mddocx

Deterministic Markdown-to-DOCX compilation for professional, editable Microsoft Word documents.

mddocx converts Markdown into native Word structures instead of screenshots or flattened pages. Headings, lists, tables, equations, charts, links, references, footnotes, headers, footers, and other document elements remain editable in Microsoft Word.

What it does

• Converts Markdown files or strings into native DOCX documents.
• Preserves editable Word headings, paragraphs, lists, tables, hyperlinks, and code blocks.
• Supports nested lists, task lists, blockquotes, callouts, page breaks, and section breaks.
• Produces editable Word equations using OMML rather than images.
• Creates editable Office charts backed by embedded Excel workbooks.
• Supports CSV and JSON data for charts and native Word tables.
• Handles local, HTTPS, and Base64 data:image/...;base64,... images, plus captions, bookmarks, cross-references, footnotes, endnotes, and citations.
• Supports themes, fonts, templates, right-to-left text, headers, footers, tables of contents, and page fields.
• Provides project mode for compiling multiple Markdown chapters into one document.
• Includes diagnostics, document inspection, accessibility checks, and profiling utilities.
• Provides privacy-aware metadata handling for exported AI/chat conversations.
• Accepts common equation syntax copied from ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and other MathJax/LaTeX-producing assistants.
• Keeps multilingual documents correct with per-script font slots, right-to-left direction, and CJK East Asian fonts.

Installation

mddocx requires Python 3.11 or newer.

Install from PyPI

The distribution is published as mddocx-native; the Python import and command remain mddocx:

python -m pip install --upgrade mddocx-native

Install mddocx-native, not mddocx. An unrelated PyPI project owns the name mddocx and ships the same mddocx package directory and the same mddocx command. Installing both makes them overwrite each other, so always use the mddocx-native distribution name. mddocx reports the conflict when it starts, and mddocx doctor lists it too.

Verify the installation:

mddocx --version
mddocx-native --version   # same program; refuses to run when another project overwrote it
mddocx doctor

mddocx doctor reports the Python version, the dependencies it found, the JavaScript runtime and math engine it will actually use, and whether another distribution is competing for the mddocx package. It exits with status 2 when something needs attention.

Install a downloaded wheel

Download the .whl file from the latest GitHub Release, open a terminal in the download directory, and run:

python -m pip install ./mddocx_native-1.4.1-py3-none-any.whl

On Windows PowerShell, the equivalent command is:

python -m pip install .\mddocx_native-1.4.1-py3-none-any.whl

You can also install the wheel directly from the v1.4.1 GitHub Release:

python -m pip install "https://github.com/TasinAhmed2508/mddocx/releases/download/v1.4.1/mddocx_native-1.4.1-py3-none-any.whl"

Install from GitHub

python -m pip install "git+https://github.com/TasinAhmed2508/mddocx.git@v1.4.1"

Install for local development

git clone https://github.com/TasinAhmed2508/mddocx.git
cd mddocx
python -m pip install -e ".[dev]"

Optional features:

# Everything except the Node.js runtime
python -m pip install "mddocx-native[all]"

# Include a Node.js runtime so the bundled MathJax engine works without a manual install (~45 MB)
python -m pip install "mddocx-native[mathjax]"

# Individually
python -m pip install "mddocx-native[images]"
python -m pip install "mddocx-native[academic]"   # arbitrary local CSL styles
python -m pip install "mddocx-native[math]"        # included by default; kept for compatibility

Equation rendering needs no extra package: a pure-Python engine is always installed, and the bundled MathJax sidecar is used automatically when a JavaScript runtime is available. Run mddocx doctor to see which engine this machine uses.

Install troubleshooting

• mddocx --version prints something like 0.5.x. The unrelated PyPI project mddocx is installed as well; the two share one package directory and one command, so whichever was installed last wins. Remove both and reinstall this distribution:

  python -m pip uninstall -y mddocx mddocx-native
  python -m pip install --force-reinstall mddocx-native
  

  Afterwards use mddocx-native (or python -m mddocx) so the shared command name cannot be taken over again.

• mddocx: command not found. The Python script directory is not on PATH. Every command is also available as python -m mddocx ..., which needs no PATH change.

• No matching distribution found for mddocx-native. mddocx requires Python 3.11 or newer; check python --version.

• Could not find a version that satisfies the requirement bijoy2unicode. That dependency is published as a source distribution only, so --only-binary=:all: and wheel-only mirrors cannot install it. Allow source builds for that package.

• mddocx doctor reports no JavaScript runtime. Equations still render through the pure-Python engine. Install Node.js, or mddocx-native[mathjax], for the MathJax engine.

• SVG images fail after installing the images or all extra. CairoSVG needs a native cairo library at run time (not just the Python package). Install it with the usual system package for your platform, or convert the SVG to PNG first; every other document feature works without it, and mddocx doctor reports the exact reason when it is missing.

