Markdown Cheat Sheet
A searchable, printable Markdown reference — headings, lists, links, images, code blocks, tables and GitHub-flavored extras. Free.
Basic syntax
12# Heading 1
Top-level heading
## Heading 2
Second-level heading
### Heading 3
Third-level heading (up to ######)
**bold text**
Bold
*italic text*
Italic
***bold italic***
Bold and italic combined
`inline code`
Inline code span
Heading 1
=========
Setext H1 (underline style)
Heading 2
---------
Setext H2 (underline style)
Line one
Line two
Line break: two trailing spaces
Line one\
Line two
Line break: trailing backslash
Paragraph one.
Paragraph two.
Blank line starts a new paragraph
Lists
10- item
- item
Unordered list (also * or +)
1. first
2. second
Ordered list
1. first
1. second
Auto-numbering (all 1. works)
- parent
- nested child
Nested list: indent 2–4 spaces
1. step
continued paragraph
Multi-line item: align with text
- item
- item
Loose list (items become <p>)
1) first
2) second
Alternate ordered marker
3. starts at three
Start number sets list origin
- item
code in list
Code block inside a list item
4\. Not a list.
Escape the dot to avoid a list
Links & images
10[text](https://example.com)
Inline link
[text](https://example.com "Title")
Link with hover title
<https://example.com>
Autolink (bare URL)
<mail@example.com>
Email autolink
Image
Image with title
[](https://example.com)
Clickable image (image in link)
[relative link](../docs/page.md)
Relative path link
[section link](#heading-anchor)
Link to a heading anchor
[text](https://example.com/my%20page)
Encode spaces as %20 in URLs
Code & code blocks
11`code`
Inline code
``use `backticks` inside``
Inline code containing backticks
```
plain block
```
Fenced code block
```js
console.log('hi');
```
JavaScript syntax highlighting
```php
echo 'hi';
```
PHP syntax highlighting
```python
print('hi')
```
Python syntax highlighting
```bash
ls -la
```
Shell syntax highlighting
```json
{"key": "value"}
```
JSON syntax highlighting
```diff
- removed
+ added
```
Diff highlighting (+/- lines)
````
```
nested fence
```
````
Show a fence: use more backticks
indented 4 spaces
Indented code block (classic)
Tables
10| A | B |
|---|---|
| 1 | 2 |
Basic table
|:---|
Left-align a column
|:---:|
Center a column
|---:|
Right-align a column
A | B
--- | ---
1 | 2
Outer pipes are optional
| `code` | **bold** |
Inline formatting in cells
| a \| b |
Literal pipe in a cell: escape it
| [link](url) |  |
Links and images in cells
| Long header | x |
|---|---|
Divider widths need not match
| line<br>break |
Multi-line cell via <br>
Blockquotes & rules
9> quoted text
Blockquote
> level one
>> level two
Nested blockquote
> para one
>
> para two
Multi-paragraph quote
> ### Heading
> - list item
Other elements inside a quote
---
Horizontal rule
***
Horizontal rule (asterisks)
___
Horizontal rule (underscores)
text
---
text
Blank lines around rules (not H2!)
> — Author Name
Attribution line inside a quote
GitHub-flavored extras
12- [ ] todo item
- [x] done item
Task list (checkboxes)
~~strikethrough~~
Strikethrough
Text[^1]
[^1]: Footnote body.
Footnote
> [!NOTE]
Alert: note callout
> [!TIP]
Alert: tip callout
> [!IMPORTANT]
Alert: important callout
> [!WARNING]
Alert: warning callout
> [!CAUTION]
Alert: caution callout
@username
Mention a user (GitHub)
#123
Link an issue / PR (GitHub)
:tada: :rocket: :bug:
Emoji shortcodes
https://example.com
Bare URLs autolink in GFM
Escaping & HTML
11\*not italic\*
Escape formatting characters
\\
Literal backslash
\# not a heading
Escape a leading #
\[not a link\]
Escape brackets
\`not code\`
Escape backticks
<kbd>Ctrl</kbd> + <kbd>C</kbd>
Keyboard keys via HTML
<br>
Explicit line break
<sub>sub</sub> <sup>sup</sup>
Subscript / superscript
<details>
<summary>Title</summary>
Body
</details>
Collapsible section
<!-- hidden comment -->
Comment (not rendered)
& < >
HTML entities work in Markdown
Advanced
10## My Section → #my-section
Auto anchor: lowercase, dashes
[text][ref]
Reference-style link usage
[ref]: https://example.com "Title"
Reference link definition
[text][]
Shortcut: text doubles as label
![alt][logo]
Reference-style image
Term
: Definition text
Definition list (some parsers)
<a id="custom-anchor"></a>
Custom anchor target
[Back to top](#top)
Jump link within the page
---
title: Page
---
YAML front matter (static sites)
Heading {#custom-id}
Custom heading id (some parsers)
Mermaid & math fences
10```mermaid
graph TD; A-->B;
```
Mermaid flowchart fence
```mermaid
sequenceDiagram
A->>B: Hi
```
Mermaid sequence diagram
```mermaid
pie
"A": 60
"B": 40
```
Mermaid pie chart
```mermaid
gantt
task :a1, 2026-01-01, 7d
```
Mermaid Gantt chart
```mermaid
erDiagram
USER ||--o{ ORDER : places
```
Mermaid entity relationship
$E = mc^2$
Inline math (LaTeX)
$$
\frac{a}{b}
$$
Block math (display mode)
```math
\sqrt{x^2 + y^2}
```
Math fence (GitHub)
$\alpha \beta \gamma$
Greek letters in math
$x_{i}^{2}$
Subscript / superscript in math
No entry matches “:q”.
About Markdown Cheat Sheet
This Markdown cheat sheet collects the whole syntax on one searchable page: basic syntax, lists, links and images, code and code blocks, tables, blockquotes and rules, GitHub-flavored extras, escaping and inline HTML, advanced constructs, and Mermaid and math fences.
It answers the questions that send people searching every time — how to align a table column, how to nest a list under a numbered item, how to write a task list, a footnote or a collapsible section, and which characters need escaping — with a working example on every row.
Like every cheat sheet in this group it is free and client-side: filter rows live with the search box, hop between sections with the sticky table of contents, copy any snippet with one click and print the page for reference while you write.
How to use Markdown Cheat Sheet
- Open the sheet and review the sections, from Basic syntax and Lists to Mermaid & math fences.
- Search for a keyword such as table, task list or footnote to filter every row live.
- Jump to GitHub-flavored extras for the syntax that only works on GitHub and similar platforms.
- Click a snippet or its copy icon to copy the Markdown to your clipboard.
- Use Print for a paper copy of the full Markdown reference.
Frequently asked questions
Ten sections: basic syntax, lists, links and images, code and code blocks, tables, blockquotes and rules, GitHub-flavored extras, escaping and HTML, advanced constructs, and Mermaid and math fences.
Yes. Task lists, tables, strikethrough, autolinks, footnotes, collapsible details blocks, alerts and emoji shortcodes all have their own section.
The Tables section shows the pipe-and-dash syntax plus the colon placement that left-aligns, right-aligns or centres each column — copy the example and edit it.
Yes. Click the Markdown on any row or its copy icon and it is copied to your clipboard immediately.
Yes, it is completely free and runs in your browser with no login.
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