mdBook is a free command-line tool for turning Markdown into books such as product or API documentation, tutorials, and course materials. It generates static output in a `book` directory that can be transferred to a web service. Integrated search helps readers navigate the result, and code blocks receive syntax coloring for many languages. Authors can adjust formatting with theme files, use preprocessors to extend syntax or change content, and add backends that render other formats. The `mdbook test` command checks Rust code samples in a book. The documentation describes GitHub Actions and GitLab CI/CD for automatically testing and deploying books. Developers can also import mdBook libraries or use its plugin mechanism to create custom tools and output backends. It runs on Linux, macOS, and Windows and is free and open source under MPL-2.0. Building from source requires Rust and Cargo, and the stated minimum Rust version is 1.88. The project directs issues and feature requests to its GitHub issue tracker and relies on community contributions for fixes and additions.
Who it is for
mdBook suits developers and authors creating documentation, tutorials, or course materials from Markdown. It also fits workflows that use GitHub Actions or GitLab CI/CD to test and deploy books.
What is good
- Free and open source under MPL-2.0.
- Builds static files that can be transferred to a web service.
- Includes integrated search and code syntax highlighting.
- Theme files and plugins support customization and added tooling.
- Documentation describes GitHub Actions and GitLab CI/CD workflows.
What to know first
- Building from source requires Rust and Cargo.
- The stated minimum Rust version is 1.88.
- Issues and feature requests go through the GitHub issue tracker.
Verdict
mdBook offers a Markdown-to-book workflow with search, code highlighting, themes, and extension points. Check the Rust and Cargo requirements if you plan to build it from source.
mdBook plans and pricing
All plansCompared on documentation generators
- Free plan
- Yes
- Source inputs
- Markdown
- CI/CD integration
- Yes
- Output formats
- HTML, Markdown
- Programming languages
- apache, armasm, bash, c, coffeescript, cpp, csharp, css, d, diff, go, handlebars, haskell, http, ini, java, javascript, json, julia, kotlin, less, lua, makefile, markdown, nginx, nim, nix, objectivec, perl, php, plaintext, properties, python, r, ruby, rust, scala, scss, shell, sql
