The Native-First, High-Performance Markdown Plugin for JavaScript

Markdown text editor plugin that transforms a native textarea into a full editing suite — no sync required. WYSIWYG and plain Markdown modes, live preview, find & replace, RTL support, dark mode. Works with Django, Laravel, Rails, Node.js, PHP, and any stack.

Installation

NPM (bundlers: Vite, webpack, Rollup, etc.)

npm install markdown-text-editor

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import MarkdownEditor from 'markdown-text-editor';
new MarkdownEditor('#markdown-editor');

CDN: ES module

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<script type="module">
  import MarkdownEditor from 'https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/markdown-text-editor/+esm';
  new MarkdownEditor('#markdown-editor');
</script>

CDN: global script tag (IIFE)

No import needed — MarkdownEditor is available as a global variable automatically.

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<form action="/api/save" method="POST">
  <textarea id="markdown-editor" name="content"># Hello World</textarea>
  <button type="submit">Save Content</button>
</form>

<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/markdown-text-editor"></script>
<script>
  new MarkdownEditor('#markdown-editor');
</script>

Markdown Editor Demo

Quick Start

Pass an options object to customise the editor. All options are optional — omit any to use the default value.

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const editor = new MarkdownEditor('#markdown-editor', {
  placeholder: 'Write your markdown...',
  toolbar: ['heading', 'bold', 'italic', 'strikethrough', 'ul', 'ol', 'checklist', 'blockquote', 'link', 'preview'],
});

The Philosophy: "Native-First"

Most editors break the standard web workflow. MarkdownEditor embraces it. Because it sits directly on top of a <textarea>, you don't need to learn a new way to handle data.

• No Data Binding Needed: Works with <form method="POST"> out of the box
• Standard Access: Use document.getElementById('editor').value just like a normal input.
• Backend Agnostic: Works with any backend (Python, Node.js, PHP, etc.) just like a normal form field

MarkdownEditor vs EasyMDE / SimpleMDE

Most JavaScript markdown editors — EasyMDE, SimpleMDE, CodeMirror-based editors — replace your <textarea> with a custom element. That means form submission breaks, .value returns nothing, and you have to write extra code just to read the content back out. MarkdownEditor is different — it enhances your existing textarea and never replaces it.

Framework Integration

Because MarkdownEditor preserves the native <textarea>, it integrates with every backend framework without any extra code. Your server receives the markdown content exactly as it would from any standard form field.

Django

Add a class to your textarea widget and initialize the editor — request.POST['content'] works with no extra steps.

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# forms.py
class PostForm(forms.ModelForm):
    class Meta:
        model = Post
        fields = ['content']
        widgets = {
            'content': forms.Textarea(attrs={'class': 'markdown-editor'}),
        }

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new MarkdownEditor('.markdown-editor');
// request.POST['content'] contains the markdown on submit

Laravel

Use f.text_area with a class — $request->input('content') receives the markdown directly.

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<textarea name="content" class="markdown-editor">{{ old('content') }}</textarea>
<script>new MarkdownEditor('.markdown-editor');</script>

Ruby on Rails

Works with form_with out of the box — params[:content] contains the markdown. For Turbo Drive, use turbo:load instead of DOMContentLoaded.

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document.addEventListener('turbo:load', () => {
    document.querySelectorAll('.markdown-editor:not([data-mde-init])').forEach(el => {
        el.setAttribute('data-mde-init', 'true');
        new MarkdownEditor(el);
    });
});

Node.js / Express

req.body.content receives the markdown on form submit — no sync step, no custom extraction.

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<textarea name="content" class="markdown-editor"></textarea>
<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/markdown-text-editor"></script>
<script>new MarkdownEditor('.markdown-editor');</script>

PHP

$_POST['content'] works exactly as with any standard textarea — drop it in and your existing form handling requires zero changes.

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<form method="POST" action="save.php">
  <textarea name="content" class="markdown-editor"></textarea>
  <button type="submit">Save</button>
</form>
<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/markdown-text-editor"></script>
<script>new MarkdownEditor('.markdown-editor');</script>

Configuration

You can fully customize the editor's behavior and interface by passing an options object. If you omit an option, the default value is used.

🛠 Toolbar Customization

The toolbar is modular. You can create a minimal experience or a full-featured power suite by modifying the array.

