Keyboard shortcuts

Press or to navigate between chapters

Press S or / to search in the book

Press ? to show this help

Press Esc to hide this help

Standard Markdown Rules

mdbook-lint implements 59 standard markdown linting rules based on the markdownlint specification. These rules help maintain consistent, readable, and properly formatted markdown documentation.

Rule Categories

Heading Rules

Rules for heading hierarchy, formatting, and style consistency.

List Rules

Rules for list formatting, indentation, and marker consistency.

Whitespace Rules

Rules for managing spaces, tabs, and blank lines.

Rules for URL formatting, link text, and reference links.

Code Rules

Rules for code blocks, inline code, and fencing style.

Emphasis Rules

Rules for bold, italic, and other emphasis formatting.

Complete Rule List

Rule IDNameDescriptionFix
MD001heading-incrementHeading levels should only increment by one level at a time
MD002first-heading-h1First heading should be a top-level heading
MD003heading-styleHeading style
MD004ul-styleUnordered list style
MD005list-indentInconsistent indentation for list items at the same level
MD006ul-start-leftConsider starting lists at the beginning of the line
MD007ul-indentUnordered list indentation
MD008no-bare-urlsBare URLs should be wrapped in angle brackets
MD009no-trailing-spacesTrailing spaces
MD010no-hard-tabsHard tabs
MD011no-reversed-linksReversed link syntax
MD012no-multiple-blanksMultiple consecutive blank lines
MD013line-lengthLine length
MD014commands-show-outputDollar signs used before commands without showing output
MD015no-missing-space-closed-atxNo space after hash on closed atx style heading
MD016no-reversed-heading-styleHeading levels should only increment
MD017blanks-around-headingsBlank lines around headings
MD018no-missing-space-atxNo space after hash on atx style heading
MD019no-multiple-space-atxMultiple spaces after hash on atx style heading
MD020no-missing-space-closed-atxNo space inside hashes on closed atx style heading
MD021no-multiple-space-closed-atxMultiple spaces inside hashes on closed atx style heading
MD022blanks-around-headingsHeadings should be surrounded by blank lines
MD023heading-start-leftHeadings must start at the beginning of the line
MD024no-duplicate-headingMultiple headings with the same content
MD025single-h1Multiple top-level headings in the same document
MD026no-trailing-punctuationTrailing punctuation in heading
MD027no-multiple-space-blockquoteMultiple spaces after blockquote symbol
MD028no-blanks-blockquoteBlank line inside blockquote
MD029ol-prefixOrdered list item prefix
MD030list-marker-spaceSpaces after list markers
MD031blanks-around-fencesFenced code blocks should be surrounded by blank lines
MD032blanks-around-listsLists should be surrounded by blank lines
MD033no-inline-htmlInline HTML
MD034no-bare-urlsBare URL used
MD035hr-styleHorizontal rule style
MD036no-emphasis-as-headingEmphasis used instead of a heading
MD037no-space-in-emphasisSpaces inside emphasis markers
MD038no-space-in-codeSpaces inside code span elements
MD039no-space-in-linksSpaces inside link text
MD040fenced-code-languageFenced code blocks should have a language specified
MD041first-line-h1First line in file should be a top-level heading
MD042no-empty-linksNo empty links
MD043required-headingsRequired heading structure
MD044proper-namesProper names should have correct capitalization
MD045no-alt-textImages should have alternate text
MD046code-block-styleCode block style
MD047single-trailing-newlineFiles should end with a single newline character
MD048code-fence-styleCode fence style
MD049emphasis-styleEmphasis style should be consistent
MD050strong-styleStrong style should be consistent
MD051link-fragmentsLink fragments should be valid
MD052reference-links-imagesReference links and images should use a label that is defined
MD053link-image-reference-definitionsLink and image reference definitions should be needed
MD054link-image-styleLink and image style
MD055table-pipe-styleTable pipe style
MD056table-column-countTable column count
MD057table-rowsTable rows
MD058blanks-around-tablesTables should be surrounded by blank lines
MD059table-alignmentTable alignment

Legend:

  • ✅ Automatic fix available
  • ❌ Manual fix required