remark vs markdown-it vs showdown
Markdown Parsing Libraries
remarkmarkdown-itshowdownSimilar Packages:

Markdown Parsing Libraries

Markdown parsing libraries are essential tools in web development that convert Markdown text into HTML. These libraries facilitate the integration of Markdown content into web applications, allowing developers to easily manage and render formatted text. They support various Markdown features and extensions, enabling a flexible and customizable approach to content rendering. By using these libraries, developers can enhance user experience through rich text formatting while maintaining simplicity in content management.

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remark3,527,9838,80615.7 kB83 years agoMIT
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Feature Comparison: remark vs markdown-it vs showdown

Performance

  • remark:

    remark's performance is generally good, but it may be slower than markdown-it due to its more extensive plugin architecture and processing capabilities. However, its performance can be optimized by selectively applying plugins and transformations.

  • markdown-it:

    markdown-it is designed for speed and efficiency, making it one of the fastest Markdown parsers available. It uses a streaming approach, allowing for quick processing of large Markdown documents without significant performance overhead.

  • showdown:

    showdown offers decent performance for basic Markdown conversion tasks. While it may not be as fast as markdown-it, it is sufficient for most simple applications where speed is not the primary concern.

Extensibility

  • remark:

    remark excels in extensibility, as it is built on a plugin architecture that allows for easy integration of various transformations and linting tools. This makes it ideal for projects that need to process Markdown in complex ways.

  • markdown-it:

    markdown-it is highly extensible, allowing developers to create custom plugins to add new features or modify existing behavior. This makes it suitable for projects that require specific Markdown syntax or additional functionality.

  • showdown:

    showdown has limited extensibility compared to markdown-it and remark. While it supports some basic options for customization, it does not have a robust plugin system, making it less suitable for projects requiring extensive modifications.

Learning Curve

  • remark:

    remark has a steeper learning curve due to its plugin-based architecture and the unified ecosystem. Developers may need to familiarize themselves with various plugins and their configurations to fully leverage its capabilities.

  • markdown-it:

    markdown-it has a moderate learning curve, especially for developers familiar with Markdown. Its API is straightforward, but understanding how to effectively use plugins may require additional learning.

  • showdown:

    showdown is easy to learn and use, making it an excellent choice for beginners. Its simple API allows developers to quickly integrate Markdown conversion into their applications without extensive setup.

Customization

  • remark:

    remark provides a high level of customization through its plugin system, enabling developers to create tailored processing pipelines for Markdown content. This is particularly useful for projects that require specific formatting or linting rules.

  • markdown-it:

    markdown-it allows for extensive customization of the parsing process, including the ability to define custom rules and modify the rendering output. This flexibility is beneficial for projects with specific formatting requirements.

  • showdown:

    showdown offers limited customization options, primarily focusing on basic Markdown to HTML conversion. While it allows for some configuration, it does not provide the same level of flexibility as markdown-it or remark.

Community and Support

  • remark:

    remark benefits from being part of the unified ecosystem, which has a growing community and support. However, it may not be as widely adopted as markdown-it, leading to fewer resources available for troubleshooting.

  • markdown-it:

    markdown-it has a strong community and is widely used in various projects, ensuring good support and a wealth of resources for developers. Its popularity means that finding solutions to common issues is relatively easy.

  • showdown:

    showdown has a smaller community compared to markdown-it and remark, but it still provides adequate support and documentation for basic use cases. Developers may find fewer resources for advanced customization.

How to Choose: remark vs markdown-it vs showdown

  • remark:

    Select remark if you prefer a more structured and plugin-based approach to Markdown processing. Remark is built on the unified ecosystem, making it ideal for projects that require extensive transformations and analysis of Markdown content, such as linting and formatting.

  • markdown-it:

    Choose markdown-it if you need a fast and extensible Markdown parser that supports a wide range of plugins and customizations. It is particularly suitable for projects that require high performance and flexibility in rendering Markdown with additional features.

  • showdown:

    Opt for showdown if you need a straightforward and easy-to-use Markdown to HTML converter. It is particularly useful for simple applications where you want to convert Markdown to HTML without the need for extensive customization or plugins.

README for remark

remark

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unified processor with support for parsing from markdown and serializing to markdown.

Contents

What is this?

This package is a unified processor with support for parsing markdown as input and serializing markdown as output by using unified with remark-parse and remark-stringify.

See the monorepo readme for info on what the remark ecosystem is.

When should I use this?

You can use this package when you want to use unified, have markdown as input, and want markdown as output. This package is a shortcut for unified().use(remarkParse).use(remarkStringify). When the input isn’t markdown (meaning you don’t need remark-parse) or the output is not markdown (you don’t need remark-stringify), it’s recommended to use unified directly.

When you want to inspect and format markdown files in a project on the command line, you can use remark-cli.