Available Tools

Tool Reference

💡 Implementation Tips:

• Reordering: The buttons appear in the exact order you list them in the array
• Removing: Simply omit any key (like image) from the array to disable that feature entirely for the user
• Native Fallback: If you don't provide a placeholder in JS, the plugin will automatically use the placeholder attribute from your HTML <textarea>

📊 Footer (Status Bar)

The footer sits below the editor and shows the cursor's line, column, the document's character count, and optionally the word count — all updated in real time. It is visible by default and each stat can be toggled independently.

Usage Examples

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// Default — line, col, and chars visible
new MarkdownEditor('#editor');

// Disable the footer entirely
new MarkdownEditor('#editor', { footer: false });

// Hide only character count
new MarkdownEditor('#editor', { footer: { chars: false } });

// Hide line and column, keep character count
new MarkdownEditor('#editor', { footer: { line: false, col: false } });

// Show only line number
new MarkdownEditor('#editor', { footer: { col: false, chars: false } });

// Enable word count alongside the defaults
new MarkdownEditor('#editor', { footer: { words: true } });

// Show word count only
new MarkdownEditor('#editor', { footer: { line: false, col: false, chars: false, words: true } });

🔀 Editing Modes

MarkdownEditor offers two distinct ways to write and format your content. You can toggle between a traditional syntax-focused view or a modern, visual-first experience.

• plain (Default): A clean, high-performance Markdown environment where syntax (like **bold** or # heading) is visible. Ideal for developers and Markdown purists
• hybrid: A WYSIWYG-inspired experience that renders formatting (Bold, Italics, Headings) in real-time as you type, while still maintaining the underlying Markdown structure.

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// Default initialization (Plain Mode)
new MarkdownEditor('#markdown-editor');

// Explicit Plain Mode
new MarkdownEditor('#markdown-editor', {
    mode: 'plain'
});

// Hybrid (Visual) Mode
new MarkdownEditor('#markdown-editor', {
    mode: 'hybrid'
});

Hybrid and Plain Mode Preview:

Hybrid Mode

Visual formatting is rendered in real-time while you type.

Plain Mode (Default)

Focuses on raw Markdown syntax for a lightweight experience.

🌙 Theming

MarkdownEditor automatically inherits its theme from the surrounding page — no configuration required. The editor reads data-theme from the nearest ancestor at initialisation, so it stays in sync with your site's theme out of the box.

How theme is resolved (priority order)

1. theme option — explicit override passed in the options object
2. data-theme on the <textarea> — set directly on the element
3. data-theme on any ancestor — e.g. <html>, <body>, or a wrapper <div>

Available themes

'light' (default), 'dark', 'snowberry', 'darkberry'

Option 1 — inherit from <html> or any ancestor (zero config)

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<html data-theme="dark">
  ...
  <textarea id="markdown-editor"></textarea>
  <script>
    new MarkdownEditor('#markdown-editor'); // picks up dark automatically
  </script>

Option 2 — set data-theme directly on the <textarea>

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<textarea id="markdown-editor" data-theme="dark"></textarea>
<script>
  new MarkdownEditor('#markdown-editor');
</script>

Option 3 — explicit theme option (overrides everything)

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new MarkdownEditor('#markdown-editor', {
    theme: 'dark'
});

🎨 Custom Theme via CSS Variables

You can fully customize the editor's look by overriding its CSS variables on the .markdown-editor-wrapper element or any [data-theme] selector. All colors use the OKLCH color space for perceptually uniform results.

Custom theme example

Override any variable on .markdown-editor-wrapper after the editor initialises, or define a custom [data-theme] block in your stylesheet:

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/* Override individual variables */
.markdown-editor-wrapper {
    --color-primary: oklch(60% 0.2 30);   /* orange accent */
    --border-radius: 0.5rem;
}

/* Or define a full custom theme */
[data-theme="brand"] .markdown-editor-wrapper,
.markdown-editor-wrapper[data-theme="brand"] {
    --color-base:       oklch(15% 0.01 250);
    --color-on-base:    oklch(95% 0 0);
    --color-primary:    oklch(65% 0.22 145);   /* green */
    --color-on-primary: oklch(10% 0 0);
    --color-accent:     oklch(75% 0.18 60);
    --color-neutral:    oklch(80% 0 0);
    --border-radius:    0.75rem;
}

new MarkdownEditor('#markdown-editor', { theme: 'brand' });

Content API

One of the core strengths of MarkdownEditor is that it keeps the underlying <textarea> perfectly synchronized. Whether you are using a modern JavaScript framework or a traditional backend like Django, PHP, or Laravel, the workflow remains simple and native.