• Bangla text looks wrong in Word. The default SutonnyMJ font is not bundled. Install the font, or pass --bengali-font auto to keep Bangla Unicode while applying an installed Unicode Bangla font, or --bengali-font none to skip the Bangla output pass entirely.

• mddocx starts the interactive console. Running it with no arguments on a terminal opens the guided console. mddocx --help lists every command, and mddocx FILE.md converts directly.

Quick start

Create a file named report.md:

# Quarterly Report

## Summary

This report is generated from Markdown and remains fully editable in Word.

| Metric | Value |
| --- | ---: |
| Revenue | 125,000 |
| Growth | 18% |

Convert it to Word:

mddocx report.md -o report.docx

Command-line interface

mddocx document.md -o document.docx
mddocx document.md --theme academic
mddocx document.md --template company.docx
mddocx document.md --toc --page-numbers
mddocx document.md --header "Project Report" --footer "Confidential"
mddocx document.md --diagnostics-json diagnostics.json
mddocx document.md --strict-math
mddocx math-check document.md
mddocx inspect document.docx --strict
mddocx accessibility document.docx --strict
mddocx doctor
mddocx api --json

For multi-file document projects:

mddocx project init report
mddocx build report
mddocx project info report
mddocx watch report

For interactive use:

mddocx shell

Every command is also available as python -m mddocx ... when the console script is not on PATH.

Run mddocx --help for the complete command reference.

Python API

from mddocx import RenderConfig, render, render_string

render("report.md", "report.docx")

config = RenderConfig(theme="modern")
document = render_string("# Generated report\n\nEditable Word content.", config=config)

with open("generated.docx", "wb") as file:
    file.write(document)

The public API is documented in docs/API_STABILITY.md and can also be inspected with mddocx api --json. The additive compiler-stage mapping and behavioral changes are documented in docs/V2_MIGRATION.md.

For callers that need the output, diagnostics, and profiling data together, use the staged-v2 compiler service:

from mddocx import Compiler

result = Compiler().compile_string("# Report\n\nInline \\(x^2\\).")
print(result.success, result.diagnostics, result.stats)
print(result.layout_plan.tables)

The same service exposes parse_string, parse_file, normalize, plan, render, check_string, check_file, compile_string, and compile_file, so applications can inspect canonical AST and layout decisions without duplicating compiler internals.

AI-generated equations

Common inline forms (\\(...\\) and $...$), display forms (\\[...\\] and $$...$$), and math, latex, or tex fenced blocks are converted to editable Word equations. Math-like text inside code spans and ordinary code fences is preserved as code, and common currency forms are preserved as text.

When an equation uses syntax that the active math engine cannot convert, mddocx preserves its source as editable text and emits a MATH201 warning. Use --strict-math when every equation must be native Word math and conversion should fail on the first unsupported expression. See docs/AI_MATH_COMPATIBILITY.md for the tested compatibility contract.

Run mddocx math-check document.md before conversion to see the active math engine and the number of equations that can be rendered natively. Add --json for automation or --strict to return exit code 3 when any equation requires a fallback.

Language and script support

Markdown and the canonical AST are always Unicode. Script-specific fonts and direction are applied only to the generated Word XML:

• Bengali runs use SutonnyMJ by default with Bijoy glyph encoding at the DOCX boundary. Set RenderConfig.fonts.bengali to a Unicode font (for example Nirmala UI) for Unicode output, or to None to disable the output pass. From the command line, use --bengali-font "Nirmala UI", --bengali-font none, or --bengali-font auto, which uses SutonnyMJ when it is installed and an installed Unicode Bangla font otherwise. English text keeps a Latin font, and mddocx warns (diagnostic FONT301) when a configured Bangla font is not installed instead of silently emitting unreadable glyphs.
• Other complex scripts — Devanagari, Gurmukhi, Gujarati, Oriya, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Sinhala, Thai, Lao, Tibetan, Myanmar, Khmer, Ethiopic, Mongolian, Syriac, Thaana, Arabic, and Hebrew — use the --complex-script-font slot. Left-to-right scripts stay LTR.
• Right-to-left Arabic and Hebrew paragraphs receive Word bidi direction and right alignment automatically (rtl: auto), or with --rtl force / --rtl off. Direction and script fonts also apply to the title page, abstract, captions, bibliography, headers, footers, and notes.
• CJK text — Chinese, Japanese, and Korean, including extension planes — uses the --east-asia-font slot.

mddocx report.md -o report.docx --complex-script-font "Nirmala UI" --east-asia-font "Microsoft YaHei"
mddocx arabic-report.md -o arabic-report.docx --rtl force

YAML front matter

Document settings can be defined at the top of a Markdown file:

---
title: Research Report
author: Example Author
theme: academic
toc: true
page_numbers: true
auto_landscape_tables: true
header: Research Group
footer: Confidential
---

Privacy and security defaults

• Bounded public HTTP(S) image resources are allowed by default. Failed image syntax becomes a clickable fallback; ordinary Markdown links are never downloaded.
• Base64 image data URIs are decoded locally, never sent over the network, and remain subject to the configured per-resource size limit and image validation.
• HTTPS image downloads can be explicitly enabled and restricted by domain.
• Use --block-remote-resources for a single noninteractive conversion, or --allow-remote-resources to override a saved shell block for one render.
• Local resource paths cannot escape the document or project directory.
• Download size, MIME type, redirects, and network destinations are constrained.
• SVG parsing rejects external references and uses hardened XML handling.
• Code blocks and TeX are never executed.
• AI/chat export metadata is removed conservatively before Markdown parsing when enabled.

