How do I install the Markdown skill?

Run npx skillmds@latest add bsene/markdown in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

Is Markdown safe to use?

This skill has not completed SkillMD's automated safety review yet. SkillMD never runs a skill's scripts for you; review the SKILL.md before installing.

Which AI agents work with Markdown?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Markdown free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free, and the skill stays under its author's original license.

Who published Markdown?

bsene (@bsene) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Markdown by bsene — Agent Skill

Name: Markdown
Author: bsene

Markdown

GitHub Flavored Markdown (GFM) syntax reference — tables, alerts, footnotes, task lists, links, images, mentions, anchors, escaping, and common pitfalls. TRIGGER when: user asks about GFM, github flavored markdown, markdown syntax, md syntax, github markdown formatting, markdown table, markdown heading, markdown link, markdown image, task list syntax, markdown alert, GitHub callout, footnote markdown, markdown line break, markdown emoji shortcode, escape markdown special chars, section anchor, autolink. DO NOT USE when: user is composing prose content in markdown and needs no syntax help — only invoke when the question is about rendering, syntax correctness, or feature availability.

bsene ff0ee76 6 files · 12.7 KB Updated Sep 17, 2026

File contents

GitHub Flavored Markdown (GFM)

Based on the official GitHub Basic Writing and Formatting Syntax reference.

GFM is a superset of standard Markdown with GitHub-specific extensions for issues, PRs, discussions, comments, and .md files.

Syntax At A Glance

Feature	Syntax
Heading	`# H1` … `###### H6`
Bold	`text`
Italic	`_text_`
Strikethrough	`~~text~~`
Link	`[text](url)`
Image	`![alt](url)`
Code inline	`code`
Code block	``` lang … ```
Blockquote	`> text`
Unordered list	`- item`
Ordered list	`1. item`
Task list	`- [ ] task` / `- [x] done`
Alert	`> [!NOTE]` / `[!TIP]` / `[!WARNING]` / `[!IMPORTANT]` / `[!CAUTION]`
Footnote	`text[^1]` … `[^1]: note`
Mention	`@user` / `@org/team`
Issue ref	`#42`
Emoji	`:tada:`
Escape	`\literal\`
Comment	`<!-- hidden -->`

Read On Demand

Read When	File
One-line syntax lookup for any GFM feature	Quick Reference
Headings, text styling, code blocks, line breaks, escaping	Text & Headings
Links (inline, section, relative, custom anchors), images	Links & Images
Ordered/unordered lists, nesting, task lists	Lists & Tasks
Alerts, footnotes, mentions, emojis	Alerts, Footnotes & Mentions

Common Pitfalls

Line breaks in .md files require two trailing spaces, a \, or <br/> — a plain newline won't break the line.
Nested list indentation must visually align the child marker under the first text character of the parent item.
Section anchor generation: lowercase, spaces become -, all other punctuation stripped. Duplicate headings get -1, -2 suffixes — update any links if you reorder headings.
Alerts cannot be nested inside other elements and should be used sparingly.
Footnotes are not supported in GitHub wikis.
Color swatches (`#hex`, `rgb()`, `hsl()`) only render in issues, PRs, and discussions — not in plain .md file views.
Custom anchors (<a name="">) are not included in the auto-generated table of contents.

Benchmark

Scenario: .benchmarks/scenarios/markdown-001-wiki-limits.md · Run: 2026-08-31 · Log: .benchmarks/runs/2026-08-31/markdown-001-wiki-limits.json

Model	Without	With	Delta
claude-opus-4-8	100%	100%	+0%
claude-sonnet-4-6	100%	100%	+0%
claude-haiku-4-5	80%	100%	+20%

SOFT PASS (run 2026-08-31). Haiku +20 (80→100); opus/sonnet at ceiling. Gate per .agents/skills/skill-optimizer/rules/release-gates.md.

