How to use Markdown in Reddit
Reddit has supported markdown for over a decade: bold, links, lists, tables, spoilers, superscript. How to switch to Markdown mode and the syntax that works.
How to use Markdown in Reddit
Reddit is one of markdown's oldest homes: comments and posts have spoken it since the late 2000s, long before it was fashionable. (Fitting, given Reddit co-founder Aaron Swartz helped create markdown itself.)
Switching to markdown mode
The modern editor defaults to a rich-text toolbar ("fancy pants editor", genuinely its name). For real markdown, look for "Markdown Editor" in the top-right of the comment/post box and click to switch. Old-school old.reddit.com is markdown-only, which is one reason power users never left.
The syntax
| You type | You get |
|---|---|
**bold** / *italic* | bold / italic |
~~strikethrough~~ | |
[text](url) | proper links – yes, real markdown links in a chat-adjacent app! |
- item / 1. item | lists (nest with 4 spaces) |
> quote | block quote |
`code` / 4-space indent | inline code / code block |
# heading | headings (posts especially) |
|col|col| | tables (supported in posts and comments) |
>!spoiler!< | click-to-reveal spoiler (Reddit-only) |
^superscript or ^(multi word) | superscript (Reddit-only, beloved of ^tiny ^jokes) |
That's a generous implementation: proper links, tables and headings put Reddit ahead of WhatsApp, Slack and most chat tools.
Quirks
- New-editor code blocks use fences in Markdown mode, but old.reddit only reliably renders 4-space indents. When in doubt, indent.
- Nested quoting plus lists can render differently between old and new Reddit. Preview before posting anything elaborate.
- No images inline via markdown syntax in comments on most subreddits; upload or link instead.
The workflow point
Because Reddit speaks standard-ish markdown, drafts move freely: write a long post in Obsidian, keep it in your knowledge base, paste it in. Get an AI to tighten it on the way. Your best comments and posts can live in your files, not just in Reddit's archive – which, as with every platform, is the difference between writing you own and writing you've lent out.
