# MarkdownFormatting

> A free reference for Markdown syntax and the ways it differs between platforms.
> Every rule is shown as a copy-ready example next to its rendered output.

Markdown is not one language. CommonMark defines the core, GitHub Flavored Markdown adds
tables and task lists, and platforms like Slack, Discord, Reddit, and Notion each parse
their own variant. These pages document what actually renders where, and are checked
against the platforms' own parsers and changelogs rather than restated from memory.

## Start here

- [Markdown Cheat Sheet](https://markdownformatting.com/cheat-sheet): Every element in one page with copy-ready examples and live previews
- [What is Markdown?](https://markdownformatting.com/what-is-markdown): What Markdown is, what a .md file looks like, and where it is used

## Syntax guides

- [Footnotes Guide](https://markdownformatting.com/footnotes): Two-part footnote syntax, multi-paragraph notes, and platform support.
- [Text Color Guide](https://markdownformatting.com/color): HTML span workaround, GitHub's math hack, alert callouts, and Discord tricks.
- [Center Text Guide](https://markdownformatting.com/center-text): How to center text in Markdown. The align attribute that survives GitHub's sanitizer, plus images, badges, and tables.
- [Underline Guide](https://markdownformatting.com/underline): Why standard Markdown has no underline and the HTML workarounds that work.
- [Superscript and Subscript](https://markdownformatting.com/superscript): How to write superscript and subscript in Markdown. HTML <sup>/<sub>, Reddit carets, Pandoc, and math.
- [Comment Syntax Guide](https://markdownformatting.com/comments): How to comment out text in Markdown. HTML comments, the [//]: # trick, multi-line blocks, MDX, and Obsidian.
- [Collapsible Sections](https://markdownformatting.com/collapsible-sections): How to make a collapsible section in Markdown with <details> and <summary>, plus Obsidian, Notion, and MkDocs equivalents.
- [Quotes & Blockquotes](https://markdownformatting.com/quotes): Quote text with >. Line breaks inside a quote, nesting, attribution, and GitHub alerts.
- [Horizontal Rules](https://markdownformatting.com/horizontal-rules): Three syntax variants and the blank-line trap that turns rules into headings.
- [Line Breaks Guide](https://markdownformatting.com/line-breaks): How to force a line break in Markdown. Covers trailing two spaces, backslash breaks, blank-line paragraphs, lists/tables, and platform quirks.
- [Indent Syntax Guide](https://markdownformatting.com/indent): How to indent in Markdown. Nested lists, 4-space code blocks, blockquotes, multi-paragraph items, and platform quirks.
- [List Syntax Guide](https://markdownformatting.com/lists): Bullet, numbered, nested, and task lists with spacing rules and platform support.
- [Checkbox Syntax Guide](https://markdownformatting.com/checkboxes): How to make Markdown checkboxes and task lists. Covers checked, unchecked, nested tasks, and platform support.
- [Table Syntax Guide](https://markdownformatting.com/tables): Pipe-delimited table syntax, alignment, escaping pipes, and 12-platform support.
- [Link Syntax Guide](https://markdownformatting.com/links): Inline, reference, autolink, and relative links. Plus the five most common mistakes.
- [Image Syntax Guide](https://markdownformatting.com/images): Inline, reference, and clickable images. Plus sizing, alignment, and alt text best practices.
- [Code Block Syntax Guide](https://markdownformatting.com/code-blocks): Inline code, fenced blocks, language identifiers, GitHub callouts, and Discord colors.
- [Strikethrough Syntax Guide](https://markdownformatting.com/strikethrough): ~~text~~ syntax, Discord/Reddit/GitHub/Slack quirks, HTML fallbacks, and common mistakes.
- [Bold Text Syntax Guide](https://markdownformatting.com/bold): How to bold text in Markdown. Covers **text**, bold + italic, asterisks vs underscores, and platform quirks.
- [Italic Text Syntax Guide](https://markdownformatting.com/italic): How to italicize text in Markdown. Covers *text* and _text_, bold + italic, asterisks vs underscores, and platform quirks.
- [Heading Syntax Guide](https://markdownformatting.com/headings): How to create Markdown headings. Covers ATX and setext syntax, heading anchors/IDs, hierarchy, table of contents, and platform quirks.

## Platform guides

- [GitHub Markdown](https://markdownformatting.com/github): Alerts, tables, task lists, LaTeX math, autolinks, and HTML image tweaks.
- [Obsidian Markdown](https://markdownformatting.com/obsidian): Wikilinks, embeddings, block references, tags, callouts, highlights, and view-mode quirks.
- [Slack Markdown](https://markdownformatting.com/slack): Three surfaces, three syntaxes - the composer, mrkdwn's single-asterisk bold, and markdown blocks.
- [Discord Text Formatting](https://markdownformatting.com/discord): Underline, subtext, spoilers, ANSI colored text, timestamps, and mentions.
- [Reddit Formatting](https://markdownformatting.com/reddit): Spoilers, superscript, tables, and which Reddit composers still render Markdown.
- [Notion Markdown](https://markdownformatting.com/notion): Paste-only Markdown support, slash commands, and what's missing compared to CommonMark.
- [VS Code Markdown](https://markdownformatting.com/vscode): How to preview Markdown in VS Code, keyboard shortcuts, path completions, and settings.

## AI context files

- [Markdown for AI](https://markdownformatting.com/markdown-for-ai): Why LLMs read and write Markdown, prompt structure, AGENTS.md, and llms.txt.
- [llms.txt Guide](https://markdownformatting.com/llms-txt): The llms.txt spec, a copy-ready template, a free generator, and how it differs from sitemap.xml.
- [AGENTS.md Guide](https://markdownformatting.com/agents-md): The AGENTS.md format for coding agents, a copy-ready example, a free generator, and nested-file precedence.

## Tools

- [All Markdown Tools](https://markdownformatting.com/tools): Index of the free browser-based tools below
- [Markdown Table Generator](https://markdownformatting.com/tools/markdown-table-generator): Build a pipe table in the browser, set column alignment, paste from Excel or CSV
- [Markdown to HTML Converter](https://markdownformatting.com/tools/markdown-to-html-converter): Convert Markdown to an HTML fragment and preview it
- [PDF to Markdown Converter](https://markdownformatting.com/tools/pdf-to-markdown): Extract Markdown from a PDF locally - nothing is uploaded