---name: markdowndescription: GitHub Flavored Markdown (GFM) syntax reference — tables, alerts, footnotes, task lists, links, images, mentions, anchors, escaping, and common pitfalls. TRIGGER when: user asks about GFM, github flavored markdown, markdown syntax, md syntax, github markdown formatting, markdown table, markdown heading, markdown link, markdown image, task list syntax, markdown alert, GitHub callout, footnote markdown, markdown line break, markdown emoji shortcode, escape markdown special chars, section anchor, autolink. DO NOT USE when: user is composing prose content in markdown and needs no syntax help — only invoke when the question is about rendering, syntax correctness, or feature availability.---# GitHub Flavored Markdown (GFM)> Based on the official [GitHub Basic Writing and Formatting Syntax](https://docs.github.com/en/get-started/writing-on-github/getting-started-with-writing-and-formatting-on-github/basic-writing-and-formatting-syntax) reference.GFM is a superset of standard Markdown with GitHub-specific extensions for issues, PRs, discussions, comments, and `.md` files.---## Syntax At A Glance| Feature | Syntax || -------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------- || Heading | `# H1` … `###### H6` || Bold | `**text**` || Italic | `_text_` || Strikethrough | `~~text~~` || Link | `[text](url)` || Image | `![alt](url)` || Code inline | `` `code` `` || Code block | ` ``` lang ` … ` ``` ` || Blockquote | `> text` || Unordered list | `- item` || Ordered list | `1. item` || Task list | `- [ ] task` / `- [x] done` || Alert | `> [!NOTE]` / `[!TIP]` / `[!WARNING]` / `[!IMPORTANT]` / `[!CAUTION]` || Footnote | `text[^1]` … `[^1]: note` || Mention | `@user` / `@org/team` || Issue ref | `#42` || Emoji | `:tada:` || Escape | `\*literal\*` || Comment | `` |---## Read On Demand| Read When | File || ---------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- || One-line syntax lookup for any GFM feature | [Quick Reference](references/quick-ref.md) || Headings, text styling, code blocks, line breaks, escaping | [Text & Headings](references/text-and-headings.md) || Links (inline, section, relative, custom anchors), images | [Links & Images](references/links-and-images.md) || Ordered/unordered lists, nesting, task lists | [Lists & Tasks](references/lists-and-tasks.md) || Alerts, footnotes, mentions, emojis | [Alerts, Footnotes & Mentions](references/alerts-footnotes-mentions.md) |---## Common Pitfalls- **Line breaks in `.md` files** require two trailing spaces, a `\`, or `<br/>` — a plain newline won't break the line.- **Nested list indentation** must visually align the child marker under the first text character of the parent item.- **Section anchor generation**: lowercase, spaces become `-`, all other punctuation stripped. Duplicate headings get `-1`, `-2` suffixes — update any links if you reorder headings.- **Alerts cannot be nested** inside other elements and should be used sparingly.- **Footnotes are not supported in GitHub wikis.**- **Color swatches** (`` `#hex` ``, `` `rgb()` ``, `` `hsl()` ``) only render in issues, PRs, and discussions — not in plain `.md` file views.- **Custom anchors** (`<a name="">`) are not included in the auto-generated table of contents.---## BenchmarkScenario: `.benchmarks/scenarios/markdown-001-wiki-limits.md` · Run: 2026-08-31 · Log: `.benchmarks/runs/2026-08-31/markdown-001-wiki-limits.json`| Model | Without | With | Delta || ----------------- | ------- | ---- | ----- || claude-opus-4-8 | 100% | 100% | +0% || claude-sonnet-4-6 | 100% | 100% | +0% || claude-haiku-4-5 | 80% | 100% | +20% |> **SOFT PASS (run 2026-08-31)**. Haiku +20 (80→100); opus/sonnet at ceiling. Gate per `.agents/skills/skill-optimizer/rules/release-gates.md`.

Frequently asked questions