Markdown Formatting

ThoughtFree supports rich markdown formatting in your thoughts. When you use markdown syntax, your thoughts are rendered with proper formatting in the app.

Tip

ThoughtFree auto-detects markdown — if your thought contains two or more markdown patterns, it renders as formatted text. Single patterns (like a lone asterisk) are treated as plain text to avoid false positives.

Text Formatting

Syntax	Result
**bold**	bold
*italic*	italic
~~strikethrough~~	strikethrough
`inline code`	inline code

Headings

# Heading 1
## Heading 2
### Heading 3
#### Heading 4
##### Heading 5
###### Heading 6

Lists

Unordered Lists

- First item
- Second item
- Third item

Ordered Lists

1. First step
2. Second step
3. Third step

Task Lists (Checklists)

- [x] Completed task
- [ ] Pending task
- [ ] Another pending task

Task lists are interactive — tap the checkbox to toggle completion.

Links

[Link text](https://example.com)

Bare URLs are also auto-linked: just paste https://example.com and it becomes clickable.

Blockquotes

> This is a blockquote.
> It can span multiple lines.

Code Blocks

Use triple backticks for code blocks:

```
function hello() {
  console.log("Hello, world!");
}
```

You can add a language hint after the opening backticks for syntax highlighting:

```javascript
const greeting = "Hello!";
```

Tables

| Column 1 | Column 2 | Column 3 |
|----------|----------|----------|
| Cell 1   | Cell 2   | Cell 3   |
| Cell 4   | Cell 5   | Cell 6   |

Alignment is supported:

| Left | Center | Right |
|:-----|:------:|------:|
| L    |   C    |     R |

Horizontal Rules

Any of these create a horizontal divider:

---
***
___

Combining Formats

You can combine markdown features:

## Shopping List

**Important items:**

- [x] Milk
- [ ] Eggs
- [ ] Bread

> Remember to check for sales!

| Store | Distance | Rating |
|-------|----------|--------|
| Mart  | 0.5 mi   | ★★★★   |
| Shop  | 1.2 mi   | ★★★★★  |

Tips for Effective Formatting

1. Use headings to structure longer notes
2. Use task lists for actionable items — they integrate with the Today view
3. Use tables for comparisons or structured data
4. Use blockquotes to highlight key takeaways
5. Keep it simple — markdown works best when it’s readable in plain text too