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Markdown Features

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Markdown Features

Docusaurus uses Markdown as the primary format for writing documentation,
but it extends it with MDX, enabling React components inside Markdown files.

Quick Start

Need a refresher? Learn Markdown in 10 minutes to get started quickly.

MDX Power​

MDX transforms Markdown into React components, allowing you to mix text, JSX, and interactive UI elements in a single file.
This is what makes Docusaurus docs highly customizable and interactive.

Example:

hello.mdx
# Hello World

Welcome to my page!

<MyComponent />

This renders both the Markdown heading and the <MyComponent /> React component.

MDX Playground

Use the MDX Playground to see how your Markdown+JSX compiles to React.

MDX vs CommonMark​

Docusaurus supports two Markdown parsing modes:

  • MDX format – Allows JSX and components.
  • CommonMark format – Standard Markdown with no JSX.

By default, .md and .mdx files both use MDX. You can opt in to CommonMark with the markdown.format config or mdx.format: md front matter.

docusaurus.config.js
export default {
  markdown: {
    format: 'detect', // auto: .md → CommonMark, .mdx → MDX
  },
};
Experimental

CommonMark support is still experimental and may differ from other renderers.

Standard Markdown Features​

All familiar Markdown syntax works:

hello.mdx
### My Section

Some **bold** text, some _italic_, and a [link](/).
http://localhost:3000/docs/hello

My Section

Some bold text, some italic, and a link.

Front Matter​

Front matter lets you add metadata to your Markdown files. It’s written in YAML between triple dashes at the top of a file.

getting-started.mdx
---
title: Getting Started
description: Quick introduction to my guide
tags: [intro, tutorial]
---

Different plugins support different front matter fields:

You can even customize the parser:

docusaurus.config.js
export default {
  markdown: {
    parseFrontMatter: async (params) => {
      const result = await params.defaultParseFrontMatter(params);
      if (result.frontMatter.shortTitle) {
        result.frontMatter.title = result.frontMatter.shortTitle;
      }
      return result;
    },
  },
};

Quotes and Callouts​

Docusaurus makes open source documentation easy.

— The Team

Quotes render with elegant styling.

Details & Collapsible Sections​

Docusaurus supports <details> for collapsible content:

<details>
  <summary>Click to expand</summary>

  Hidden content **with Markdown** inside!
</details>
http://localhost:3000
Click to expand

Hidden content with Markdown inside!

Assets & Images​

Use relative paths to reference images and files:

![Logo](/img/nav-logo.jpg)
http://localhost:3000

Logo

Docusaurus will automatically optimize and resolve the asset URLs.

With Markdown + MDX, you can start with simple text and gradually enhance pages with dynamic React components, interactive demos, and custom UI elements—all in one file.