HTML Markdown Swap

HTML to Markdown

Choose a HTML file

…or drop a HTML file here

.html, .htm, .xhtml

Convert

Download

FAQ and format details
Why convert HTML to Markdown?

People convert HTML to Markdown when a CMS export, email newsletter, or saved article needs to live in a Git repo. Markdown diffs cleanly, searches as plain text, and is what GitHub, GitLab, and most static-site generators already render. If the source is a Word export saved as filtered HTML, this is often cleaner than opening Word again.

How this conversion runs

Scripts, iframes, and event handlers are stripped first so the hub is a document, not an app. Turndown then maps semantic tags onto GFM: h1–h6 become # headings, <pre><code> becomes a fenced block, and <table> becomes pipe tables. Classes, inline CSS, and layout divs are ignored on purpose — they have no Markdown equivalent.

Keep in mind for HTML → Markdown

Nested tables, absolutely positioned elements, and custom web-component markup will flatten or vanish. A nav menu full of lists may look like content in the Markdown. If the HTML was a pixel-perfect landing page, expect an article, not a replica. Front matter is not invented; add YAML yourself if the destination is Eleventy or Hugo.

After you have a Markdown file

Open the .md in VS Code or Obsidian and skim the first headings. If images were data URLs they will show up as huge Markdown image lines — replace those with files in a /media folder before you commit. From here, Markdown→DOCX is a common next step for stakeholders who will not read a repo.

Does this keep my CSS?

No. Markdown has no stylesheet. Presentation has to be re-applied by whatever renders the Markdown later (GitHub's defaults, a static-site theme, or Word after a further conversion).

Will JavaScript-generated HTML convert?

Only if that HTML is already in the file you drop here. This converter never executes scripts, so a blank shell page that fills itself on load will convert as an empty article.

This pair at a glance
Accepts
.html, .htm, .xhtml
Writes
.md · text/markdown
Read fidelity
exact (HTML → HTML)
Write fidelity
high (HTML → Markdown)
Source size
Plan for files under 7.6 MB

Runs in this browser.

Something off with this pair? Send feedback.

About HTML and Markdown

Source file

HTML

The web’s native document format: structured markup for headings, paragraphs, lists, tables, links, and media.

HTML is the pivot format for this converter. Incoming files are turned into a sanitized HTML document, and outgoing files are generated from that document. Browsers, email clients, and most rich-text editors already speak it, which is why it is the most flexible interchange point.

Extensions
.html, .htm, .xhtml
MIME types
text/html, application/xhtml+xml
Kind
text · utf-8
Category
markup
Standard
Open format · since 1993
Comfortable size
Up to about 7.6 MB in this browser converter
Read into HTML
exact fidelity · implemented — Identity transform after sanitizing script/style that cannot round-trip into other document types.

What this format can hold

  • headings
  • paragraphs
  • lists
  • tables
  • links
  • images
  • inline formatting
  • semantic structure

Apps that consume HTML

  • Chrome (Google) — opens on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android
  • Firefox (Mozilla) — opens on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android
  • Safari (Apple) — opens on macOS, iOS
  • Edge (Microsoft) — opens on Windows, macOS
  • VS Code (Microsoft) — creates on Windows, macOS, Linux
  • WordPress — creates and opens on Web

Catalog notes

  • Scripts, event handlers, and external stylesheets are stripped during conversion so the hub stays a document, not an app.
  • XHTML is accepted as input and emitted as HTML5.

Destination file

Markdown

A lightweight plain-text syntax for structured writing that compiles to HTML. The lingua franca of README files, wikis, and note apps.

Markdown stores documents as readable plain text with a small set of punctuation conventions for headings, emphasis, lists, links, and code. GitHub-Flavored Markdown (GFM) adds tables, strikethrough, task lists, and fenced code blocks. Conversion through HTML is a natural fit because Markdown was designed as an HTML shorthand.

Extensions
.md, .markdown, .mdown, .mkd
MIME types
text/markdown, text/x-markdown
Kind
text · utf-8
Category
markup
Standard
Open format · since 2004
Comfortable size
Up to about 3.8 MB in this browser converter
Written from HTML
high fidelity · implemented — HTML is walked into GFM with Turndown.

What this format can hold

  • headings
  • paragraphs
  • lists
  • tables
  • links
  • images
  • inline formatting
  • code blocks
  • blockquotes

Usually dropped on the way out

  • complex css layout
  • nested tables
  • custom classes

Apps that consume Markdown

  • GitHub (GitHub) — creates and opens on Web
  • Obsidian (Dynalist) — creates and opens on Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android
  • VS Code (Microsoft) — creates on Windows, macOS, Linux
  • Typora — creates and opens on Windows, macOS, Linux
  • Notion — creates and opens on Web, Windows, macOS
  • Jupyter — creates and opens on Web
  • Discord — opens on Web, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android

Catalog notes

  • Front matter (YAML between --- lines) is preserved as a prefix when converting from Markdown, and ignored when converting to Markdown.
  • Obsidian wikilinks and footnotes have no lossless HTML equivalent yet.
Other conversions

Other conversions from HTML: WordRTFOpenDocumentPDFEPUB

Other ways to get Markdown: WordRTFOpenDocumentPDFEPUB