Project layout

mddocx/
├── src/mddocx/        # Package source code
├── docs/              # User and technical documentation
├── dist/              # Local build output, when generated
├── .github/workflows/ # CI and release automation
├── pyproject.toml     # Package metadata and build configuration
└── README.md          # Project overview and usage guide

Documentation

Detailed documentation is available in the docs directory, including compatibility, API stability, interactive CLI, charts and data, AI export metadata, accessibility, and extensions.

See the 1.4.1 release notes for install diagnostics, collision safety, and equation-engine reporting, the 1.4.0 release notes for multilingual script coverage, and the existing 1.3.0 release notes for resilient resources, smart equations, academic references; 1.2.4 release notes cover Base64-image, AI-math, compiler, layout, security-policy, and migration summary.

The compiler stages and system architecture are described in docs/ARCHITECTURE.md. The machine-readable supported feature contract is docs/feature-matrix.json.

The forward plan for usability, performance, and defect prevention is docs/ROADMAP.md, including the known warts and open quality gaps.

The machine-readable fidelity contract is docs/feature-matrix.json; every listed feature links its accepted syntax, canonical AST, native Word representation, diagnostic behavior, host status, and tracked regression evidence.

The complete staged engineering program is preserved in docs/FIDELITY_FIRST_V2_PLAN.md; progress and compatibility notes remain additive until a qualified 2.x release is ready.

Microsoft Word 365 release qualification, including the reusable Windows automation script, is documented in docs/WORD365_QA.md.

Releases

Release builds are generated by GitHub Actions. Each versioned release publishes the wheel and source archive as downloadable GitHub Release assets.

• Latest release
• All releases
• All version tags
• PyPI package

License

Released under the MIT License.

Bangla document forms and scanned-document transcriptions

Use mddocx input.md -o output.docx --theme bengali-document for compact Bangla documents (10 pt, single spacing). Bangla output runs use SutonnyMJ by default, with Unicode-to-Bijoy encoding applied only to Word XML. The output contains editable Word tables and can be imported into Google Docs. Google Docs may substitute fonts and reflow pages; verify the imported document before relying on page fidelity.

Plain text fences with a box-drawn photo placeholder, at least five labelled fields, and paired pipe-separated address columns render as native form tables. Plain-text three-column tables with at least two dashed row separators render as native tables; continuation lines within a ruled row stay in the same cells. Programming language fences remain code. Unsupported layouts remain literal code.

Numeric Gemini [cite: 1] export tokens outside code are removed by default. Citation-suffixed matching closing fences are repaired so following paragraphs are parsed correctly. --ai-metadata keep preserves the numeric markers as text after the repaired closing fence. Markers inside fenced or inline code remain literal. The converter preserves transcribed values; it does not infer missing cells or correct discrepancies against a scanned reference.

For layouts that require merged cells, use an explicit layout-table YAML fence. Rows must have equal numbers of string cells; widths are positive relative weights. Merge coordinates are zero-based [row, column] pairs with inclusive endpoints. Covered cells must be empty, and merge rectangles cannot overlap. This preserves content and makes scan-specific structure explicit rather than guessing from text.

```layout-table
widths: [15, 37, 7, 41]
rows:
  - [Floor, East, West, ""]
  - [Roof, Terrace, "", Owner]
  - [First, Owner, Stairs, Owner]
  - [Ground, Owner, "", Owner]
merges:
  - from: [0, 2]
    to: [0, 3]
  - from: [1, 1]
    to: [1, 2]
  - from: [2, 2]
    to: [3, 2]
```

The source Markdown and compiler AST always retain Unicode Bangla. Install SutonnyMJ on the machine used to open or export DOCX; the font is not bundled. Mixed English text retains a Latin font. Bijoy-encoded DOCX text depends on SutonnyMJ and does not have Unicode Bangla copy/search semantics. The PDF preview provides the intended visual result. RenderConfig.fonts.bengali defaults to SutonnyMJ; set it to a Unicode font for Unicode output, or None to disable this output pass. Bijoy conversion uses the pinned MPL-2.0 bijoy2unicode library, with padding for its end-of-word lookahead and a SutonnyMJ-compatible la-phala glyph fix.