This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Miloš P.
Markdown is everywhere — from README files to blog engines. Yet, most Markdown-to-HTML converters today are either:
- Too heavy (like Pandoc)
- Too limited (like VS Code preview)
- Or simply unsafe (Typora exports HTML without XSS filtering)
As someone who needed a fast, embeddable Markdown-to-HTML converter in C#, I couldn’t find anything that met all of these goals:
Small and dependency-free
Fully supports advanced Markdown (TOC, footnotes, tables, tasks…)
XSS-safe and robust for user input
Easy to integrate into console, desktop, or web apps
So I built it.
One C# File. One Line to Use It
Instead of building a framework, I created a single-file class you can just drop into your project and use like this:
string html = Markdown.ToHtml(mdSource);
Done. No NuGet packages. No third-party libs. No surprises.
Bonus: Syntax + Security Warnings Built-In
Not only does the converter produce clean HTML5 — it also scans your input for:
- Common Markdown errors (e.g. unclosed
**bold**or*italic*) - Suspicious input like
<script>or phishing links - And appends a styled warning block to the HTML output
It’s ideal for batch-processing Markdown or handling user-submitted content.
Try It or Fork It
Just want to test it? Download the .exeand run:
mdoc.exe input.md output.html
- Want to embed or extend it? Just copy the
.csfile into your project and you’re done.
If you’re tired of bloated or unsafe Markdown tools — try this minimalist approach. I built it for me, but maybe it’s exactly what you need too.
This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Miloš P.