Discord Markdown — Text Formatting Cheat Sheet
Free Discord markdown guide with a live editor. Bold, italic, strikethrough, spoiler tags, -# small subtext, headers, code, quotes, and lists — copy and paste into Discord.
Discord-style preview
Be respectful. No hate speech.
Secret announce: raid Friday
/help for commandsDiscord markdown cheat sheet — click to insert
Need a deeper dive? Spoiler tags · Small / subtext · Colored ANSI text · Fancy Unicode fonts
Discord markdown (text formatting) basics
Discord uses a Markdown-like system for chat formatting. Wrap text in special characters and Discord renders bold, italic, underline, strikethrough, spoilers, code, quotes, headers, and subtext when the message sends.
Common starters: **bold**, *italic*, __underline__, ~~strikethrough~~, ||spoiler||, `inline code`, and -# for small gray subtext on its own line. Headers use # / ## / ### at the start of a line. Official reference: Discord’s Markdown Text 101 help article.
How to bold, italic, underline, and strikethrough
Bold: **text**. Italic: *text* or _text_. Bold italic: ***text***. Underline: __text__. Strikethrough (cross out): ~~text~~. On desktop you can also highlight text and use the formatting toolbar or shortcuts (Ctrl/⌘+B, I, U).
These only work in messages. They do not style nicknames, display names, or About Me — for those fields use the Discord Font Generator (Unicode), not markdown.
Small text (-# subtext) and line breaks
Native small text in chat is subtext: put -# (hyphen, hash, space) at the start of a line. The whole line becomes smaller and gray. Missing the space breaks it. For a dedicated walkthrough and Unicode nickname alternatives, use the Discord small text generator.
Line breaks: press Shift+Enter (desktop) to add a new line without sending. On mobile, use the return key depending on your keyboard’s send behavior. Lists and headers also need to start at the beginning of a line.
Markdown vs fonts vs colored text
Markdown (this page) — chat formatting Discord parses. Unicode fonts — Discord Font Generator for nicknames and bios. ANSI color — Colored Text Generator for ```ansi code-block colors. Pick the layer that matches where you’re posting.
Translate Your Videos with AI& Reach Billions
No credit card required • 5 free minutes
We contribute 1% of revenue for carbon removal
How It Works
Learn Discord markdown in seconds.
Type Discord markdown
Use the live editor for bold, italic, spoilers, subtext, headers, code, and more.
Preview instantly
See a Discord-style preview as you type so you know how chat will look before you paste.
Copy & paste
Copy the markup and paste it into any Discord message, announcement, or DM.
Expected Results
What this Discord markdown hub gives you.
Full syntax reference
Cheat sheet for Discord text formatting: bold, strike, spoiler, -# subtext, quotes, lists, and line breaks.
Clear intent split
Markdown for chat. Unicode fonts for nicknames. ANSI colors for callouts — linked from one hub.
Works everywhere Discord parses markdown
Desktop, web, and mobile chat — same ** || ~~ and -# syntax Discord documents officially.
Use Cases
Who uses Discord markdown every day?
Mods & admins
Rules, pins, and announcements with headers, spoilers, and subtext footnotes.
Creators & communities
Readable event posts without stuffing every line with color codes.
Everyday chat
Bold a key phrase, hide a spoiler, or add a quiet -# note under a message.
All Discord tools
Find communities & Look up users/servers
Resolve Discord IDs, inspect public profiles, and browse servers by category.
Download profile media
Grab high-resolution avatars and banners from any public Discord profile.
Size converters
Convert banners and emoji to Discord’s exact pixel and file-size limits.
Format messages & text
Markdown formatting, spoilers, small text, timestamps, ANSI colors, and Unicode fonts.
Generate bios, names & templates
Bios, statuses, usernames, rules templates, replies, and developer calculators.
Guides
How-tos for Nitro and emoji — informational only, no scam generators.
Customer Reviews
Finally one cheat sheet
"Live preview + spoilers and -# subtext in one place. Bookmarked for our mod team."
Maya R.
Clear vs fonts
"Helped me stop mixing up markdown bold with those fancy Unicode letters."
Jordan Lee
Great for rules pins
"Headers and spoilers make announcement posts way cleaner."
Server Admin Sam
Simple and free
"Type, preview, copy. Exactly what I needed for Discord text formatting."
Alex Chen
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Discord markdown?
Discord markdown is the set of text shortcuts (like **bold**, ||spoilers||, and -# subtext) Discord parses in messages to format chat.
How do I bold text in Discord?
Put two asterisks around the text: **like this**. On desktop you can also highlight text and press Ctrl/⌘+B or use the formatting menu.
How do I strikethrough or cross out text?
Wrap the text in double tildes: ~~like this~~. That is native markdown — different from Unicode strikethrough used in nicknames.
How do I make small text in Discord?
For chat, use subtext: start a line with -# and a space. For nicknames or bios, use Unicode small text on our small text generator or font generator.
Does markdown work in Discord bios and nicknames?
No. Profile fields don’t parse ** or ||. Use Unicode fonts for those, or keep markdown for chat messages only.
Where can I learn spoilers and colored text?
Use the spoiler tag tool for ||spoilers||, and the colored text generator for ANSI colors inside code blocks.