Install

This package is ESM only. In Node.js (version 16+), install with npm:

npm install remark

In Deno with esm.sh:

import {remark} from 'https://esm.sh/remark@15'

In browsers with esm.sh:

<script type="module">
  import {remark} from 'https://esm.sh/remark@15?bundle'
</script>

Use

Say we have the following module example.js:

import {remark} from 'remark'
import remarkToc from 'remark-toc'

const doc = `
# Pluto

Pluto is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt.

## Contents

## History

### Discovery

In the 1840s, Urbain Le Verrier used Newtonian mechanics to predict the position of…

### Name and symbol

The name Pluto is for the Roman god of the underworld, from a Greek epithet for Hades…

### Planet X disproved

Once Pluto was found, its faintness and lack of a viewable disc cast doubt…

## Orbit

Pluto's orbital period is about 248 years…
`

const file = await remark()
  .use(remarkToc, {heading: 'contents', tight: true})
  .process(doc)

console.error(String(file))

…running that with node example.js yields:

# Pluto

Pluto is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt.

## Contents

* [History](https://www.npmjs.com/package/remark#history)
  * [Discovery](https://www.npmjs.com/package/remark#discovery)
  * [Name and symbol](https://www.npmjs.com/package/remark#name-and-symbol)
  * [Planet X disproved](https://www.npmjs.com/package/remark#planet-x-disproved)
* [Orbit](https://www.npmjs.com/package/remark#orbit)

## History

### Discovery

In the 1840s, Urbain Le Verrier used Newtonian mechanics to predict the position of…

### Name and symbol

The name Pluto is for the Roman god of the underworld, from a Greek epithet for Hades…

### Planet X disproved

Once Pluto was found, its faintness and lack of a viewable disc cast doubt…

## Orbit

Pluto's orbital period is about 248 years…

API

This package exports the identifier remark. There is no default export.

remark()

Create a new unified processor that already uses remark-parse and remark-stringify.

You can add more plugins with use. See unified for more information.

Examples

Example: checking markdown

The following example checks that markdown code style is consistent and follows some best practices:

import {remark} from 'remark'
import remarkPresetLintConsistent from 'remark-preset-lint-consistent'
import remarkPresetLintRecommended from 'remark-preset-lint-recommended'
import {reporter} from 'vfile-reporter'

const file = await remark()
  .use(remarkPresetLintConsistent)
  .use(remarkPresetLintRecommended)
  .process('1) Hello, _Jupiter_ and *Neptune*!')

console.error(reporter(file))

Yields:

          warning Missing newline character at end of file final-newline             remark-lint
1:1-1:35  warning Marker style should be `.`               ordered-list-marker-style remark-lint
1:4       warning Incorrect list-item indent: add 1 space  list-item-indent          remark-lint
1:25-1:34 warning Emphasis should use `_` as a marker      emphasis-marker           remark-lint

⚠ 4 warnings

Example: passing options to remark-stringify

When you use remark-stringify manually you can pass options to use. Because remark-stringify is already used in remark, that’s not possible. To define options for remark-stringify, you can instead pass options to data:

import {remark} from 'remark'

const doc = `
# Moons of Neptune

1. Naiad
2. Thalassa
3. Despine
4. …
`

const file = await remark()
  .data('settings', {
    bulletOrdered: ')',
    incrementListMarker: false,
    setext: true
  })
  .process(doc)

console.log(String(file))

Yields:

Moons of Neptune
================

1) Naiad
1) Thalassa
1) Despine
1) …

Syntax

Markdown is parsed and serialized according to CommonMark. Other plugins can add support for syntax extensions.

Syntax tree

The syntax tree used in remark is mdast.

Types

This package is fully typed with TypeScript. There are no extra exported types.

It also registers Settings with unified. If you’re passing options with .data('settings', …), make sure to import this package somewhere in your types, as that registers the fields.

/// <reference types="remark" />

import {unified} from 'unified'

// @ts-expect-error: `thisDoesNotExist` is not a valid option.
unified().data('settings', {thisDoesNotExist: false})

Compatibility

Projects maintained by the unified collective are compatible with maintained versions of Node.js.

When we cut a new major release, we drop support for unmaintained versions of Node. This means we try to keep the current release line, remark@^15, compatible with Node.js 16.

Security

As markdown can be turned into HTML and improper use of HTML can open you up to cross-site scripting (XSS) attacks, use of remark can be unsafe. When going to HTML, you will combine remark with rehype, in which case you should use rehype-sanitize.

Use of remark plugins could also open you up to other attacks. Carefully assess each plugin and the risks involved in using them.

For info on how to submit a report, see our security policy.

Contribute

See contributing.md in remarkjs/.github for ways to get started. See support.md for ways to get help. Join us in Discussions to chat with the community and contributors.

This project has a code of conduct. By interacting with this repository, organization, or community you agree to abide by its terms.

Sponsor

Support this effort and give back by sponsoring on OpenCollective!

Vercel

Motif

HashiCorp

GitBook

Gatsby

Netlify

Coinbase

ThemeIsle

Expo

Boost Note

Markdown Space

Holloway


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License

MIT © Titus Wormer