = TRUE)

# Customize immediately
ft <- flextable::bg(ft, bg = "yellow", part = "header")
ft <- flextable::autofit(ft)

# Save to new file
flextable::save_as_rtf(ft, path = "custom.rtf")

Page Layout:

The function automatically sets up the RTF document with:

Specified paper size and orientation
Standard margins (1 inch by default)
Table positioned at document start
Left-aligned table placement

For landscape orientation:

Automatically swaps page dimensions
Applies landscape property
Useful for wide tables with many columns

Table Width Management:

Width behavior:

width = NULL - Auto-fits to content and page width
width = 6 - Exactly 6 inches wide
Width distributed evenly across columns by default
Can adjust individual column widths in word processor after creation

For very wide tables:

Use orientation = "landscape"
Use paper = "legal" for extra width
Reduce font_size
Use condense_table = TRUE
Consider breaking across multiple tables

Typography:

The function applies professional typography:

Column headers: Bold, slightly larger font
Body text: Regular weight, specified font size
Numbers: Right-aligned for easy comparison
Text: Left-aligned for readability
Consistent spacing: Adequate padding in cells
Statistical notation: Italicized appropriately

Examples

data(clintrial)
data(clintrial_labels)

# Create example table
results <- fit(
   data = clintrial,
   outcome = "os_status",
   predictors = c("age", "sex", "treatment", "stage"),
   labels = clintrial_labels
)

# Example 1: Basic RTF export
if (requireNamespace("flextable", quietly = TRUE)) {
  table2rtf(results, file.path(tempdir(), "results.rtf"))
}
#> Table exported to /tmp/Rtmp9Tmfn9/results.rtf

# \donttest{
old_width <- options(width = 180)
# Example 2: With caption
table2rtf(results, file.path(tempdir(), "captioned.rtf"),
       caption = "Table 1: Multivariable Logistic Regression Results")
#> Table exported to /tmp/Rtmp9Tmfn9/captioned.rtf

# Example 3: Landscape orientation for wide tables
table2rtf(results, file.path(tempdir(), "wide.rtf"),
       orientation = "landscape")
#> Table exported to /tmp/Rtmp9Tmfn9/wide.rtf

# Example 4: Custom font and size
table2rtf(results, file.path(tempdir(), "custom_font.rtf"),
       font_family = "Times New Roman",
       font_size = 11)
#> Table exported to /tmp/Rtmp9Tmfn9/custom_font.rtf

# Example 5: Hierarchical display
table2rtf(results, file.path(tempdir(), "indented.rtf"),
       indent_groups = TRUE)
#> Table exported to /tmp/Rtmp9Tmfn9/indented.rtf

# Example 6: Condensed table
table2rtf(results, file.path(tempdir(), "condensed.rtf"),
       condense_table = TRUE)
#> Table exported to /tmp/Rtmp9Tmfn9/condensed.rtf

# Example 7: With zebra stripes
table2rtf(results, file.path(tempdir(), "striped.rtf"),
       zebra_stripes = TRUE)
#> Table exported to /tmp/Rtmp9Tmfn9/striped.rtf

# Example 8: Dark header style
table2rtf(results, file.path(tempdir(), "dark.rtf"),
       dark_header = TRUE)
#> Table exported to /tmp/Rtmp9Tmfn9/dark.rtf

# Example 9: A4 paper for international submissions
table2rtf(results, file.path(tempdir(), "a4.rtf"),
       paper = "a4")
#> Table exported to /tmp/Rtmp9Tmfn9/a4.rtf

# Example 10: Get flextable for customization
result <- table2rtf(results, file.path(tempdir(), "base.rtf"))
#> Table exported to /tmp/Rtmp9Tmfn9/base.rtf
ft <- attr(result, "flextable")

# Customize the flextable
ft <- flextable::bold(ft, i = 1, part = "body")
ft <- flextable::color(ft, j = "p-value", color = "blue")

# Re-save
flextable::save_as_rtf(ft, path = file.path(tempdir(), "customized.rtf"))

# Example 11: Direct flextable return
ft <- table2rtf(results, file.path(tempdir(), "direct.rtf"), return_ft = TRUE)
#> Table exported to /tmp/Rtmp9Tmfn9/direct.rtf
ft <- flextable::bg(ft, bg = "yellow", part = "header")

# Example 12: Regulatory submission table
table2rtf(results, file.path(tempdir(), "submission.rtf"),
       caption = "Table 2: Adjusted Odds Ratios for Mortality",
       font_family = "Times New Roman",
       font_size = 10,
       indent_groups = TRUE,
       zebra_stripes = FALSE,
       bold_significant = TRUE)
#> Table exported to /tmp/Rtmp9Tmfn9/submission.rtf

# Example 13: Custom column alignment
table2rtf(results, file.path(tempdir(), "aligned.rtf"),
       align = c("left", "left", "center", "right", "right"))
#> Table exported to /tmp/Rtmp9Tmfn9/aligned.rtf

# Example 14: Disable significance bolding
table2rtf(results, file.path(tempdir(), "no_bold.rtf"),
       bold_significant = FALSE)
#> Table exported to /tmp/Rtmp9Tmfn9/no_bold.rtf

# Example 15: Stricter significance threshold
table2rtf(results, file.path(tempdir(), "strict.rtf"),
       bold_significant = TRUE,
       p_threshold = 0.01)
#> Table exported to /tmp/Rtmp9Tmfn9/strict.rtf

# Example 16: Descriptive statistics for baseline characteristics
desc <- desctable(clintrial, by = "treatment",
   variables = c("age", "sex", "bmi", "stage"), labels = clintrial_labels)

table2rtf(desc, file.path(tempdir(), "baseline.rtf"),
       caption = "Table 1: Baseline Patient Characteristics",
       zebra_stripes = TRUE)
#> Table exported to /tmp/Rtmp9Tmfn9/baseline.rtf

# Example 17: Clinical trial efficacy table
table2rtf(results, file.path(tempdir(), "efficacy.rtf"),
       caption = "Table 3: Primary Efficacy Analysis - Intent to Treat Population",
       font_family = "Courier New",  # Monospace for alignment
       paper = "letter",
       orientation = "landscape",
       condense_table = TRUE)
#> Table exported to /tmp/Rtmp9Tmfn9/efficacy.rtf

options(old_width)
# }