A few days ago, we wrote an article showing you something that isn't very difficult, but is still important to know: the Markdown markup language. After such a long article, one part remained unfinished: the section on the best Markdown editors for Linux. That's what we're going to do today: discuss several options that might interest our readers, although we'll try to narrow down our choices.
There are many editors available, but it's worth using one that meets some basic requirements . For example, you can create a Markdown file with nano from the terminal, but I wouldn't recommend it if you can't see what you're doing in real time. The options we've included in this list are suitable for anyone, not just keyboard enthusiasts and those who prefer simple editors.
What a software must have to be one of the best Markdown editors
From my point of view, a good Markdown editor should support all or most of the features of a language. For example, Markdown allows you to mark up text as if you were using a marker, and that's something many viewers don't support. In fact, some of the editors we'll discuss here don't support that exact feature, but they do support many other markup and functions.
Speaking of previews, I think a good Markdown editor has to let us see what we're doing in real time or with a click/keyboard shortcut away. Even if we think we know what we're doing, it's very easy to forget a bold text or any other markup, and a preview is essential.
I also believe that the best editors should have at least some automation . For example, some can create the second item in a list if we've already entered the first one and then pressed enter.
Best Markdown editors
I'm sure this point will disappoint some users, so we're going to try to cater to all tastes. First of all, I believe the best software isn't necessarily the one that does the most or works best ; the best is the one that best suits our needs and preferences. For example, I personally prefer Kdenlive as a video editor, but if someone is more comfortable with OpenShot, to mention just one example, then one might be better for me and the other for them. Therefore, this section will cover several points:
VSCode or Pulsar: the best for those who don't want to move
Many editors that aren't full-fledged IDEs, like Visual Studio Code or Pulsar , support Markdown to varying degrees . If you use Code for web design/development and dabble in Java or Python, using a different editor for Markdown can be wasteful and unnecessary. If you're already using one of these editors, I recommend sticking with it.
These editors, which also include Brackets but decided to abandon Linux users, usually have a native option or some extension that allows previewing markup languages , and support all or almost all Markdown options.
Vim: the best for those who don't want to move... from the terminal
I feel compelled to put this one first because I want to avoid potential criticism, and I have good reason to do so. Vim is a widely used text editor, especially in the Linux community, and it has many plugins available. It's not for everyone, but it's very powerful.
It's the kind of software that can be used entirely with the keyboard , which is why it can be both loved and hated in equal measure. As a Markdown editor, its use is the same as when editing any other type of document it supports, but it allows you to preview the content in the browser if you use the vim-markdown plugin.
Vivaldi notes, if you want it all in tu navigator
I write some of my articles in Vivaldi , my web browser. It has a notes feature, and these are compatible with Markdown. When I put a note in "Visual Mode," I copy and paste it into WordPress, and it converts it to HTML, preserving all the formatting.
It's just another option, ideal for those who use Vivaldi as their default browser and don't want the hassle of looking for alternatives. Among its features:
- Buttons for:
- Headers.
- Bold, italic and strikethrough.
- Ordered and unordered lists, with the possibility of creating sublists by inserting or removing the text.
- Introduction of links.
- Allows you to attach images.
- Supports brands such as marker pens.
On the downside, it can't open files or export to .md, and it lacks real-time preview. To see what you're doing, you have to enter Visual Mode , although this is at least partially solved by opening the same note in two different tabs, one in Text Mode and the other in Visual Mode; the changes will be visible as soon as you stop typing for a fraction of a second.
ghostwriter: for those who want 0 distractions
Ghostwriter is one of my favorite options when you're just looking to generate and view Markdown content without distractions. This isn't surprising, since I usually use KDE software and this "ghostwriter" falls under its umbrella. Among its features:
- Clean interface that helps you stay focused on what is important.
- Side panel with information such as words written and time spent.
- Chop with Markdown marks (in the same panel).
- Themes
- Preview options.
- Keyboard shortcuts.
