Markdown Heading Generator

About Markdown Headings

Headings create document structure and hierarchy. Markdown supports two styles: ATX (hash symbols) and Setext (underlines).

ATX-Style Headings

The most common format, using 1-6 hash symbols:

# H1 - Main Title
## H2 - Section
### H3 - Subsection
#### H4 - Sub-subsection
##### H5 - Minor heading
###### H6 - Smallest heading

ATX Closed Style

Optional closing hashes for symmetry:

# H1 - Main Title #
## H2 - Section ##
### H3 - Subsection ###

Note: Closing hashes are purely aesthetic and ignored by parsers.

Setext-Style Headings

Alternative style using underlines (only H1 and H2):

Main Title
==========

Section Heading
---------------

H1: Underline with equals signs (=)

H2: Underline with hyphens (-)

Heading Hierarchy Best Practices

• Use H1 once: Typically for document title
• Don't skip levels: Go H1 → H2 → H3, not H1 → H3
• Consistent style: Choose ATX or Setext, stick with it
• Descriptive text: Make headings clear and informative
• Keep concise: Aim for under 60 characters

Automatic Anchor Links

Most platforms automatically generate anchor IDs from headings:

## Getting Started

Link to it: [Jump to Getting Started](#getting-started)

Anchor rules:

• Convert to lowercase
• Replace spaces with hyphens
• Remove special characters
• Preserve letters and numbers

Custom Anchor IDs

Some platforms support custom IDs (not standard markdown):

## My Heading {#custom-id}

### Another Heading {#another-id}

Works on: GitHub Pages (Jekyll), Pandoc, some static site generators

Heading with Emphasis

You can use formatting within headings:

## **Bold Heading**
### *Italic Heading*
#### Heading with `code`

Caution: Keep formatting minimal for clarity

Heading Spacing

Add blank lines for better readability:

Paragraph text here.

## New Section

Content for this section.

SEO Considerations

• Use H1 for main topic (matches page title)
• Include keywords naturally in headings
• Create logical content hierarchy
• Use descriptive, not generic, heading text
• H2-H3 are most important after H1

Accessibility

Proper heading structure improves accessibility:

• Screen readers: Navigate by headings
• Skip links: Users can jump to sections
• Document outline: Shows content structure
• Semantic meaning: Conveys hierarchy

Common Use Cases

• README files: Project title, sections, features
• Documentation: API methods, guides, tutorials
• Blog posts: Article structure, topics
• Notes: Organization, topics
• Wikis: Page structure, navigation

Heading vs. Bold

Don't use bold as a heading substitute:

**Section Title**


## Section Title

Headings provide semantic structure; bold is just styling.