How Reddit Markdown Formats a Reply, and Where It Still Works

What is Reddit markdown?

Every formatted comment you read was written in Reddit markdown, a Reddit-specific version of Markdown that turns plain symbols like **bold**, > quotes and [text](url) links into formatted text when the comment is posted. Reddit's Formatting Guide describes it as "a Reddit-specific version of Markdown, which has evolved over time in both its parsing and its rendering." If you reply to threads by hand, learn a dozen of these symbols and you can format any answer without touching a toolbar.

Reddit gives you two ways to format a post or comment. The rich text editor, which Reddit's guide says was formerly called Fancy Pants, shows buttons for bold, italics, lists and links. The Markdown Editor is a plain text box where you type the symbols yourself. Both produce the same rendered comment, but only the Markdown Editor lets you paste in a reply you drafted elsewhere with its formatting intact.

Reddit's API treats markdown as the native format for replies. The Data API reference for POST /api/comment says the text field "should be the raw markdown body of the comment or message." The same endpoint accepts rich text in a separate richtext_json field.

Where can you still use Reddit markdown?

Reddit markdown works on reddit.com and old.reddit.com, and Reddit is removing it from the mobile app. Reddit's help article How do I format my comment or post? says "Markdown is only available on reddit.com and old.reddit.com," and adds that the legacy markdown editor for posts and comments in the app "are being retired, and standard markdown syntax will no longer automatically convert. Markdown will remain as is on desktop."

That has a practical consequence for anyone who answers threads from a phone. A reply with asterisks and brackets that rendered cleanly on desktop will not convert in the app once the change reaches you. Write markdown-heavy replies, such as answers with a table or a code block, on desktop, and use the rich text toolbar on mobile.

On reddit.com, the composer opens in the rich text editor by default. The Formatting Guide says that by default you submit "non-Markdown content via the Rich Text Editor," and that clicking Markdown Editor on the post screen switches you to markdown. Beyond posts and comments, Reddit lists wikis, the community submission text, a community's sidebar, community rules and profile card text as places that read markdown.

Where to write a markdown-heavy reply

Desktop

• Works on reddit.com and old.reddit.com
• The Markdown Editor reads the symbols you type
• Markdown remains as is

Mobile app

• The legacy markdown editor is being retired
• Standard markdown syntax no longer converts automatically
• Use the rich text toolbar instead

What is the Reddit markdown syntax for a reply?

The table below covers the syntax that a reply to a question uses, taken from Reddit's Formatting Guide.

Format	What you type	Notes
Italic	*italic* or _italic_	Only asterisks work inside a word
Bold	**bold** or __bold__
Strikethrough	~~text~~
Spoiler	>!text!<	Hidden until the reader clicks it
Superscript	^word or ^(two words)	Avoid the parentheses form with links
Inline code	`code`	Rendered in a monospaced font
Link	[text](https://example.com)	Include the https:// scheme
Quote	> quoted text	Starts a blockquote paragraph
Bulleted list	- item or * item
Numbered list	1. item	Old Reddit does not read 1)
Heading	# Heading to ###### Heading	Six levels
Horizontal rule	---, *** or ___
Community or user link	r/name or u/name	Linked automatically

Bare URLs that start with http:// or https:// become links on their own, and Reddit calls these, along with r/ and u/ names, autolinks. When a complex URL breaks, the guide's fix is to wrap it in angle brackets, as in <https://www.reddit.com/>.

How do line breaks and paragraphs work in Reddit markdown?

Reddit markdown joins lines that sit next to each other into one paragraph, so a reply only breaks where you leave a blank line. The Formatting Guide says line breaks "are not displayed by default," and adding extra blank lines does not add extra space either.

To force a line break inside a paragraph, end the line with two spaces or a backslash. The guide notes the backslash "only works on www.reddit.com," while two spaces work on old Reddit too. For a visible empty line, the guide's trick is a paragraph containing only  .

A reply pasted from a notes app as single-spaced lines arrives as one wall of text for exactly this reason. Put a blank line between every paragraph and every list.

How do you quote the person you are replying to?

Start a line with > and Reddit renders the whole paragraph as a blockquote. Quoting the exact sentence you answer is the clearest way to show which part of a long post you are responding to, which matters in a thread where different people asked different things.

To quote more than one paragraph, put > at the start of each one, and put > alone on the blank lines between them. Blockquotes nest with > >, and Reddit's guide shows lists, headings and tables working inside a quote. Keep it to one or two lines in practice. A reply that quotes half the post before saying anything is harder to read than one that answers first.

How do you add a link in Reddit markdown?

Put the link text in square brackets and the full URL in parentheses right after it, with no space between them: [pricing page](https://example.com/pricing). Reddit's guide says links "generally must include the URL scheme," so [a](www.reddit.com) fails where [a](https://www.reddit.com) works.

The guide's tips for bots apply to anyone pasting a drafted reply as well: a space between ] and ( "might work in old Reddit but not www.reddit.com." Reference-style links, written as [text][1] with [1]: https://... on its own line further down, keep a reply with a list of links readable while you edit it.

