What is Markdown?
Learn what Markdown is, why it’s popular, and when to use it for portable writing.
Markdown is a lightweight markup language that lets you format text using plain text alone. Instead of relying on traditional document editors like Microsoft Word or Google Docs, Markdown uses simple symbols to create headings, lists, links, and text styles such as bold or italics.
Created in 2004, Markdown has since become one of the most widely used markup languages on the web. It’s especially popular on platforms like forums, blogs, and in technical documentation, most notably in GitHub README files, which function as the "front page" of code repositories.
Markdown examples
Before heading further into the whats and whys of Markdown, it would be a good idea to give some examples of what Markdown looks like. Some of the most commonly used markdown syntaxes are:
Headings
To create headings, sometimes referred to as h1, h2, h3, Markdown uses the hashtag (#) symbol, with each symbol indicating the level of heading, proceeded by the actual heading text. This means that the following line can be interpreted as an initial heading of a document.
# This is the document
An introduction ...
## And this is a subchapter
Lists
Markdown supports both unordered and ordered lists.
To create an unordered list, use a dash (-), plus (+), or asterisk (*) followed by a space:
- First item - Second item - Third item
Which renders as:
First item
Second item
Third item
For ordered lists, simply use numbers followed by a period:
1. First item2. Second item3. Third item
Bold and Italic Text
Text styling in Markdown is done using asterisks (*) or underscores (_). To make text italic, wrap it in a single asterisk or underscore:
*italic text*
To make text bold, wrap it in double asterisks or underscores:
**bold text**
You can also combine them:
***bold and italic***
Why is Markdown so popular?
Markdown's popularity comes down to a few key factors: simplicity, portability, and how well it fits modern workflows.
One of the main reasons Markdown took off is its low learning curve and ease of use. The syntax is minimal and intuitive, allowing most people to start writing almost immediately. It doesn't need any menus or formatting toolbars, making it easy to focus solely on the content. Which leads us to the next big factor: markdown works everywhere.
Since it's plain text, Markdown files can be used across almost all platforms, tools, and devices without breaking formatting. This has made it especially attractive in developer workflows and later helped it spread to writers, educators, and teams. The fact that it can be written in one word processor or development environment and then opened in another, makes it an amazing convention for any writing.
Markdown is also a very versatile interchange format: because it's plain text with clear structure, it can be converted into HTML, PDFs, Word documents, and other formats when you need to publish or share.
If you want a quick way to do that, you can use our Markdown conversion tools to turn Markdown into the format you need.
Within the past years, Markdown has gained even more popularity and relevance with the rise of artificial intelligence and large language models (LLMs), since it has shown that Markdown is an excellent formatting technique to provide semantic structure when interacting and training these models.
When should you use Markdown?
Markdown is a great fit whenever your primary goal is writing content that should be portable and easy to maintain - this especially for:
Documentation and knowledge bases
Blog posts and articles
Notes and personal writing
Technical content that may include code
If you're someone who values speed and clarity, Markdown is a great choice. With that said, though, Markdown may not always be ideal for documents that require complex layouts or heavy design work.
Markdown or rich text
One of the most common questions is how Markdown compares to traditional document processors like Microsoft Word or Google Docs. These tools produce what is commonly known as rich text, which focus on more on the presentation of documents, making it less apparent how they are actually structured. In contrast to Markdown, this makes documents less compatible across different platforms and tools.
Since Markdown, on the other hand, is content-first first explicit formatting, it is, as discussed earlier, a much more portable format where structure and formatting is structured alongside the text itself. This makes Markdown files easy to version-control, review, and reuse across platforms.
That said, these two approaches don’t have to oppose each other. Many modern editors support Markdown-style shortcuts, allowing writers to use familiar Markdown syntax, such as typing "##" to create a heading, without requiring a fully Markdown-based workflow. Lydie follows this approach by supporting common Markdown shortcuts while keeping a clean, focused writing experience, combining the speed of Markdown with the accessibility of a modern editor.
Getting Started With Markdown
As previously mentioned, one of Markdown's biggest strengths is how easy it is to get started. You don't need special software or a specific environment. Markdown can be written in:
Any plain text editor (like Microsoft NotePad)
Note-taking apps (like Apple Notes)
Code editors
Dedicated Markdown writing tools
Many modern editors also provide live previews, so you can see your formatted document as you write.
The best way to learn Markdown is simply to start using it - write a document, experiment with headings and lists, and build from there.
Conclusion
Markdown has stood the test of time because it solves a fundamental problem: how to write structured, formatted content without locking it into a specific tool or platform.
Its simplicity, portability, and compatibility with modern workflows, including AI-powered tools, have made it an excellent standard for writing on the web (among other places). Whether you're documenting code, writing articles, or taking notes, Markdown offers a clean and future-proof way to work with text.
Markdown is a very versatile, content-first format that can be easily converted to other formats, from HTML and PDF to DOCX and slides. If you need to transform Markdown into a different format quickly, use our free conversion tools at lydie.co/tools/convert.