How to Add a Line Break in Markdown (4 Ways)
By the MDConverter team · Updated · 3 min read
Quick answer
To force a line break in Markdown, end the line with a backslash (\) or two spaces, or insert <br>. To start a new paragraph, leave a blank line. A single Enter on its own does not create a new line in standard Markdown — GitHub .md files, VS Code, Jupyter and documentation sites join the two lines into one. Chat-style apps (GitHub comments, Discord, Slack, Obsidian by default) are the exception: there, Enter is a new line.
Why pressing Enter does not create a new line
Markdown was designed so you can wrap long lines in your editor without changing the output. A single line break inside a paragraph is treated as a space, so these two lines render as one sentence:
Roses are red,
violets are blue.Roses are red, violets are blue.
.md files, VS Code and most converters.The four ways to break a line
1. Backslash at the end of the line (recommended)
Roses are red,\
violets are blue.Roses are red,
violets are blue.
\ immediately before the line ending forces a break. It is visible in the source, so editors cannot strip it by accident.2. Two spaces at the end of the line
The original Markdown rule: end a line with two or more spaces. It works everywhere, but the spaces are invisible — easy to miss when reading and easy for an editor to delete. Many editors and formatters trim trailing whitespace on save (VS Code's files.trimTrailingWhitespace, for example), which silently removes these breaks.
3. The HTML <br> tag
Write <br> (or <br/>) where you want the break. Use it where the other two cannot work — inside a table cell, for example — and in apps that allow inline HTML. Some apps strip HTML, so it is not universal.
4. A blank line — new paragraph
Leaving an empty line ends the paragraph and starts a new one. Paragraphs get extra space between them; a line break keeps the lines tight. Use paragraphs for separate ideas and line breaks for addresses, poems and signatures.
Line break vs paragraph, side by side
The difference is spacing: a line break stays inside one paragraph (<br>), a blank line creates a new paragraph (<p>).
MDConverter Ltd\
12 Example Street\
London
Please reply by Friday.MDConverter Ltd
12 Example Street
London
Please reply by Friday.
Line one<br>Line two<br>Line threeLine one
Line two
Line three
How to add more than one blank line
Markdown collapses any number of empty lines into a single paragraph break, so pressing Enter five times gives the same result as pressing it twice. To add visible vertical space, use an HTML entity or tag on its own line — where HTML is allowed:
First section.
Second section, after an empty paragraph.First section.
Second section, after an empty paragraph.
is a non-breaking space, so the middle paragraph is not empty and is not removed. Several <br> tags in a row also work in renderers that keep HTML.Line breaks inside lists and tables
In a list item, end the line with a backslash and indent the next line to line up with the item's text, or leave a blank line and indent to start a second paragraph in the same item:
- Milk\
(oat or soy)
- Bread
A second paragraph inside the bread item.Milk
(oat or soy)Bread
A second paragraph inside the bread item.
In a table cell, a real line break would end the row, so use <br> instead: | Line one<br>Line two |. MarkdownTables.com covers this in detail in line breaks in Markdown tables.
Line breaks when converting Markdown
AI answers from ChatGPT and Claude often use a single Enter for short lines — a signature, an address, a list of options without bullets. MDConverter's converters keep those single line breaks in Word, PDF, Google Docs and email output, so the result matches what you saw in the chat. If you are publishing to a strict renderer such as GitHub, add the backslash or two spaces yourself.
Does a single Enter make a new line? By app
| App | Supported | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub .md files (README, docs) | No | Use \, two spaces or <br>. |
| GitHub issues, PRs, comments | Yes | Enter is rendered as a line break. |
| VS Code preview | No | Unless markdown.preview.breaks is turned on. |
| Obsidian | Yes | Default. Turn on “Strict line breaks” for standard behaviour. |
| Discord, Slack, Teams | Yes | Chat apps treat every Enter as a new line. |
| Partly | In Markdown mode, use two spaces or a blank line; the rich-text editor handles Enter for you. | |
| Jupyter notebooks | No | Use two spaces, \ or <br>. |
| MDConverter (Word, PDF, Docs, email) | Yes | Single line breaks are kept, matching chat apps. |
Common mistakes and how to fix them
| Problem | Fix |
|---|---|
| Two-space breaks vanished after saving | Your editor trims trailing whitespace. Use a backslash instead, or disable trimming for Markdown files. |
Backslash shows up as a literal \ | Something follows it on the same line (often a space). The backslash must be the last character. |
| Five blank lines still look like one | Markdown collapses empty lines. Use on its own line or <br> tags for extra space. |
| A line break in a table splits the row | Use <br> inside table cells. |
Tools for this
Frequently Asked Questions About Line breaks & paragraphs
Comprehensive answers to common technical, formatting, security, and compatibility questions.
Related reading
- Markdown Lists: Bullet Points, Numbered Lists and Nested Lists — Bullets, numbered lists, nesting, starting numbers and the indentation rules that trip people up.
- Markdown Flavors: CommonMark vs GitHub Flavored Markdown and More — Why the same Markdown renders differently, and what each major flavor adds.
- Markdown Escape Characters: How to Show *, _, # and | Literally — Show *, _, #, | and other symbols literally — with a free escape and unescape tool.