The short answer
If you are writing and want a free app, use MacDown 3000 on the Mac or MarkText anywhere. If you mostly read Markdown that colleagues, repositories or AI tools produce, a reader fits the job better, and the web reader costs nothing to try.
Where MacDown and MarkText are the better choice
- They are free and open source, under the MIT license, with nothing to buy. MarkdownPaper's web reader is free, but its desktop app is not.
- Writing. MarkText renders as you type, with source code, typewriter and focus modes, and takes images pasted from the clipboard. MacDown 3000 sets the source beside a live preview, with auto completion, bracket pairing and formatting shortcuts. MarkdownPaper's editor is for fixing a document, not for drafting one.
- Linux. MarkText runs on Linux as well as the Mac and Windows. MarkdownPaper's desktop app is for Mac and Windows only.
- Themes. Both come with several themes to choose from. MarkdownPaper has three paper stocks.
- Folders and front matter. MacDown 3000 browses a folder as a workspace and understands Jekyll front matter, which suits people writing for a static site.
Both handle math: MarkText with KaTeX, and MacDown 3000 with TeX style notation. Both export HTML and PDF.
Where MarkdownPaper is the better choice
- Documents you did not write. A plan an agent left in a repository, a README, a spec a colleague sent: MarkdownPaper opens them as a finished page, with no editor around them.
- Diagrams. Mermaid diagrams render as drawings, along with tables, highlighted code, footnotes and task lists.
- Long documents. Text is set to a measure counted in characters, 74 by default, in a serif made for reading. Drag either edge of the page to change it. The contents sit in the page margin, and the few controls fade out while you read.
- Files that change. The MarkdownPaper desktop app follows a file as another program rewrites it, which suits a plan a coding agent keeps updating.
- No install for the people you share with. Anyone can read the same document in the free web reader, and a share link carries the whole document inside the link.
- Handing it on. Print gives real page margins for a PDF, and a rendered page copies into Google Docs with its tables intact.
- From the app stores. The desktop app comes from the Mac App Store and the Microsoft Store, which install and update it. MacDown 3000 and MarkText are downloaded from GitHub or installed through a package manager.
Side by side
| MacDown 3000 | MarkText | MarkdownPaper | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Built for | Writing, source beside preview | Writing, rendered as you type | Reading the finished page |
| Where it runs | Mac | Mac, Windows, Linux | Any browser, or a Mac and Windows app |
| Math | TeX style notation | KaTeX | KaTeX |
| Diagrams | Not described in its README | Not described in its README | Mermaid |
| Export | HTML and PDF | HTML and PDF | Print to PDF, self contained HTML, rich text |
| Where you get it | GitHub, Homebrew | GitHub, Homebrew, Chocolatey, winget | Mac App Store, Microsoft Store |
Where each project stands today
If you are choosing between these editors rather than against a reader, their state matters as much as their features.
- MacDown, the original, has not shipped a release since version 0.7.3 in January 2020, and its repository was last updated in July 2023.
- MacDown 3000 is a fork that describes itself as MacDown continued. It runs on macOS 11 or later on Apple Silicon and Intel, and version 3000.0.7 came out in July 2026. If you liked MacDown, this is where it went.
- MarkText went quiet for several years, and in May 2026 its original creator announced a return to maintaining it. Version 0.19.1 came out in June 2026, and release candidates for 0.20 followed in September.
Price
MacDown, MacDown 3000 and MarkText are free and open source. MacDown 3000 accepts donations toward its Apple developer costs. The MarkdownPaper web reader is free too, with no account and no limits.
The MarkdownPaper desktop app: Coming soon to the Mac App Store and the Microsoft Store. $6.99 launch price, paid once, with no subscription. About the desktop app.
Using both
Write in whichever free editor you like; the files are plain .md either
way, so there is nothing to convert. When a document is finished, or when
you are reading one you did not write, open it in MarkdownPaper. If you are
weighing a paid editor as well, the
Typora comparison covers the one most often
compared with MarkText.
Questions
Is MacDown still maintained?
The original MacDown has had no release since January 2020. MacDown 3000, a fork, continues it with releases in 2026, and is the one to install on a current Mac.
What is the difference between MacDown and MacDown 3000?
MacDown 3000 is a continuation of MacDown by a different maintainer, updated for current macOS on Apple Silicon and Intel. The idea is the same: source on one side, live preview on the other.
Is MarkText still maintained?
Yes, again. After several quiet years, its original creator returned to it in May 2026, and it has shipped a stable release and a run of release candidates since.
Is there a free Markdown reader?
The MarkdownPaper web reader is free, with no limits and no account, and works in any browser. The desktop app, which opens files with a double click and follows them as they change, is the paid part.