13.1k stars · MIT · v0.18.0 (2024-12-19) · Track this in Scout
Build mindmaps from plain Markdown — superficially a perfect fit for Grasppy's output format.
▶Repo detailsthe review · specs · pros & cons · install
What it is
markmap is a JavaScript library and command-line tool that reads Markdown headings and nested lists and renders them as an interactive tree. It ships a command that writes a single self-contained HTML file, and plugins exist for common editors.
What it is good for. Anyone whose notes, meeting minutes or project plans are already nested bullets. Turning an outline into a map takes one command, and the map makes the shape of a long document visible in a way scrolling never does.
- The source stays plain Markdown. The map is generated, so the notes remain readable, greppable and easy to keep in version control.
- MIT licence, one of the least demanding there is.
- The output can be one self-contained HTML file, which is easy to email, attach or publish without any server.
- The last tagged release is v0.18.0, dated 19 December 2024, twenty-one months ago, while code last landed on 21 June 2026. The project is alive; it simply does not cut releases often, and the npm packages are what move.
- It draws and does not edit. You cannot drag a branch to a new parent; you change the text and regenerate.
- Very wide maps get cramped fast. Past a few hundred nodes it needs a lot of zooming.
mermaid-js/mermaid90,288 stars, draws diagrams from text as well, but flowcharts and sequence diagrams rather than foldable outlines, and GitHub renders it in a page directly.
Track this in Scout
jgraph/drawio8,341 stars, a full drawing editor where you place every box by hand; better for a deliberate diagram, worse for a document that changes weekly.
Track this in Scout- ondras/my-mind
3,367 stars, a browser mind-map editor you draw in directly; its last code landed on 18 June 2024, twenty-seven months ago.
Track this in Scout
# needs Node.js 18 or newer npx markmap-cli notes.md # opens a live preview in a browser npx markmap-cli --no-open -o map.html notes.md # writes one HTML file
