Markdown Table Syntax in 30 Seconds
A Markdown (GFM) table is pipes and dashes: the first row is the header, the second row is a divider of dashes, then data rows. Colons in the divider set alignment:
| Divider | Alignment |
--- or :--- | Left (default) |
:---: | Center |
---: | Right — best for numbers |
Pipes inside cell text must be escaped as \|; this generator does that automatically, and pads every column so the raw Markdown is readable even before rendering. Preview the result with our Markdown Previewer, or convert data files with the CSV ⇄ JSON Converter.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I make a table in Markdown?
Pipes between columns + a dash divider under the header: | Name | Age | then | --- | --- | then data rows. Alignment colons: :--- left, :---: center, ---: right.
Can I paste a table from Excel or Google Sheets?
Yes — copy the cells, switch to Import mode and paste. Tab-separated spreadsheet data is detected automatically; plain CSV works too.
How do I put a | pipe inside a cell?
Escape it as \| — done automatically here.
Where do Markdown tables work?
GitHub/GitLab, Notion, Obsidian, Reddit, Jupyter and most docs systems — they're GitHub Flavored Markdown (GFM), not part of original Markdown.