Markdown Preview
Write and preview Markdown in real-time
Welcome to Markdown Preview
Introduction
This is a live Markdown preview tool. Write your Markdown on the left and see the rendered output on the right!
Features
Inline code formattingCode Blocks
function greet(name) {
console.log("Hello, " + name + "!");
}
greet("World");Lists
Blockquote
This is a blockquote. It's great for highlighting important information or quotes.
Links and Images
Check out CalcMulti for more tools!
Task List
Made with love using CalcMulti
Markdown Cheatsheet
Headers
Emphasis
Lists
Links & Images
Code
Other
What Is Markdown and Why Is It So Popular?
Markdown is a lightweight markup language created by John Gruber and Aaron Swartz in 2004. Its primary design goal was to be as readable as possible in its raw form -- unlike HTML, where tags often obscure the content, a Markdown document is easy to read even without rendering. This readability-first philosophy made Markdown the de facto standard for writing documentation, README files, blog posts, forum messages, and technical notes. Platforms like GitHub, GitLab, Stack Overflow, Reddit, and Discord all support Markdown natively.
Markdown works by converting simple text patterns into structured HTML. A line beginning with # becomes an <h1> heading. Text surrounded by double asterisks becomes bold. A line starting with a hyphen becomes a list item. This approach means you can focus on your content rather than wrestling with formatting toolbars or complex markup syntax.
Essential Markdown Syntax Reference
Mastering a handful of patterns covers the vast majority of Markdown usage. Headings use one to six hash characters for levels h1 through h6. Emphasis is applied with asterisks or underscores: single for italic, double for bold, and triple for bold italic. Links follow the pattern [text](url), and images use an exclamation mark prefix: .
Code blocks are especially powerful for technical writing. Inline code uses single backticks, while fenced code blocks use triple backticks with an optional language identifier for syntax highlighting. Tables use pipes and hyphens to define columns and rows. Task lists, created with - [ ] and - [x], are great for tracking progress in issues and pull requests.
Markdown Flavors: GFM, CommonMark, and Beyond
Because the original Markdown specification left many edge cases undefined, several standardized variants, called flavors, have emerged. CommonMark is a strict specification that aims to resolve every ambiguity in the original Markdown. It provides a detailed spec and comprehensive test suite, making it the foundation for many modern parsers including markdown-it and pulldown-cmark.
GitHub Flavored Markdown (GFM) extends CommonMark with features tailored for software development: tables, task lists, strikethrough text, autolinked URLs, and syntax-highlighted fenced code blocks. GFM is what you write in GitHub issues, pull requests, and README files. Other notable flavors include MultiMarkdown, which adds footnotes, citations, and metadata support, and Pandoc Markdown, which provides academic features like cross-references, bibliographies, and output to formats like PDF, DOCX, and LaTeX.
When choosing a Markdown flavor, consider your target platform. If you are writing for GitHub, GFM is the obvious choice. For documentation sites, CommonMark with your static site generator's extensions is usually ideal. For academic papers or books, Pandoc Markdown offers the most powerful feature set. Regardless of the flavor, the core syntax remains consistent, so skills transfer easily between platforms.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Markdown and why should I use it?
Markdown is a lightweight markup language that lets you format text using simple syntax. It is widely used for documentation, README files, blog posts, and notes because it is easy to read and write, and converts cleanly to HTML.
How do I make text bold or italic in Markdown?
Use double asterisks **text** or underscores __text__ for bold. Use single asterisks *text* or underscores _text_ for italic. Combine them ***text*** for bold italic.
Can I export my Markdown document?
Yes! Our editor lets you download your document as a .md file to preserve the Markdown source, or as an .html file for web-ready formatted output with styling included.
How do I create code blocks in Markdown?
Use backticks for inline code: `code`. For multi-line code blocks, use triple backticks with an optional language name for syntax highlighting: ```javascript followed by your code and closing ```.
Does this Markdown editor work offline?
Once loaded, our editor works entirely in your browser. Your content is processed locally and never sent to any server, making it private and functional even with intermittent connectivity.