Markdown / MDX
Tools for processing markdown and MDX in modern apps.
MDX in apps and docs
- ★ fumadocs-mdx — used by this site; combines remark/rehype/Shiki with content collections.
- Velite — typed content collections from Markdown/MDX/YAML. Great pairing with Next.js.
- Astro Content Collections — built into Astro; Zod-validated frontmatter.
@next/mdx— Next.js's bundled MDX integration; minimal, you bring the rest.- Contentlayer — was popular; effectively unmaintained — Velite or fumadocs-mdx are the current picks.
- next-mdx-remote — runtime MDX, useful for CMS-driven content.
Markdown processors
- ★ remark / unified — the AST-based markdown ecosystem; plugin-rich; this is what most modern setups use.
- rehype — HTML AST counterpart to remark.
- Shiki — code highlighting using TextMate grammars; produces accurate, themed output. Used by Next.js, Astro, VitePress, Fumadocs.
- Starry Night (GitHub) — alternative high-fidelity highlighter.
- markdown-it — popular, fast, plugin-rich (used by VitePress).
- marked — older, simpler.
Math, diagrams, charts in markdown
- KaTeX / MathJax — math typesetting.
- Mermaid — diagrams from text (flow, sequence, ER, etc.).
- D2 — diagrams as code; nicer-looking output than Mermaid.
- Excalidraw — hand-drawn-style diagrams; embeddable.
Pick this if…
- MDX-driven docs: fumadocs-mdx or Astro content collections.
- Typed content collections in Next.js: Velite.
- Bring-your-own MDX:
@next/mdx. - Code highlighting: Shiki (no question).
- Diagrams: Mermaid (default) or D2 (prettier).