A Fun and Easy Guide to Using Markdown on Discord!
I frequent Discord quite often and I don't see many members using Markdown syntax to flair out their messages, which is a shame. So after some deliberation on my part and some fellow server members showing interest,I decided to write one! This guide 's goal is to hopefully be easier to understand and follow than the already existing Discord Markdown 101 support page. This is, however, my first time writing a guide, so please bear with me! But with that said, let's get to it!
Introduction
I frequent Discord quite often and I don’t see many members using Markdown syntax to flair out their messages, which is a shame. So after some deliberation on my part and some fellow server members showing interest,I decided to write one! This guide ‘s goal is to hopefully be easier to understand and follow than the already existing Discord Markdown 101 support page. This is, however, my first time writing a guide, so please bear with me! But with that said, let’s get to it!
The Basics
While you can use Discord’s built-in formatting tools for some of these, using Markdown is often a better option. Markdown is a simple plain text formatting syntax that can be used to create a variety of effects, such as italics, bold, and spoilers. It’s also more portable, so you can use it on other platforms, such as GitHub, for example!
Spoiler Tags
Don’t want to spoil that awesome game ending or want to troll your friends? Just use two pipe characters on the front and back of your text!
Note that this is a special Markdown syntax that may only work on Discord and is not part of the standard Markdown spec.
I'm invisible!
I'm not invisible anymore; hide me, please. : _ ;ex:
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||I'm not invisible anymore; hide me, please. : _ ;||
Italics
To italicize text, all you need to do is add an asterisk to a sentence or word, both before and after. This will be the same for the following, so keep that in mind.
Look at me, I’m pointy!
ex:
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*Look at me, I'm pointy!*
Underline Italics
Underlined italicization uses the same asterisk character but with the addition of two underscores at the end and beginning. This is a special Discord syntax and is not possible in regular Markdown, so keep that in mind.
I'm still pointy but with a underline!
ex:
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__*I'm still pointy but with a underline!*__
Underlining
Now for just underlining, you just need to add two underscores front and back to your text. This also only works on Discord!
Sometimes you just need some underlining, ya know?
ex:
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__Sometimes you just need some underlining, ya know?__
Bolding
But what if you want to give your text more importance? That’s where bolding comes in handy!
Just add two asterisks! Remember, always front and back!
I’m a ghost, boo!
ex:
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**I'm a ghost, boo!**
Underline Bolding
But what if you like some underline with that? Just add the same characters we use for underlining; that’s two underscores if you lost track. It happens to the best of us!
I'm still a ghost, by the way!
ex:
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__**I'm still a ghost, by the way!**__
Bolding and Italics
And if you want to be extra spicy, you can always italicize and bold at the same time with two underscores and three asterisk characters. This is different from regular Markdown, which uses just one underscore and two asterisk characters for the same effect.
Just the thing you need when making a big point!
ex:
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__***Just the thing you need when making a big point!__***
Strikethrough
Sometimes you want to say something but want to keep it low-key; this is where strikethrough text comes to the rescue.
Just add two tildes, front and back, to your text.
Shh, don’t tell anyone. :P
ex:
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~~Sshh, don't tell anyone. :P~~
The Fun Stuff
Now for the really cool stuff you probably don’t know about! Like making bulleted lists, headers, masking links, sharing your code snippets with code blocks, and more, You can do quite a lot to make yours and others Discord experiences better thanks to Markdown!
Headers
With Discord adding forum-like features, it’s really handy to use a header for detailed articles or posts you want to share on Discord!
Just add the hash character to make a header; be sure to leave a space before typing the header’s content. There are three header types!
- ( # ) For a large header, just what you need for a tittle!
- ( ## ) For a medium header, useful for sections on an article.
- ( ### ) For a small header.
ex:
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# Bigger is always better, right?
## Not so big, but not too small either.
### I'm just right! unlike the other two...
Masked Links
You can paste a link into the chat, but that is not the prettiest thing, right? Especially if Discord doesn’t have a preview, why not embed it in the text? Luckily, we can do that!
Just use brackets for the text and parenthesis for the link, and you have a masked link!
ex:
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[Check out my blog!](https://reading.is-a.dev)
Lists
It’s pretty self-explanatory: while you could list stuff with regular, good old plain text, you can make it even prettier with Markdown!
Just use a hyphen before each item, and you can indent the list by adding two more extra spaces after the first bullet point.
- Listing is fun!
- right?
ex:
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- Listing is fun!
- right?
Code Blocks
One of my favorites! It makes it a breeze to copy code; just add a backtick for one line of code or three if the code is multi-lined like a script.
Just imagine this is a piece of code, Okay?
See, isn’t that just better? Now all we need to do is double-click it to select it. Timesaver!
ex:
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`Just imagine this is a piece of code, Okay?`
Block Quotes
Finally, sometimes you need to quote a piece of text; maybe you’re doing a book club. Regardless, this is where block quotes come in handy!
Just add the greater-than character for a one-line block quote or three for a multiline one.
I can’t believe this guide is almost done!
It took me some days to finish this, but I’m quite relieved that it’s done. It was a fun side project, and I hope you can get some use out of it!
ex:
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> I can't believe this guide is almost done!
>>> It took me some days to finish this, but I'm quite relieved that it's done. It was a fun side project, and I hope you can get some use out of it!
Wrapping up
That’s it. You now have a pretty good grasp on Markdown on Discord. So what’s next? I recommend looking into other Markdown guides if you want to get into the nitty-gritty of it and use it on other platforms! For now, I would love for you to use Markdown syntax on your favorite Discord servers and make the Discord experience better for everyone! I believe everyone should give Markdown a whirl; you may be surprised at how fun it is!