Plain Text to Markdown

Paste your text into Step 1, open a .txt file, or press Load example. Step 2 shows the Markdown alongside a rendered preview. If a rule gets something wrong, such as treating a capitalised line as a heading, switch that rule off. Then copy the Markdown or download a .md file.

Blank lines separate paragraphs. Lines underlined with === or --- become headings, as do short lines written in capitals on their own. Lines starting with -, *, •, 1. or 1) become list items, nested by indentation. Bare web addresses become links. Rows split by tabs, or by columns lined up with spaces, become a table. Blocks indented by four spaces or a tab become code.

Yes. Every rule has its own switch in Step 2, and the Markdown updates as soon as you change one. Text a rule no longer handles is escaped, so it shows up exactly as you typed it.

Some characters mean something in Markdown: * and _ make emphasis, # makes a heading, | splits table cells and [ ] makes links. When those appear in your text by accident, such as 5*2 or file_name, the tool puts a backslash in front so they display as typed instead of changing the formatting. The backslashes don't appear in the rendered result.

No. The formatting rules run in your browser tab, so your text stays on your device the whole time. Nothing is saved, so a refresh clears the page.

In Markdown, lines next to each other are one paragraph, and a single line break counts as a space. That suits text wrapped at a fixed width. For addresses, poems or lists without markers, turn on Keep line breaks, which ends each line with a backslash so it stays on its own line.

A table needs at least two rows with the same number of columns. Columns can be separated by tabs (what you get when copying from a spreadsheet) or by two or more spaces, as long as the columns line up from row to row. A sentence with a double space after a full stop won't be mistaken for a table.

Short lines in capitals that stand on their own, without ending in a full stop or comma, are treated as headings because that's how many plain-text documents mark sections. If your text uses capitals for something else, switch off ALL-CAPS headings.

Plain-text files: .txt, .text and .log, up to 10 MB. For Word documents use Word to Markdown, and for PDFs use PDF to Markdown, which keep much more of the original structure.

Convert as often as you like: there's no account and no daily cap. Text files can be up to 10 MB, and pasting is limited only by your browser.