Quick markdown reference

Content adapted from HTML Academy: Markdown.

Markdown is a simple, fast way to format text. It’s used when HTML isn’t available and you want readable, lightly structured text (headings, lists, images, links).

A common example is readme.md files in GitHub repos — the .md stands for markdown.

Another example is messaging apps: in Telegram you can wrap text in asterisks to make it bold.

Markdown flavors differ; check which one you’re using.

Text emphasis

Options are limited, but you get equivalents of <b> and <i>, and you can nest them.

Example:

*Italic text* or _italic text_.
**Bold text** or __bold text__.
**Bold _italic_ text**

Output:

Italic text or italic text.

Bold text or bold text.

Bold italic text

Headings

More # means a deeper level. There are 6 levels; in practice you rarely need beyond the third.

Example:

# Heading h1
## Heading h2
### Heading h3
#### Heading h4

Lists

Unordered list

Use *, +, or -. Indent with a tab for nested items.

Example:

* Hello
* How are you
  * After a tab you get a nested list

Output:

• Hello
• How are you
  • After a tab you get a nested list

Ordered list

You can use 1. for every item; the renderer will number them correctly.

Example:

1. Yes
1. Yes yes
    1. Yes yes yes yes
    1. Yes yes yes yes yes
1. Yes yes yes

Output:

1. Yes
2. Yes yes
   1. Yes yes yes yes
   2. Yes yes yes yes yes
3. Yes yes yes

Links

[Link text](https://modx.pro)

Images use the same syntax with a leading !.

![Alt text](image-url)

Blockquotes

Example:

This is normal text, and
> This is a quote, and it’s clear that it’s quoted

Output:

This is normal text, and

This is a quote, and it’s clear that it’s quoted

You’re ready to write your first index.md.

Code

Code is wrapped in backticks. Use three backticks at the start and end for multi-line blocks, or one for a short inline span.

Example:

```php
$user = $modx->getObject(modUser::class, ['id' => 5]);
```

Output:

$user = $modx->getObject(modUser::class, ['id' => 5]);

Code highlighting

Markdown supports syntax highlighting for many languages. Specify the language right after the opening backticks. The list of supported languages is large; see this link.

We also added MODX and Fenom syntax highlighting. You won’t find this in the official MODX docs.

[[!msProducts?
  &parents=`0`
  &includeThumbs=`120x90,360x270`
]]

{'!msProducts' | snippet: [
  'parents' => 0,
  'includeThumbs' => '120x90,360x270',
]}

Horizontal rule

Three or more hyphens, asterisks, or underscores on their own line:

---

Strikethrough (GFM)

Wrap text with two tildes:

Example:

~~Deprecated parameter~~ Use `&newParam` instead.

Output:

Deprecated parameter Use &newParam instead.

Task lists

Useful for install or review checklists:

Example:

- [x] Install the package
- [ ] Configure system settings
- [ ] Test on a staging copy

Output:

• [x] Install the package
• [ ] Configure system settings
• [ ] Test on a staging copy

Autolinks

Angle brackets for bare URLs:

<https://modx.com>

Escaping

Use a backslash when you need literal * or _: \*not italic\*.

Tables (quick reference)

Separate columns with |. The separator row sets alignment: :--- left, :---: center, ---: right.

| Parameter | Type   | Default |
|:----------|:------:|--------:|
| `parents` | number | `0`     |

Next steps

• Advanced features (callouts, line highlighting, tabs, diagrams): VitePress features and Mermaid diagrams.
• Page metadata: Frontmatter.