Why Use It?
- Preview README files before committing
- Render docs without an IDE
- Quickly check formatting from chat or email
- Share clean HTML for blog posts
- Validate Markdown across teams
What's Supported
- GitHub Flavored Markdown (GFM)
- Headings, lists, tables, blockquotes
- Fenced code blocks with syntax highlighting
- Task lists, links, images, footnotes
- Inline HTML (sanitized for safety)
Privacy & Speed
- 100% client-side rendering
- Output sanitized with DOMPurify
- No sign-up, no tracking, no uploads
- Instant preview as you type
- Free for any use, including commercial
About the Markdown Viewer
The Markdown Viewer is a side-by-side editor and live preview tool that turns your Markdown into clean, formatted HTML in real time. The interface is split into two equal panels: a Markdown editor on the left and a rendered preview on the right. As you type or paste, the preview updates instantly so you can see exactly how your document will look.
It supports the full GitHub Flavored Markdown spec, including tables, task lists, fenced code blocks with syntax highlighting via highlight.js, blockquotes, footnotes, and inline HTML. Rendered output is sanitized with DOMPurify so you can safely paste Markdown from any source. Everything runs in your browser — your content is never uploaded, logged, or stored.
How to Use the Markdown Viewer
- Paste or type your Markdown into the Markdown panel on the left. The Preview panel on the right updates automatically.
- Click Sample to load an example document showing headings, code blocks, tables, and task lists, or Clear to start with a blank canvas.
- Use Copy MD to copy your raw Markdown to the clipboard, or Copy HTML to copy the rendered HTML output.
- Click Download .md to save the source as a
.mdfile, or Download .html to export a fully styled standalone HTML document. - Code blocks with a language tag (e.g.
```javascript) are automatically syntax-highlighted in the preview.
Common Use Cases
- README previews — see how your README will look on GitHub or GitLab before pushing.
- Documentation drafting — write project docs, design notes, or runbooks with instant feedback.
- Blog post writing — compose articles in Markdown and export styled HTML for any CMS.
- Code review notes — format change summaries, ADRs, or RFCs with syntax-highlighted code blocks.
- Email & chat formatting — render Markdown received from Slack, Discord, or email so you can read it cleanly.
- Cheat sheet preparation — turn structured notes into shareable HTML pages.
- Teaching & learning — experiment with Markdown syntax and see results immediately.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is my Markdown sent to a server?
No. Parsing and rendering happen entirely in your browser using the marked library. Your content is never transmitted, logged, or stored, so it's safe to paste private notes, internal docs, or unpublished drafts.
Which Markdown flavor is supported?
The viewer renders GitHub Flavored Markdown (GFM), a superset of CommonMark. That includes tables, fenced code blocks, task lists, autolinks, and strikethrough — the same syntax used on GitHub, GitLab, and most modern documentation platforms.
Are code blocks syntax-highlighted?
Yes. Add a language tag after the opening fence (for example ```python or ```bash) and the preview will highlight the
code using highlight.js. Over 190 languages are supported out of the box.
Is the rendered HTML safe?
Yes. The output is sanitized with DOMPurify before being inserted into the page, which removes script tags, dangerous attributes, and other XSS vectors. Inline HTML is allowed but cleaned to a safe subset.
Can I export the preview as HTML?
Yes. Click Download .html to save a complete standalone HTML file with basic styling for body text, code, tables, and blockquotes. You can drop it straight into a browser or attach it to an email.
Does it support tables and task lists?
Yes. GFM-style pipe tables and - [ ] / - [x] task list items render exactly as they
would on GitHub.
Why does my preview look slightly different from GitHub?
Spacing, fonts, and colors come from this site's stylesheet rather than GitHub's, so visuals will differ slightly even though the underlying HTML structure matches GFM. The content and semantics are identical.
Can I use this for commercial work?
Yes. The Markdown Viewer is free to use for any purpose — personal, educational, or commercial. Since nothing leaves your device, there are no data-handling concerns for proprietary content.
Need to lint your Markdown or generate a table of contents? Try the Markdown Validator, Markdown TOC Generator, or our Markdown Cheat Sheet.