Every link in a reply is also a judgment call about the subreddit. A community's rules decide whether a link to your own product is allowed, and Reddit's sitewide guidance on Reddit self-promotion applies on top of that. Check the community's rules before you add one.

Which Reddit markdown differs between new and old Reddit?

Old Reddit reads a smaller set of markdown than reddit.com, so a reply that looks right on one can break on the other. Reddit's Formatting Guide closes with compatibility recommendations, and these are the ones that touch replies:

1. Use two trailing spaces for a hard line break, not a backslash, because old Reddit supports only double spaces.
2. Use 1. with a dot for numbered lists, because old Reddit does not support 1).
3. Indent code four spaces instead of fencing it with triple backticks, because old Reddit supports only indented code blocks.
4. Start and end every table row with a pipe character |.
5. Put link titles in quotes rather than parentheses, since parentheses titles work only on www.reddit.com.
6. Avoid stacked superscript, which the guide says "doesn't work on reddit.com."

Reddit still serves old.reddit.com, and a reply has no way to know which interface its reader uses. Writing to the old Reddit subset costs nothing and keeps the reply readable for everyone.

How do you stop Reddit from formatting a character?

Put a backslash before the character and Reddit prints it literally. The Formatting Guide's example is a hyphen that starts a new line inside a paragraph and turns into a list item by accident: \- keeps it as a plain dash. The same trick stops an asterisk in a price, a # at the start of a line or an underscore in a file name from changing your formatting.

Inside inline code and code blocks, Reddit applies no markdown at all, so code, commands and file paths go between backticks.

How should you format a reply that answers a buyer's question?

Format a reply the way a helpful community member would: short paragraphs, one quote of the question, a short list if there are steps, and at most one link. Heavy formatting with headings, bold on every line and a table reads as a prepared pitch, and readers who hide or downvote it do not care how clean the markdown was. Reddit's sort orders, covered in Reddit hot vs new vs top, reward replies that people engage with, not replies with the most structure.

Length is a constraint too. Our Reddit post character limit guide covers the documented limits for titles and post bodies, and markdown symbols count toward the length you submit.

RedReplier fits into this as the finding and drafting step. RedReplier watches Reddit, X, Bluesky, Facebook and Hacker News for your keywords and ranks each match by buyer intent. Matches land on your RedReplier dashboard within minutes of a post or comment going live, and email alerts go out as digests on a cadence you set per keyword, from hourly to daily. RedReplier drafts a reply from the thread and never posts it for you, so the Reddit replies workflow ends with you editing the draft, adding the formatting the subreddit expects and posting it from your own account.

Frequently asked questions

Does Reddit support markdown in comments?

Yes. Reddit supports markdown in posts and comments through the Markdown Editor on reddit.com and old.reddit.com. Reddit's help centre says the mobile app is retiring its markdown editor, and that standard markdown syntax will no longer convert automatically there.

How do I switch to the Markdown Editor on Reddit?

On reddit.com, the composer opens in the rich text editor. Reddit's Formatting Guide says to click Markdown Editor on the post screen to submit markdown instead. Old Reddit's comment box takes markdown directly.

How do I make a new line in a Reddit comment?

Leave a blank line to start a new paragraph. For a line break inside a paragraph, end the line with two spaces, which works on both new and old Reddit, or with a backslash, which Reddit's guide says works only on www.reddit.com.

How do I quote someone in a Reddit reply?

Start the line with > and Reddit turns the paragraph into a blockquote. For a quote that spans more than one paragraph, start each paragraph and each blank line between them with >.

Why is my Reddit link not working?

The link is missing its https:// scheme or has a space between the brackets and the parentheses. Reddit's guide says links "generally must include the URL scheme," and that a space between ] and ( breaks the link on www.reddit.com. Wrapping a complex bare URL in angle brackets also fixes autolinks that parse wrongly.

Does Reddit markdown work the same on old Reddit?

No. Old Reddit reads a smaller subset, so it ignores backslash line breaks, fenced code blocks and numbered lists written with 1). Reddit's Formatting Guide recommends two trailing spaces, indented code and 1. lists when you want one reply to render correctly on both.

How do I make text bold in a Reddit comment?

Wrap the words in double asterisks or double underscores, as in **bold** or __bold__. Reddit shows them as bold text once the comment is posted. Italic uses a single pair, *italic* or _italic_.

How do I add a spoiler tag in Reddit markdown?

Type >!text!< around the words you want to hide. Readers see the text only after they click it. Use it for plot details or answers you want people to reveal on purpose.

How do I put code in a Reddit comment?

Put short code, commands and file paths between single backticks. For a block, indent each line four spaces, because old Reddit supports only indented code blocks. Reddit applies no markdown inside code, so symbols stay as you typed them.

How do I stop Reddit from turning a dash into a list?

Put a backslash before the character, as in \-, and Reddit prints a plain dash. The same trick works for an asterisk in a price, a # at the start of a line and an underscore in a file name.