Wat Is Markdown? Een Volledige Uitleg van de Light-weight Markup Language
Quick Answer
Markdown is een platte-tekst opmaaktaal die simpele symbolen gebruikt: # voor headings, ** voor bold, * voor italic, - voor lijsten, [text](url) voor links. Het is ontworpen om leesbaar als platte tekst te zijn en converteerbaar naar HTML. Gebruik onze gratis Markdown to HTML Converter.
Introduction
Markdown is een lichtgewicht opmaaktaal gemaakt door John Gruber in 2004 die platte-tekst formattering gebruikt om gestructureerde documenten te produceren. Het doel is leesbaarheid —Markdown-brontekst moet eruitzien als wat het representeert, zonder de visuele rommel van HTML-tags. Markdown is de standaard voor README-bestanden op GitHub, documentatiesites, blogposts en notes-apps zoals Obsidian en Notion.
Step by Step
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Learn the basic syntax
Headings: # H1, ## H2, ### H3. Bold: **text**. Italic: *text*. Lists: - item or 1. item. Links: [text](url). Images: . Code: `inline` or ```block```. Blockquotes: > quote. Horizontal rule: ---.
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Understand the philosophy
Markdown is designed to be readable as plain text. The source should look close to the final rendered output — **bold** looks like bold, # Heading looks like a heading. This contrasts with HTML, where <strong>bold</strong> and <h1>Heading</h1> are visually cluttered.
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Learn the variants
Original Markdown (Gruber's spec) is minimal. CommonMark is a standardized, well-specified version. GitHub Flavored Markdown (GFM) adds tables, strikethrough, task lists, and autolinks. MDX lets you embed React components in Markdown. Most tools support GFM.
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Convert Markdown to HTML
Markdown is converted to HTML for web publishing. # Hello becomes <h1>Hello</h1>, **bold** becomes <strong>bold</strong>. Static site generators (Astro, Hugo, Jekyll) convert Markdown at build time. Use our Markdown to HTML Converter for instant conversion.
Examples
Heading and paragraph
Input: # Title
A paragraph.
Output: <h1>Title</h1>
<p>A paragraph.</p>
Bold and italic
Input: **bold** and *italic*
Output: <strong>bold</strong> and <em>italic</em>
Link and image
Input: [text](https://example.com) and 
Output: <a href="https://example.com">text</a> and <img src="image.png" alt="alt">
Common Problems
- Line breaks —a single newline in Markdown does not create a line break in HTML. Use two spaces at the end of a line, or two newlines for a paragraph break.
- Nested lists —indentation matters. Use 2 or 4 spaces consistently for nested items; mixing them can break the list structure.
- Raw HTML —most Markdown parsers pass through raw HTML, but some sanitize it. Check your parser's behavior if you embed HTML directly.
- Different flavors —Original Markdown, CommonMark, and GFM have subtle differences. Check which flavor your target platform supports.
Tips
- Use Markdown for writing and documentation —it is much easier to read and write than HTML.
- GitHub Flavored Markdown (GFM) is the most common variant —it adds tables, strikethrough, and task lists.
- Write in Markdown and convert to HTML at build time for blogs and documentation sites.
- Use our Markdown to HTML Converter to render Markdown instantly in your browser.