Why Do Programmers All Use Markdown?

My First Time Using Markdown

In 2018, I had just started coding. Back then I still wrote project docs in Word. Every time I pushed to GitLab, the code reviewer would complain:

"Your Word doc can't be diffed. Can you switch to Markdown?"

I thought it was no big deal—it's just a document, right? After a few painful "what exactly changed?" meetings, I finally understood why programmers all use Markdown.

Now I've been using it for six years, every single day. Here's my real experience.

Reason 1: Git-Friendly Version Control

This is THE biggest reason programmers use Markdown. Bar none.

Picture this: three people editing the same document simultaneously.

With Word:

• Three different versions: "doc-xiaoming-edit", "doc-xiaohong-edit", "doc-final"
• Merge? Manually compare three files, please
• Kill me now

With Markdown + Git:

• Three people, three branches
• Git automatically shows conflicts when merging
• After resolving conflicts, history is crystal clear

Real example—colleague changed an API parameter:

- "max_retries": 3
+ "max_retries": 5

One glance tells you what changed. Word's track changes? I don't want to remember.

Reason 2: Plain Text, Forever Compatible

I still have .doc files from 2005 on my computer. New Word opens them with garbled text.

But Markdown? It's just a .md plain text file. Notepad can open it. VS Code can open it. vim can open it. The cat command can display it.

Twenty years from now, your Markdown files will still open perfectly. This certainty matters to programmers.

Also, files are tiny. I wrote a 5000-word technical doc—the Markdown file was 8KB. Word would be at least 200KB+.

Reason 3: Native Code Highlighting

Programmers write docs, half the content is code.

Markdown natively supports code blocks with language-specific syntax highlighting:

```python
def hello():
    print("Hello, World!")
```

Renders to color-highlighted code, just like in your IDE.

How do you write code in Word? Change to Consolas font, manually add gray background, manually change comments to green... forget it, just thinking about it is exhausting.

Markdown also supports inline code. Mentioning a function or variable: getUserById() or MAX_RETRIES—crystal clear.

Reason 4: Cross-Platform Compatible

I write on Mac, colleague views on Windows, server runs Linux—Markdown displays perfectly everywhere.

Word? I've seen too many "it works on my machine" tragedies. Missing fonts, version incompatibility, page breaks jumping...

Markdown doesn't have these issues. It's just text plus symbols, no "rendering engine incompatibility" problems.

Reason 5: Mature Toolchain

Tools programmers use daily already natively support Markdown:

GitHub / GitLab

• README.md — every project's front door
• Issue and PR descriptions
• Wiki documentation

Editors

• VS Code has built-in Markdown preview
• JetBrains suite supports it
• vim with plugins can preview too

Documentation Tools

• Notion, Obsidian, Typora
• MkDocs, Docusaurus, GitBook
• Even Confluence supports Markdown import

This means your Markdown content flows seamlessly between tools. Notes written in Obsidian paste directly into GitHub README—formatting works perfectly.

Real Case: How Our Team Uses It

README Writing

Every project must have README.md:

# Project Name

Brief description

## Quick Start

\`\`\`bash
npm install
npm run dev
\`\`\`

## Configuration

| Parameter | Description | Default |
|-----------|-------------|--------|
| PORT | Port | 3000 |

## API Docs

See [docs/api.md](docs/api.md)

New hire joins, reads README, runs the project. No need to "go ask Xiaoming".

Tech Blog

Our company blog uses Hugo, all articles are Markdown:

1. Write article locally
2. git push to main branch
3. CI/CD auto-builds and deploys

No backend login, no rich text editor. Write, push, done.

API Documentation

We tried Word for API docs once:

• Files getting bigger, opening slower
• Code styling all manual
• Updates—who knows what changed

Switched to Markdown + Docusaurus:

• Files split by API module, each file tens of KB
• Code blocks native, write and see
• git log shows who changed what

Efficiency difference is an order of magnitude.

The Limitations

Of course, Markdown isn't perfect.

Not suitable for:

• Formal business docs to print for clients
• Complex layouts (multi-column, text wrap)
• Collaborating with non-tech people (they might not recognize .md)

My approach:

• Technical content + internal docs: Markdown
• Client contracts, business proposals: Word
• Need to convert: doc2markdown.com

Advice for Newcomers

If you're just starting to code, I strongly recommend learning Markdown.

Why:

1. One hour to learn, benefits entire career
2. GitHub, GitLab—everywhere you'll need it
3. README, Issues, PRs, Wiki—all need it
4. 90% of tech blogs are Markdown

Getting started:

1. Read basic syntax (30 minutes)
2. Fill out a GitHub project's README
3. Write an Issue or PR description
4. Practice makes perfect

Don't be stingy. Most tech teams assume programmers know Markdown. If you don't, you'll look unprofessional.

Summary

Core reasons programmers use Markdown:

1. Git-friendly: Clear version control, effortless team collaboration
2. Plain text: Forever compatible, lightweight files
3. Code highlighting: Natural advantage for technical content
4. Cross-platform: Displays perfectly on any device
5. Mature toolchain: Seamless integration with daily tools

This isn't a trend—it's a legit productivity tool. If you haven't learned it, start now.