The short answer
Use the VS Code preview while you are writing Markdown inside a project: editing a README, keeping docs beside code, checking that a table came out right. Use MarkdownPaper when you are reading Markdown, or handing it to someone who will: a long specification, a plan an AI assistant wrote, a document you want to print or paste into an email.
Where VS Code is the better choice
- You are editing. The preview sits beside the source and follows it as you type and scroll. MarkdownPaper has an editor and a split view, but they are there for fixing a document, not for living in.
- The file lives in a repository. Search across the project, version control, and every other file are one click away in the editor.
- You want to extend it. VS Code's extensions add renderers, linters and export commands, and its preview can be restyled with your own stylesheet.
- You already have it open. For a quick look at a README you are working on, switching to another app is not worth it.
Where MarkdownPaper is the better choice
- Long documents. Text is set at a comfortable reading width, around 74 characters a line, in a serif made for reading, with the contents in the margin so you can see where you are.
- Reading, not coding. There is no editor chrome, file tree or status bar around the page, and the few controls fade out while you read.
- People who do not use a code editor. A product manager, a client or a colleague can open the free web reader in a browser, with no install and no account.
- Printing and sharing. Print gives real page margins for a PDF, and a rendered document copies into Google Docs, Word or email with its headings, tables and code intact.
- Documents from AI assistants. Paste the Markdown a chat produced and read it as a page rather than as symbols.
Side by side
| VS Code preview | MarkdownPaper | |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | Writing, beside the source | Reading the finished page |
| Where it runs | Inside the VS Code editor | Any browser, or a desktop app |
| Install | VS Code | None for the web reader |
| Reading width | The width of the pane | Set in characters, adjustable |
| Contents | The editor's outline view | In the page margin |
| Print and PDF | Usually through an extension | Built in, with page margins |
| Price | Free | Web reader free, desktop app paid |
Using both
The two do not compete for the same moment. Write and check in VS Code; when a document is ready to be read properly, or read by somebody else, open the file in MarkdownPaper or paste its text into the reader. Nothing is uploaded: the page is rendered in your browser.