Discord Text Formatting Guide

The complete Discord markdown syntax

Discord uses a simplified version of Markdown that covers the formatting most chat conversations need. Bold is two asterisks either side of the text, italic is one asterisk or one underscore, underline is two underscores, and strikethrough is two tildes. These four can be combined by nesting: three asterisks produce bold italic, and wrapping a bold string in double underscores produces underlined bold.

Spoilers use two pipe characters either side and blur the content until a reader clicks it. Inline code uses single backticks and renders in a monospace font while disabling all other markdown inside it. Multi-line code blocks use triple backticks and accept an optional language name on the first line for syntax highlighting.

Block quotes use a greater-than sign followed by a space at the start of a line, and three greater-than signs quote every line that follows. Headings use one, two or three hash characters at the start of a line for three descending sizes. Lists use a hyphen or asterisk for bullets and a number followed by a full stop for ordered lists.

Two things Discord markdown notably does not support in normal messages: tables and coloured text. Tables have no syntax at all, and colour is only achievable through the ANSI code block technique described below.

Escaping: how to show markdown characters literally

When you need an asterisk or underscore to appear as a character rather than trigger formatting, put a backslash in front of it. This matters constantly when sharing file names such as my_file_name.txt, which Discord would otherwise render with the middle section italicised and the underscores removed.

For longer strings with many special characters - code snippets, file paths, regular expressions - wrapping in backticks is far more practical than escaping each character individually. Inline code disables all markdown parsing inside it, so nothing needs escaping at all.

Escaping also matters for bots. Content pulled from user input, external APIs or file listings should be escaped or wrapped in code formatting before being echoed back, otherwise arbitrary asterisks in the source data will corrupt the bot's output formatting.

Coloured text with ANSI code blocks

Discord supports a limited form of coloured text through ANSI escape codes inside a code block. Open a code block and write ansi as the language on the first line, then use escape sequences to set colours for the text that follows.

The available foreground colours are grey, red, green, yellow, blue, pink, cyan and white, with a parallel set of background colours. The syntax is an escape character followed by a bracket, the colour code, and the letter m - for example code 31 produces red text and code 32 produces green.

This technique carries real caveats. It renders on desktop and web reliably, but support on mobile clients has historically been inconsistent, and because the text sits inside a code block it will always use a monospace font and a boxed background. It is well suited to bot status output, server rules and log formatting, and poorly suited to ordinary conversation.

Where formatting behaves differently

Markdown does not parse identically everywhere in Discord, and assuming it does is the source of most formatting surprises. Channel names and category names do not support markdown at all - decorative styling there has to come from unicode characters instead.

Channel topics support a reduced subset. Embed fields, which bots produce, support most inline markdown in descriptions and field values but not in the title or author fields. Forum post titles strip formatting entirely.

Bots receive the raw markdown string through the API rather than the rendered output. A bot that reads a formatted message and reposts it will repost the literal asterisks unless it strips or re-escapes them, which is why relayed messages sometimes appear with visible markdown symbols.

The reliable workflow is to compose in a private channel or a scratch server, confirm the rendering in the exact context where it will live, and only then post it publicly. This takes seconds and avoids editing a broken announcement in front of an audience.

Tips for using discord text formatting guide

• Discord markdown works in most chat inputs, but formatting behaves differently in embeds, code blocks, channel topics and auto-mod messages - always verify in the exact place you plan to use it.
• Some formatting only renders in the client. Bots receive the raw markdown text via the API, so a bot reposting a formatted message may strip or double-render the styling.
• Server settings and client versions change behaviour over time. If a trick stops working, check whether the client updated or the server changed a permission that affects the feature.
• Test formatting in a private channel or a scratch server before applying it to an announcement channel with a large audience.

These tips apply no matter whether you are decorating a personal profile, organising a server or publishing a guide. The principle stays the same: start with clean, readable content, then add styling in small, reversible steps so your text keeps working everywhere it is pasted.

How to get started with discord text formatting guide

1. Read the rule, then test it. Each guide explains a feature with copy-pasteable examples. Run the example in a scratch channel first so you can see the rendered result before applying it anywhere important.
2. Check the message type. Confirm whether you are working in chat, an embed, a code block or a topic, because formatting rules differ. The guide notes these differences explicitly.
3. Keep a reference. Bookmark the guides you use most. Discord formatting is compact and easy to forget, and having the syntax one click away beats re-searching every time.

The whole workflow takes under a minute for most people. Because everything runs locally in the browser, there is no account to create, no upload step and no waiting for a server to respond. The results are plain text that you can paste anywhere and adjust later.

Common mistakes and how to avoid them

• Trying to colour text with markdown. Discord has no colour syntax in normal messages - the only way to get coloured text is the ANSI code block, and it does not render on every mobile client.
• Forgetting that markdown is inert inside code blocks. Asterisks and underscores inside backticks display literally, which is useful deliberately but confusing when accidental.
• Using a single underscore for italics and expecting underline. One underscore is italic; underline needs two. This is the most frequently mixed-up pair in Discord markdown.
• Pasting text containing underscores or asterisks (file names, code, maths) without escaping. Discord will interpret them as formatting and silently mangle the text.

Frequently asked questions

Discord Text Formatting Guide | key points to remember

Discord Text Formatting Guide is part of a larger collection of free tools on this site. The related tools below cover adjacent topics, and everything runs directly in your browser - no accounts, no installs, no data leaving your device.

If a technique on this page does not behave as expected, the quickest fixes are: check the character limit of the field you are editing, make sure the text is not inside a code block, and preview it in the exact place where it will be used. Most rendering quirks come from one of those three sources, and most are resolved in seconds.

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