QuireHow to open .md files on a Mac
Short answer: macOS has no Markdown renderer of its own. TextEdit opens a .md file as plain text, and Quick Look shows the raw text too unless you add a Markdown extension.
To read it formatted, add a Quick Look extension, use an app such as VS Code, Typora or Obsidian, or open it in a viewer in Chrome.
Updated 15 October 2026. Steps follow Apple’s and each app’s documentation; Chrome’s plain-text behaviour was checked on a Mac.
Plain text, then a formatted Quick Look
- Open it as text
Control-click the .md file in Finder and choose Open With › TextEdit. You see the Markdown source.
- Add a Quick Look extension
Install a Markdown Quick Look extension from the Mac App Store, such as PreviewMarkdown, and open the app once so macOS registers it.
- Turn the extension on
Open System Settings › General › Login Items & Extensions, click the info button next to Quick Look and switch the Markdown extension on.
- Preview with Space
Select the .md file in Finder and press Space to see it formatted.
- Choose a default app
Select the file, choose File › Get Info, pick an app under Open with and click Change All.
Apple’s help describes Quick Look and Change All. PreviewMarkdown is one free-standing Quick Look extension for macOS Big Sur and later; its author notes that if previews don’t appear you may need to log out and back in. Several paid ones exist too.
Apps that show Markdown formatted
- VS Code (free). Open the file and press ⇧⌘V for a preview, or ⌘K V for one beside the source. Good if you will edit the file.
- Typora ($14.99 after a 15-day trial, per typora.io). An editor that formats as you type, with no separate preview pane, and exports to PDF and HTML.
- Obsidian (free for personal use, per its pricing page). A notes app that works on a folder of .md files; use Open folder as vault to point it at an existing folder. It suits a collection of notes better than a single file.
- Google Drive. Since October 2026, Drive previews Markdown files formatted: upload, then right-click and choose Open with › Preview.
In Chrome, with Quire Markdown
Quire Markdown is our extension, free on the Chrome Web Store. Chrome on a Mac shows a .md file as plain text; with Quire you click the toolbar icon, choose Open file (or press ⌘+O in the viewer) and read it formatted, with a heading outline, find, and rendered, source or split views.
- Choose a file with Open file and Follow file updates the page as the file changes, which is handy when another app is writing it.
- It is a viewer, not an editor, and never changes your file. It opens UTF-8 files up to 2 MB.
- Images appear as blocked references, and diagrams and math aren’t drawn.
Questions
Can Preview open .md files?
Preview is for PDFs and images. A Markdown file is text, so use TextEdit for the source or one of the options above to see it formatted.
Why does TextEdit show # and * characters?
Those characters are the Markdown formatting. TextEdit shows the text as written; a Markdown app turns # into a heading and * into a list or emphasis.