- Typewriter or Hemingway Mode (disables some keys, such as delete and backspace)
Apostrophe: simple without renunciations
Apostrophe is similar to the previous one, but one has a KDE philosophy and this one has a more GNOME philosophy . This means it's simpler, which is good if that's what you're looking for. It has even fewer distractions. Among its features:
- The cleanest interface you will find. Avoiding distractions is taken to the extreme, and even the top bar disappears while you are writing.
- Single or double screen, to choose from.
- Keyboard shortcuts for basic tasks such as displaying the viewer if not in split screen.
- Word count, time and other statistics, which can be configured.
- Hemingway mode.
Joplin: complete and beautiful in any environment and system
One of the best options is Joplin. We've written several articles about this Markdown editor/viewer, but perhaps not enough. It's an editor that works well in any graphical environment and operating system , whether it's Linux, macOS, Windows, or anywhere else it can run. If Apostrophe is one of the best for GNOME and Ghostwriter for KDE, it's as if Joplin thought, " How can I please everyone? " and released a tool with that in mind.
In terms of functions, it is one of those that offers many options, and has:
- Spell checker as standard.
- Possibility of opening documents in the default program, which can help understand how the document will look in general.
- Various themes, in addition to the usual light and dark ones.
- Bar from which to add marks, among which in addition to bold, italics, etc., we find horizontal lines and a button for the time and date.
- Possibility of synchronizing with your own cloud, Dropbox and OneDrive. It also has an app for mobile phones and even for the terminal.
- Rich text editor.
- Alarm.
Obsidian: do you like eyelashes?
Obsidian is open-source software, much like Vivaldi. A large percentage of its code is open source , but a small percentage is proprietary, which is why it's not entirely FOSS (Open Source Software). However, it is at least partially FOSS. It's written in Electron and JavaScript, and is available for macOS, Windows, and Linux.
It has a simple yet complex interface, but the editor itself is perfectly usable after launching the program. However, using it is a bit strange, as by default it combines the plain text view and the preview into a single view.
For example, when we put two asterisks it begins to bold the text that follows it, and it will end up presenting it with its format when we put the two at the end. I like that, but it can also be strange.
Among its features that we haven't already mentioned, perhaps I should reiterate its compound view, and that it supports all the Markdown I've tested with it. What I liked most is that when you use the three closing accents for code and enter the language name, it appears in the upper right corner of the container and can be copied by clicking on it.
Glow: best for CLI lovers
Glow is a command-line Markdown editor . It's included in this article because many Linux users prefer terminal tools, and this is one of the best options that doesn't require any extra plugins.
With something that runs in the terminal , we can't expect many frills. It's an editor like all those that reside in terminals, and the first thing we'll have to do is forget about the mouse. If we press the question mark in view mode, we'll access a cheat sheet that shows us the controls, such as "e" to enter edit mode.
Its features are not many, and they involve creating and viewing the content from the terminal. As in these windows there cannot be larger and smaller text, for example the h1 headers are seen with a blue background, but no longer from the h2.
Some candidates to enter the list of best Markdown editors
Others that may be interesting and could be on the list of best Markdown editors:
Beware of getting too excited about an editor
With this Markdown thing, I want to make one thing clear. Markdown isn't like HTML, which consists of a few tags supported by virtually all web browsers. It's a markup language where you add little and very infrequently, so don't get carried away —which is the word I wanted to use in the previous heading—and choose an editor that does everything if you're not going to be able to share the documents in .md format because the recipient isn't using the same software as you.
Everyone is free to do what they want, but this Markdown thing is a little more similar to CSS than HTML: when creating a website, we use the CSS that we think will look good in almost all scenarios. Logically, we can always tell someone to use the browser we tested with, but it is best to play it safe.
Why your favorite isn't among my best Markdown editors
There are many editors and very good ones, but if the one you are thinking of is not here it may be for several reasons:
- Do not know him. Simply comment on this article and I'll probably include it, if I think it's worth it.
- It has problems installing on some distros.
- It is not in active development.
- Has in-app purchases or to unlock features (e.g. Typora).
I won't name names, but there are some popular ones that haven't made the list because, for example, the preview function doesn't work for many users. What is here is only reliable, working and up-to-date software.
This is what my filter has passed. Do you have any suggestions? Comment and it will probably be added to this article.