How to Convert Markdown to HTML

What is Markdown?

Markdown is a lightweight way to add structure to plain text using simple characters. For example, ## Heading represents a level-two heading and **bold** represents bold text.

It is popular in README files, documentation, note systems and publishing tools because the source remains readable as ordinary text.

Want to try the idea yourself? Use the Markdown-to-HTML Converter.

What is HTML?

HTML is the markup language browsers use to structure web pages. A level-two heading is written as <h2>Heading</h2>, while a paragraph is normally wrapped in <p> tags.

Markdown is often converted into HTML before being displayed on a website.

Common conversions

A Markdown link such as [Wid9et](https://wid9et.com) becomes an HTML anchor element. Bullet lines beginning with - can become an unordered list using <ul> and <li> elements.

Exact output can vary between Markdown implementations, especially for extended features such as tables or task lists.

Why convert instead of writing HTML?

Markdown is quicker to type for ordinary content and reduces the amount of markup visible while writing. HTML gives more direct control over the final web structure.

A common workflow is therefore to write in Markdown and convert to HTML when publishing.

Convert Markdown in the browser

The Markdown-to-HTML Converter turns Markdown input into HTML output so you can see the generated markup without setting up a local parser.

If the HTML will accept untrusted user content, remember that safe rendering and sanitisation are separate security concerns from basic Markdown conversion.