46.2k stars · GPL-2.0 · pandoc 3.11 (2026-08-29)
Converts any document format into any other in one command, including Markdown to Word and Markdown to PDF.
▶Repo detailsthe review · specs · pros & cons · install
What it is
Pandoc is a document converter. It reads and writes Markdown, HTML, Word, LaTeX, EPUB, PowerPoint and many more. It is twenty years old and still gets a release every few weeks. Version 3.11 came out on 29 August 2026.
Why it matters
Edition 8 gave you Typst for making lead-magnet PDFs. Typst is for designing a document from scratch. Pandoc is for converting one you already have. That is a different job, and it is the one that comes up constantly for you. A tutorial script becomes a Word file to send to a translator. A blog post becomes a PDF checklist that collects email addresses. An old Word document becomes a Markdown post the new editor in #2 can open. It is also the engine underneath #7, so installing it is never wasted.
- It handles almost every format you will ever be handed. Nothing else comes close.
- One command, no configuration, no service to run. Install it and forget it.
- Extremely stable. Twenty years of releases, and a new one two weeks ago.
- GPL-2.0. Run it as a command on your machine. Do not build it into a product you sell without reading the licence carefully.
- Making a PDF the default way needs LaTeX, which is a very large download. Use
--pdf-engine=weasyprintor--pdf-engine=typstinstead and skip it. - Complicated layout does not survive the trip. Tables and images move. Expect to tidy the result by hand.
brew install pandoc pandoc post.md -o post.docx pandoc post.md -o post.pdf --pdf-engine=typst