QuireHow to print a Markdown file or save it as a PDF
Short answer: printing the raw .md file gives you the Markdown characters, not formatting. Render it first, then print or export. The quickest route is a browser viewer plus Chrome’s Save as PDF. For repeatable conversions, use VS Code’s Markdown PDF extension, Typora’s export, or pandoc.
Updated 15 October 2026. Third-party steps follow each tool’s documentation.
From Chrome
Quire Markdown is our extension, free on the Chrome Web Store. Its print layout is made for paper.
- Open the file formatted
Open the .md file in Quire Markdown with Open file, or drop it onto the viewer.
- Choose Print
Open the viewer’s More menu and choose Print / save as PDF.
- Pick Save as PDF
In Chrome’s print dialog, set Destination to Save as PDF, or choose a printer.
- Save
Click Save (or Print) and choose where to put the file.
What the printout includes: only the rendered document. The toolbar, outline and copy buttons are left out, long code lines wrap instead of being cut off, tables use the full page width, and level-2 headings aren’t left stranded at the bottom of a page.
What it doesn’t: images in the document aren’t loaded, so they print as “[Image not loaded: …]” labels. Mermaid diagrams and math print as their source. If you need those, use one of the tools below.
VS Code: the Markdown PDF extension
VS Code has no PDF export built in. The popular Markdown PDF extension adds commands such as Markdown PDF: Export (pdf) to the Command Palette and the right-click menu. It also exports HTML, PNG and JPEG.
- It uses an installed Chrome, Edge or Chromium to make the PDF, and downloads a Chromium build on first use if it finds none.
- It draws Mermaid diagrams. By default it loads the Mermaid library from a CDN, so that part needs a connection.
Typora
Typora exports to PDF from File › Export › PDF, using its current theme. It can export HTML and images itself, and other formats such as Word through pandoc. Typora costs $14.99 after a 15-day trial.
pandoc
pandoc is a free command-line converter. The simplest command is:
pandoc notes.md -o notes.pdf
By default pandoc makes PDFs through LaTeX, which must be installed separately and produces a typeset, academic look. To use HTML and CSS instead, name an HTML-based engine, for example pandoc notes.md --pdf-engine=weasyprint -o notes.pdf with WeasyPrint installed. pandoc suits scripts and batches; for one file, the options above are quicker.
Questions
Can I convert Markdown to PDF without uploading it?
Yes. Every method on this page runs on your computer: Chrome’s Save as PDF, VS Code, Typora and pandoc. The one exception is the Markdown PDF extension’s default Mermaid setting, which fetches the Mermaid library (not your document) from a CDN.
Why are the images missing from my PDF?
If you printed from Quire Markdown, that is expected: it never loads images in a document. Use VS Code with the Markdown PDF extension, Typora or pandoc when the PDF needs its pictures.