What Is Markdown?
Markdown is the lightweight writing format behind README files, documentation, blog posts and chat messages, because it is fast to type and easy to read. But websites, emails and CMS fields usually need real HTML. Converting by hand is tedious and error-prone. Our free Markdown to HTML converter turns your Markdown into clean, ready-to-use HTML instantly, with a live preview so you can see exactly how it will look.
Markdown is a lightweight markup language designed to be readable as plain text while converting cleanly to HTML. Created by John Gruber in 2004, it lets writers use intuitive symbols — # for headings, ** for bold, - for list items, [text](url) for links — that map directly to HTML tags. It is used for README files, documentation, blog posts, forums (GitHub, Reddit, Stack Overflow) and content management systems.
How to convert Markdown to HTML
- Type or paste your Markdown into the editor on the left.
- Watch the live preview update as you write, or switch to the HTML tab to see the markup.
- Click Copy HTML to copy the generated code into your website, email or CMS.
Use Cases
- Converting a README or documentation file written in Markdown to HTML for display on a website.
- Previewing how Markdown content will render before committing or publishing it.
- Generating HTML snippets from Markdown to paste into a CMS or email template.
- Learning which Markdown syntax elements map to which HTML tags.
How Markdown Conversion Works
The converter processes your Markdown text line by line, recognising the standard CommonMark specification elements: ATX headings (# to ######), setext headings, fenced and indented code blocks, blockquotes, ordered and unordered lists, horizontal rules, inline code, bold and italic emphasis, and automatic link and image detection.
The output is clean, semantic HTML — headings become <h1>–<h6>, emphasis becomes <strong> and <em>, code blocks become <pre><code>, and lists become <ul>/<ol> with <li> items. The preview pane renders the HTML in real time so you can see exactly how it will look in a browser.
Why use this converter
- Live preview and raw HTML view side by side.
- Supports the most common Markdown syntax with safe, escaped output.
- Runs entirely in your browser — private, instant and free.
Privacy
Conversion runs entirely in your browser. Your Markdown text is never sent to our servers. The converter is a pure client-side JavaScript function with no external dependencies.