Most software developers have strong opinions about text formats. Ask a developer how they want to receive documentation, and there's a good chance they'll say "just send me the markdown." Ask a product manager, and they'll probably say "Google Doc is fine."

Neither answer is wrong. But understanding why they're different — and when each format is the right choice — helps you pick the right tool for each job.

What Is Rich Text?

Rich text is formatted text stored with its formatting embedded. Microsoft Word, Google Docs, Apple Pages, Notion — these all use rich text models. When you click "Bold" in Google Docs, the formatting is encoded in the document structure, not as visible characters in the text.

The result looks polished without any effort from the writer. You get WYSIWYG editing: what you see while writing is what readers see. Fonts, colours, headings, tables, image floats — all visible and immediately adjustable.

Rich text files are typically stored in binary or complex XML formats (.docx, .pages) or in proprietary cloud formats (Google Docs, Notion). You can't meaningfully read or edit them with a plain text editor.

What Is Markdown?

Markdown is plain text with lightweight formatting syntax. Instead of clicking "Bold," you type **text**. Instead of using a heading style, you type # Heading. The formatting lives in the text itself, as visible characters.

The raw file is always human-readable — even without a markdown viewer, you can follow the structure. The same file, opened in a markdown-aware tool, renders as formatted output: proper headings, styled text, tables, code blocks.

Markdown files are stored as .md or .markdown — plain text files that any editor can open. They're smaller than rich text files, diffable in version control, and portable across every tool and platform.

Key Differences

Dimension	Markdown	Rich Text
File format	Plain text (.md)	Binary/XML (.docx) or proprietary
Version control	Works great — meaningful diffs	Diffs are binary noise
Portability	Opens in any text editor	Requires specific software
Offline editing	Always works	Depends on tool
Collaboration	Git PR workflow	Real-time (Google Docs)
Learning curve	Low (syntax in 15 min)	Near-zero (WYSIWYG)
Visual fidelity	Requires a renderer	Immediate
Extensibility	Tables, code, diagrams, math	Tables, images, charts
File size	Tiny (text)	Large (embedded fonts, styles)

Why Developers Chose Markdown

Version Control Integration

This is the big one. Git diffs on markdown are meaningful. You can see exactly what changed: a paragraph was reworded, a section was added, a sentence was deleted. Git diffs on .docx files are binary noise.

For documentation that lives in a repository — README files, API docs, architecture notes, specifications — version-controlled plain text is the only sensible choice. You want the documentation to evolve alongside the code, in the same pull requests, with the same review process.

Portability and Longevity

A markdown file written in 2015 opens perfectly today, in any editor, on any operating system. A .docx file from 2005 may not open correctly in modern Word. A Google Doc you can only access if you have a Google account and internet access.

Plain text outlasts proprietary formats. It'll open in whatever editor exists in 2035.

Toolchain Compatibility

Markdown integrates seamlessly with developer toolchains:

GitHub renders .md files automatically — no build step required
Documentation frameworks (Docusaurus, VitePress, Nextra, MkDocs) all use markdown as source
Static site generators accept markdown for blog posts and pages
Code generators and templates produce markdown output
Lint tools, format checkers, and spell checkers work on plain text

Rich text files don't fit into these workflows cleanly.

Focus on Content

The lack of visual formatting controls is a feature, not a bug, for many developers. With markdown, there's no agonizing over font sizes or color choices mid-paragraph. You write content. The rendering environment handles the visual decisions.

When Rich Text Is Better

Markdown isn't always the right tool. Rich text wins when:

Precise visual layout matters. Legal documents, financial reports, design comps, formal business documents — when the exact visual appearance is part of the deliverable, rich text tools give you control that markdown can't match.

Non-technical collaborators need to edit it. A marketing brief that needs input from five non-technical colleagues works better as a Google Doc than a markdown file. The collaboration model (comments, suggestions, real-time editing) is better suited to that workflow.

Advanced document features are required. Tables of contents with page numbers, track changes with author attribution, complex multi-column layouts, embedded spreadsheets — these are rich text features.

You need immediate visual feedback. For writers whose workflow depends on seeing the formatted output while they write, WYSIWYG tools are genuinely more comfortable. iA Writer is a good middle ground — markdown source, immediate preview.

The AI Angle

Here's what's changed the calculus over the last two years: AI tools have made markdown ubiquitous far beyond the developer community.

When Claude responds to a question with structured content, it formats its response in markdown. When ChatGPT writes a plan with sections and bullet points, that's markdown. When Cursor or Copilot generates a README, specification, or architecture document, the output is markdown.

The result: everyone who uses AI tools regularly now encounters markdown files, regardless of their technical background. Exported AI conversations are .md files. Generated documentation is .md files. Project instruction files like CLAUDE.md are .md files.

For more on CLAUDE.md specifically, see CLAUDE.md Explained: How to Configure Claude Code with Markdown.

This is pushing markdown tools — dedicated markdown editors, markdown-aware viewers, markdown rendering in productivity apps — into workflows that previously had no need for them.

Why a Dedicated Markdown Editor Matters

If you're writing and reading significant amounts of markdown, the tool matters. Most developers read markdown in VS Code's preview pane, in the terminal, or in a text editor showing raw syntax. This works, but it's suboptimal for reading documentation:

VS Code's split layout halves your reading area
The terminal shows raw symbols — you're parsing formatting mentally
A text editor shows you the source, not the output

A dedicated markdown editor shows you the rendered output by default. You see what readers see. Mermaid diagrams render as diagrams, not code blocks. Tables render as tables. LaTeX equations render as equations.

For Mac users, OpenMark is built for exactly this — native SwiftUI, instant launch, all GFM extensions including Mermaid and LaTeX, rendered and ready immediately when you open a file.

For the complete reference on what markdown syntax is available, see the Markdown Cheat Sheet for Mac Users. For how this all connects to the broader shift in developer tooling, see The Best Markdown Editors for Mac in 2026.

The Bottom Line

Markdown and rich text aren't competing for the same jobs. Markdown is the right default for documentation that lives in repositories, documentation that needs to be version-controlled, and any content that AI tools will generate or consume. Rich text is the right choice for documents with precise visual requirements, non-technical collaboration, or advanced formatting needs.

The trend is clear: markdown is taking over more categories. The explosion of AI tools that default to markdown output is accelerating that shift into non-developer contexts. A good markdown editor is becoming a productivity tool, not just a developer tool.

Try OpenMark

OpenMark renders markdown the way it's meant to look — formatted, clear, and readable — on native macOS.

Download OpenMark on the Mac App Store → $9.99 one-time. No subscription. Built for macOS Tahoe.