Markdown vs Rich Text: When to Use Each Format
Choosing between Markdown and rich text affects your entire content workflow — from writing to version control to collaboration. Both formats have legitimate use cases, and the right choice depends on your audience, tooling, and content lifecycle.
What Is Markdown?
Markdown is a lightweight markup language that uses plain text formatting syntax. Created by John Gruber in 2004, it was designed to be readable in its raw form:
# Heading 1
## Heading 2
**Bold text** and *italic text*
- List item one
- List item two
[Link text](https://example.com)
> Blockquote
`inline code` and code blocks
The source is human-readable even without rendering. Preview Markdown formatting with our Markdown Previewer.
What Is Rich Text?
Rich text stores formatting alongside content — bold, italic, fonts, colors, and layout are embedded in the document. Think Microsoft Word, Google Docs, Notion, or any WYSIWYG editor.
The formatting is visual: you see the result as you type, without syntax characters.
Detailed Comparison
| Feature | Markdown | Rich Text |
|---|---|---|
| Learning curve | Minimal syntax to learn | None (visual editing) |
| Portability | Excellent (plain text) | Poor (format-specific) |
| Version control | Excellent (clean diffs) | Poor (binary/complex diffs) |
| Rendering | Requires conversion | Instant (WYSIWYG) |
| Styling control | Limited (by design) | Full (fonts, colors, layout) |
| File size | Tiny | Large (embedded formatting) |
| Platform lock-in | None | Often (proprietary formats) |
| Collaboration | Git, PRs, merge-friendly | Real-time editors |
| Media embedding | Links/references | Inline embedding |
When to Use Markdown
Technical Documentation
Markdown is the standard for developer documentation:
- README files (every Git repository)
- API documentation
- Code comments and docstrings
- Wiki pages (GitHub Wiki, Confluence)
Version-Controlled Content
Markdown produces clean, meaningful diffs:
- The API returns a **JSON** response.
+ The API returns a **JSON** or **XML** response.
Rich text diffs are often unreadable because formatting metadata changes alongside content.
Blog Posts and Static Sites
Most static site generators (Hugo, Jekyll, Next.js, Gatsby) use Markdown or MDX for content:
- Content lives alongside code in Git
- Builds produce optimized HTML
- No database dependency
- Easy to migrate between platforms
Collaborative Technical Writing
Pull request workflows for documentation:
- Writer creates a branch
- Writes content in Markdown
- Opens a pull request
- Reviewers comment on specific lines
- Changes are merged
When to Use Rich Text
Business Documents
Reports, proposals, and presentations where visual formatting matters:
- Complex tables with merged cells
- Precise typography (fonts, sizes, spacing)
- Headers, footers, and page numbers
- Print-ready layout
Non-Technical Users
Users who should not need to learn syntax:
- Marketing team content
- Customer support knowledge bases
- Internal company wikis
- Email newsletters
Real-Time Collaboration
Google Docs, Notion, and similar tools excel at:
- Simultaneous editing by multiple users
- Comments and suggestions
- Change tracking with author attribution
- No merge conflicts
Embedded Media
Rich text editors handle inline images, videos, and interactive elements more naturally than Markdown.
The MDX Middle Ground
MDX combines Markdown with JSX components, offering the best of both worlds for web content:
# My Blog Post
Regular **Markdown** content.
<AlertBox type="info">
This is a custom component rendered inline.
</AlertBox>
More Markdown content below.
MDX is what we use for blog posts on alltools.one — it provides Markdown simplicity with component extensibility.
Markdown Flavors
Not all Markdown is the same:
| Flavor | Features | Used By |
|---|---|---|
| CommonMark | Standardized core | Many tools |
| GitHub Flavored (GFM) | Tables, task lists, strikethrough | GitHub |
| MDX | JSX components | React frameworks |
| MultiMarkdown | Footnotes, tables, metadata | Academic writing |
FAQ
Can I convert between Markdown and rich text?
Yes. Pandoc is the universal converter — it handles Markdown, DOCX, HTML, LaTeX, and dozens of other formats. For simple conversions, copy from a Markdown preview and paste into a rich text editor. Going the other direction (rich text to Markdown), results may need cleanup for complex formatting.
Is Markdown good enough for non-technical blog posts?
Yes, for most blog content. Markdown handles headings, lists, links, images, bold, italic, and code blocks — which covers 95% of blog formatting needs. For complex layouts with multi-column designs or custom typography, you may need rich text or MDX.
Related Resources
- Markdown Previewer — Preview Markdown rendering instantly
- Markdown Syntax Guide — Complete Markdown reference
- Text Diff Comparison Guide — Compare Markdown documents