Markdown to PDF
Upload a .md or .markdown file and get a PDF where # becomes a heading, **bold** becomes bold text and a pipe table becomes a table. It is the quickest way to hand a README, meeting notes or a spec to someone who has never heard of Markdown.
Convert to PDF
or drop DOC, DOCX, DOCM … files here ·
Max 95 MB per file· Up to 20 files· Deleted after 30 minutes
Files are processed on our servers and deleted after 30 minutes.
Convert the whole document or only some pages, slides or sheets.
Pages or slides to keep, e.g. 1-3, 5, 8-10. Numbers refer to the original document.
Source margins keep the document's own layout. Narrow is 12.7 mm, normal 25.4 mm, wide 50.8 mm left and right.
Excel, ODS and Numbers files: convert every sheet, or only the one that was open when the file was saved.
JPEG quality for photos inside the document. 90 looks identical to the source; lower it to make the PDF smaller.
Leave empty for no password. If set, the PDF asks for it before opening. Not available with PDF/A.
How to use this tool
- 1
Upload the .md file
Add one Markdown file or up to 20 at once, each up to 95 MB. From GitHub, open the file, download the raw version and upload that.
- 2
Check page and bookmark options
Bookmarks from headings is on, so headings appear in the PDF sidebar. Margins start at Normal; set Page size to A4 or Letter under Advanced settings for print.
- 3
Convert to PDF
Press Convert to PDF and download the rendered document. The upload and the PDF are deleted after 30 minutes.
How do I convert Markdown to PDF?
Upload the .md file and press Convert to PDF. The Markdown is rendered first, so the PDF shows formatted headings, lists, links, tables and code instead of the raw symbols.
Markdown, CommonMark and GFM: which syntax the PDF understands
2004
Markdown
John Gruber publishes the syntax and a Perl script, with Aaron Swartz's input. The rules leave many edge cases open.
2014
CommonMark
A group including John MacFarlane releases an unambiguous spec with test cases, first announced as Standard Markdown.
2016
text/markdown
RFC 7763 registers the official media type for Markdown files.
2017
GFM spec
GitHub publishes GitHub Flavored Markdown as a strict superset of CommonMark, adding tables, task lists and strikethrough.
The early ambiguity is why the same file renders slightly differently on GitHub, in VS Code, in Obsidian and in a static site generator. Two blank lines, a list nested with two spaces instead of four, or a heading without a space after # can change the result. Files written to CommonMark, with GFM tables where you need them, render the same almost everywhere, including in this converter.
If your file is really plain notes without Markdown syntax, the text to PDF page prints it exactly as typed. If you already have the content as a web page, HTML to PDF keeps the site's own styling.
What each Markdown element becomes in the PDF
| Element | Markdown | In the PDF |
|---|---|---|
| Headings | `#` to `######` | Sized headings; with **Bookmarks from headings** on, entries in the PDF sidebar |
| Emphasis | `**bold**`, `*italic*`, `~~strike~~` | Bold, italic and struck-through text |
| Lists | `-`, `*`, `1.` | Bulleted and numbered lists, nested by indentation |
| Links | `[label](https://…)` | Clickable text; relative links lose their target |
| Code | Backticks and fenced ``` blocks | Monospaced text on a shaded block; keep lines short so they fit the page width |
| Tables | GFM pipe tables | Ruled tables; wide ones fit better in landscape |
| Images | `` | Shown when the address is a full, public URL |
MD
Markdown
Markdown is a lightweight markup syntax created by John Gruber in 2004. It uses plain-text symbols, such as # for headings, * for emphasis and - for lists, that stay readable as raw text and convert cleanly to HTML. It is the standard for README files, documentation, wikis, note apps and many static site generators. There are several dialects, such as CommonMark and GitHub Flavored Markdown, which differ in details like tables. Any text editor can open .md files.
- Compression
- –
- Transparency
- –
- Animation
- –
- Introduced
- 2004 · John Gruber
Portable Document Format
PDF was created by Adobe in 1993 and became the open ISO 32000 standard in 2008. It fixes text, fonts, images and layout so a document looks the same on every screen and printer. PDFs can contain forms, signatures, links, attachments and searchable text, and the PDF/A variant is used for long-term archiving. The fixed layout makes PDFs hard to edit, and scanned PDFs contain only images unless OCR is applied. Every browser and operating system can open them.
- Compression
- –
- Transparency
- Yes
- Animation
- No
- Introduced
- 1993 · Adobe
Markdown only looks finished after a renderer turns its symbols into formatting, and most recipients have no renderer; a PDF shows them the headings, tables and code blocks you meant instead of pound signs and asterisks.
Markdown extras that do not convert
Diagrams, math and front matter stay as text
Mermaid diagrams, LaTeX math between dollar signs, YAML front matter at the top of the file and app-specific embeds are extensions outside both CommonMark and the GFM spec. Export diagrams and formulas as images and link them, and delete the front matter block if you do not want it printed on page one.
Markdown to PDF questions
Which Markdown flavor should my file follow for a clean PDF?
Stay with CommonMark plus the GitHub additions that most editors support: pipe tables, fenced code blocks and strikethrough. Syntax that only one app understands, such as wiki-style links, is the part most likely to come out as plain text.
How do I keep the images from my Markdown file in the PDF?
Only the .md file is uploaded, so an image written as a relative path like ./img/chart.png has nothing to point to. Link images by their full https:// address, or paste the text into a document that holds the pictures and convert that instead.
Can I convert notes exported from Obsidian or Notion?
Yes, both export standard .md files. Notion puts images in a separate folder, and Obsidian notes often use [[wiki links]] and embeds that are not standard Markdown, so expect those to appear as their raw text and replace them with normal links first.
Can I choose the font of the Markdown PDF?
There is no font setting; the converter applies a readable default for body text and a monospaced font for code. Page size, orientation, margins, a password and PDF/A are all available under Advanced settings.
Should I send Markdown as PDF or as a Word file?
PDF when people should read, print or sign it as it stands. If a reviewer wants to edit the text with tracked changes, Markdown to Word gives an editable document with the same headings and lists.
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