How do I add a line break in Markdown?

In CommonMark, a paragraph break requires a blank line between two blocks of text. A single newline within a paragraph is treated as a space. To force a line break within a paragraph without starting a new one, end the line with two or more spaces, then press Enter. Alternatively, use a backslash \ at the end of the line (supported by most modern parsers).

How do I escape a special Markdown character?

Prefix the character with a backslash (\). For example, \* renders as a literal asterisk instead of starting bold or italic, and \# renders as a hash instead of a heading. Characters that can be escaped include: \ ` * _ { } [ ] ( ) # + - . !

What is the difference between _ and * for emphasis?

Functionally they are identical: *word* and _word_ both produce italic, **word** and __word__ both produce bold. The convention in most style guides is to use * for emphasis and ** for strong, reserving _ for cases where you need to avoid ambiguity inside words. Using _ inside a word (like un_der_score) is treated as a literal underscore by CommonMark.

Does Markdown support nested lists?

Yes. Indent nested items by two or four spaces (CommonMark accepts both). You can mix ordered and unordered lists at different nesting levels. Example: a top-level unordered list item followed by an indented ordered sub-list creates a mixed-level structure.

Markdown Cheatsheet

A quick reference for all Markdown syntax — headings, emphasis, links, code blocks, tables, task lists, and more.

4 min read·Updated June 2026

This page is a quick reference for all standard Markdown syntax — from headings to task lists. Every example below is interactive: paste it directly into the Markdown Preview to see the rendered output. New to Markdown? Start with What is Markdown? first.

Headings

Use 1–6 hash characters followed by a space. The number of hashes sets the heading level.

Markdown	Rendered as
`# Heading 1`	Heading 1
`## Heading 2`	Heading 2
`### Heading 3`	Heading 3
`#### Heading 4`	Heading 4

Text formatting

Markdown	Result	Notes
`bold`	bold	Also __bold__
`italic`	italic	Also _italic_
`*bold italic*`	*bold italic*
`~~strikethrough~~`	~~strikethrough~~	GFM extension
`inline code`	`inline code`
`==highlight==`	highlight	Not all parsers

Links and images

Markdown	Result
`[text](https://example.com)`	text
`[text](url "tooltip")`	text with tooltip
`<https://example.com>`	https://example.com (auto-link)
`![alt text](image.png)`	🖼 image (alt text)
`[![alt](img.png)](url)`	🖼 clickable image

Reference-style links: define [label]: url anywhere in the document and use [text][label] inline. Useful when the same URL appears multiple times.

Lists

Unordered

- Apple
- Banana
- Cherry

renders as

Apple
Banana
Cherry

Ordered

1. First
2. Second
3. Third

renders as

First
Second
Third

Task list (GFM)

- [x] Done
- [ ] Todo
- [ ] Later

renders as

✅ Done
⬜ Todo
⬜ Later

Nested

- Parent
  - Child
    - Grandchild

renders as

Parent
- Child
  - Grandchild

Code

Markdown	Result
`inline code`	`inline code`
```js … ```	Fenced block with syntax highlighting
`4-space indent`	Also a code block (legacy style)

Fenced block — specify the language after the opening backticks:

```javascript
const greet = (name) => `Hello, ${name}!`
console.log(greet('World'))
```

Supported languages: js, ts, python, php, go, rust, java, c, cpp, bash, sql, html, css, yaml, json, and more.

Tables

Separate columns with |. The second row must be a separator with at least three dashes per cell.

| Name   | Type   | Required |
|--------|--------|----------|
| id     | number | yes      |
| email  | string | yes      |
| avatar | string | no       |

Add a colon to the separator to control alignment: :--- left · :---: center · ---: right.

Blockquotes and horizontal rules

Markdown	Renders as
`> A blockquote`	A blockquote
`> Multi-line > blockquote`	Multi-line blockquote
`---` or `***`

Escaping special characters

Prefix any Markdown character with a backslash to render it literally:

You type	You get
`\not italic\`	not italic
`\# not a heading`	# not a heading
`\[not a link\]`	[not a link]
\`not code\`	`not code`

Escapable characters: \ ` * _ { } [ ] ( ) # + - . !

Line breaks and paragraphs

New paragraph

Leave a blank line between two blocks of text. A single newline within a paragraph is treated as a space.

Hard line break

End a line with two or more spaces, then press Enter. Or use a backslash \ at the end of the line (most modern parsers support this).

Try it now

Markdown Preview

Paste any Markdown and instantly see the rendered output — try every syntax element from this cheatsheet.

→

What is Markdown?

Not yet familiar with Markdown? Start with the introductory guide to understand the basics.

→

Headings

Text formatting

Links and images

Lists

Code

Tables

Blockquotes and horizontal rules

Escaping special characters

Line breaks and paragraphs

Frequently asked questions