Markdown New Line Guide

Master line breaks, paragraphs, and text spacing in Markdown.

Paragraph Breaks

Double Line Break

Create paragraphs by leaving a blank line:

This is the first paragraph.

This is the second paragraph.

Result:
This is the first paragraph.

This is the second paragraph.

Line Breaks

Two Spaces Method

Add two spaces at the end of a line:

First line  
Second line

Result:
First line
Second line

Backslash Method

Use a backslash at the end of a line:

First line\
Second line

Result:
First line
Second line

HTML Line Breaks

For more control, use HTML:

First line<br>
Second line<br>
Third line

Result:
First line<br> Second line<br> Third line

Common Scenarios

Poetry and Verses

Roses are red  
Violets are blue  
Markdown is great  
And so are you

Addresses

John Doe  
123 Main Street  
Anytown, ST 12345  
United States

Code Comments

// This function does something important  
// Make sure to handle edge cases  
// Returns a promise

Lists and Line Breaks

Within List Items

- First item  
  Continued on next line
- Second item\
  Also continued

Multiple Paragraphs in Lists

1. First item

   This is a second paragraph within the first item.

2. Second item

Blockquotes and Line Breaks

> This is a quote  
> that spans multiple lines  
> using line breaks

Result:

This is a quote
that spans multiple lines
using line breaks

Best Practices

  1. Use paragraph breaks for distinct thoughts
  2. Use line breaks for related content that should stay together
  3. Be consistent with your chosen method
  4. Consider readability - don't overuse line breaks
  5. Test rendering - different platforms may handle breaks differently

Platform Differences

GitHub

  • Supports both two-space and backslash methods
  • Renders line breaks in issues and comments

Standard Markdown

  • Requires two spaces or backslash for line breaks
  • Single line breaks are ignored

CommonMark

  • Follows strict rules for line breaks
  • Consistent across implementations

Troubleshooting

Line Break Not Working

❌ Wrong:
First line
Second line

✅ Correct:
First line  
Second line

Unwanted Paragraph Break

❌ Creates paragraph:
First line

Second line

✅ Creates line break:
First line  
Second line

Advanced Techniques

Combining with Other Elements

**Bold text**  
*Italic text*  
`Code text`

In Tables

| Column 1 | Column 2 |
|----------|----------|
| Line 1<br>Line 2 | Single line |

Related Resources