Markdown Cheat Sheet

A beginner-friendly guide with live examples

What is Markdown?

Markdown is a simple markup language used to format plain text. It lets you add headings, lists, links, images, code, and other formatting using easy-to-read symbols. It is commonly used for documentation, README files, websites, and notes.

Headings

Use # symbols to create headings. More # = smaller heading.

You Write
# Heading 1
## Heading 2
### Heading 3
#### Heading 4
You Get

Heading 1

Heading 2

Heading 3

Heading 4

Text Formatting

Make your text bold, italic, or code style.

You Write
**Bold Text**
*Italic Text*
***Bold & Italic***
~~Strikethrough~~
`Inline Code`
You Get

Bold Text

Italic Text

Bold & Italic

Strikethrough

Inline Code

Lists

Create bullet lists with - or numbered lists with 1.

You Write
- Item 1
- Item 2
  - Sub-item

1. First
2. Second
3. Third

- [ ] Unchecked task
- [x] Completed task
You Get
  • Item 1
  • Item 2
    • Sub-item
  1. First
  2. Second
  3. Third
  • Unchecked task
  • Completed task

Code

Use backticks for inline code, or triple backticks for code blocks.

You Write
Use `console.log()` for debugging

```javascript
function greet(name) {
    return `Hello, ${name}!`;
}
```
You Get

Use console.log() for debugging

function greet(name) {
    return `Hello, ${name}!`;
}

Blockquotes

Use > to create blockquotes. Great for callouts!

You Write
> This is a blockquote.
> 
> It can span multiple lines.

>> Nested blockquotes too!
You Get

This is a blockquote.

It can span multiple lines.

Nested blockquotes too!

Tables

Create tables with pipes | and dashes -.

You Write
| Name    | Age | City     |
|---------|-----|----------|
| Alice   | 25  | New York |
| Bob     | 30  | London   |
| Charlie | 35  | Paris    |
You Get
Name Age City
Alice 25 New York
Bob 30 London
Charlie 35 Paris

Horizontal Rules

Create a dividing line with three dashes, asterisks, or underscores.

You Write
Text above

---

More text

***

Even more text

___

Final text
You Get

Text above

More text

Even more text

Final text