Reading and Writing Content

1. The Native Way (Recommended)

Because the editor enhances a standard textarea, you can use familiar DOM methods. This is the fastest way to interact with your data without learning a new API.

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// Retrieve content via ID
const markdown = document.getElementById('markdown-editor').value;

// Set content via ID (The editor UI updates automatically)
document.getElementById('markdown-editor').value = "# New Heading Content";

2. Using a Variable Reference

If you have a reference to the textarea element, you can use it directly — no library-specific API needed.

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const textarea = document.getElementById('markdown-editor');

// Retrieve content
const markdown = textarea.value;

// Set content (the editor UI reflects this immediately)
textarea.value = "## Updated via JS";

3. Setting initial content server-side

The recommended way to set initial content is directly in the <textarea> HTML — this works naturally with every backend framework (Django, Laravel, Rails, PHP, etc.) and the editor renders it automatically on init.

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<!-- Recommended: set content server-side -->
<textarea id="markdown-editor"># Hello World</textarea>

To read or update content at runtime, use the native textarea value. Call editor.render() after an update to refresh the preview and hybrid layer.

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const textarea = document.getElementById('markdown-editor');

// Read
const markdown = textarea.value;

// Update at runtime
textarea.value = '# New content';
editor.render();

4. Tearing down the editor — destroy()

Call editor.destroy() to remove the editor DOM wrapper and restore the original <textarea> to its position in the document. Useful in single-page applications when unmounting a view.

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const editor = new MarkdownEditor('#markdown-editor');

// Remove the editor and restore the plain textarea
editor.destroy();

Reacting to changes with onChange

Pass an onChange callback to be notified on every content change. Receives the current markdown string.

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const editor = new MarkdownEditor('#markdown-editor', {
    onChange(value) {
        console.log('Content changed:', value.length, 'characters');
    }
});

Draft auto-save with localStorage

Use onChange to save a draft on every keystroke. Restore it by pre-filling the textarea before initialising the editor.

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const DRAFT_KEY = 'my-page-draft';

// Restore saved draft before init (only if textarea starts empty)
const textarea = document.getElementById('markdown-editor');
const saved = localStorage.getItem(DRAFT_KEY);
if (saved && !textarea.value) textarea.value = saved;

// Save on every change
const editor = new MarkdownEditor('#markdown-editor', {
    onChange(value) {
        localStorage.setItem(DRAFT_KEY, value);
    }
});

// Clear draft after successful form submission
document.querySelector('form').addEventListener('submit', () => {
    localStorage.removeItem(DRAFT_KEY);
});

Form Submission

Because MarkdownEditor is built directly on the native <textarea>, it is compatible with every backend framework (Django, Laravel, PHP, Ruby on Rails, etc.) right out of the box.

This is where the "Native-First" philosophy shines. You don't need to manually sync data before submitting a form. The browser treats the editor exactly like a standard input field.

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<form method="POST" action="/api/submit">
  <textarea id="markdown-editor" name="content" class="h-48" rows="5">
    # Initial Content
  </textarea>

  <button type="submit">Submit to Server</button>
</form>

<script>
  // Just initialize it. That's it.
  new MarkdownEditor('#markdown-editor');
</script>

Note: MarkdownEditor plugin initialization mandatory

Just use a standard HTML <form>. The name attribute on the textarea is what your server will use to identify the content.

🚀 Why it's a Game-Changer for Backends

Since the editor preserves the native <textarea> behavior, your server handles the data as a standard string. There is zero extra logic required—no preventDefault() and no manual FormData construction.

💡 Why this is a "Killer Feature":

Most editors (like Quill, Editor.js, simpleMDE, easyMDE) save data in complex JSON structures. If a developer uses those, they have to rewrite their database schema and their rendering logic.

With MarkdownEditor, a developer can take an old website, replace a plain <textarea> with your editor, and the backend doesn't even know it changed. It just receives the same raw text it always did, but the user gets a 10x better experience.

🖼️ Advanced Image Upload

Handling image uploads natively—rather than relying on slow, memory-heavy Base64 strings—is a significant win for both performance and SEO.

Configuration Options

The image tool supports a fileInput configuration to handle direct server uploads.

• accept: Define an array of allowed image formats (e.g., 'webp', 'avif')
• uploadUrl: Specify the backend endpoint where the File object will be sent via POST
• params: Optional object to send additional data (like CSRF tokens, user IDs, or folder names) alongside the image file

Usage example (Full Config)

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const options = {
  placeholder: 'Start writing...',
  toolbar: [
    'link',
    {
      image: {
        fileInput: {
            accept: ['webp', 'avif'], // restrict the image upload format
            uploadUrl: '/api/upload', // Your upload endpoint
            params: {
                _token: 'your_csrf_token_here', // Essential for Laravel/Django
                folder: 'blog_posts'
            }
        },
        // Supports boolean: true/false OR object: { required: true }
        altInput: { required: true }
      }
    },
    'preview'
  ],
}
const editor = new MarkdownEditor('#markdown-editor', options);

📡 Server Integration

The Request

The editor sends a POST request as multipart/form-data. By default, it includes:

• image_file: The actual file object
• image_alt: The alt text entered by the user
• ...plus any custom data defined in the params object

The Required Response

To confirm a successful upload and insert the image into the editor, your server must return the following JSON structure:

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{
  "success": true,
  "image_path": "https://cdn.yourdomain.com/uploads/image.webp"
}

Note: Ensure you use the key image_path for the URL of the uploaded image.

Image Alt Text Validation (altInput)

To ensure your content remains accessible and SEO-friendly, MarkdownEditor enforces alt text validation by default.

• Default Behavior: If altInput is not defined, it defaults to { required: true }
• Enforce Accessibility: Users will be prevented from inserting an image until an alt description is provided

1. Default (No configuration needed)

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// Alt text is REQUIRED by default
image: {
  fileInput: { uploadUrl: '/api/upload' }
}

2. Shorthand (Disable Validation)

If you want to allow images without descriptions, simply set the boolean to false.

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image: {
  altInput: false // Users can now skip the alt text field
}

3. Object-based (Explicit)

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image: {
    altInput: {
        required: false // Disables alt text validation — users can skip the alt field
    }
}

Standard Image Usage (No fileInput)

If fileInput is not configured, the editor defaults to a simple URL-based modal. This is ideal if your users are mostly linking to external image hosts.

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const options = {
  toolbar: [
    'link',
    'image',
    'preview'
  ],
}
const editor = new MarkdownEditor('#markdown-editor', options);

💡 Why use params?

In frameworks like Laravel or Django, you cannot upload files without a CSRF token. By adding _token to the params object, your request will pass through the backend's security middleware seamlessly, maintaining the "Zero Logic" philosophy for your server-side controllers.

⌨️ Keyboard Shortcuts

Common formatting actions can be triggered directly from the keyboard without touching the toolbar. Each shortcut is also shown in the corresponding toolbar button's tooltip.

🔍 Find & Replace

A built-in find and replace panel is available inside the editor — no browser extension or separate tool needed.

• Press Ctrl + F (or ⌘ F) to open the Find panel
• Press Ctrl + H (or ⌘ H) to open the Find & Replace panel
• Search is case-insensitive and shows a live match counter (e.g. 3 of 12)
• Navigate matches with the ▲ / ▼ buttons or Enter / Shift + Enter
• Replace replaces the current highlighted match; Replace All replaces every occurrence at once
• Press Escape to close the panel and return focus to the editor

The panel floats in the top-right corner of the editor content area and does not interrupt writing.

Features

Full Configuration Example

Use this comprehensive example to initialize MarkdownEditor with all primary features, including custom toolbar ordering and advanced image upload handling.

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const editor = new MarkdownEditor('#markdown-editor', {
    mode: 'hybrid',
    placeholder: 'Start writing...',
    footer: {
        line: true,
        col: true,
        chars: true,
        words: true,
    },
    onChange(value) {
        console.log('Content updated:', value.length, 'characters');
    },
    toolbar: [
        'heading', 'bold', 'italic', 'strikethrough', 'blockquote',
        'ul', 'ol', 'checklist',
        'code', 'codeblock', 'hr', 'table',
        {
            image: {
                fileInput: {
                    accept: ['webp', 'avif', 'png'],
                    uploadUrl: '/api/upload'
                }
            }
        },
        'link', 'undo', 'redo', 'indent', 'outdent', 'preview'
    ],
});

// Read content natively
const markdown = document.getElementById('markdown-editor').value;

// destroy() when the view unmounts (SPAs)
// editor.destroy();