markdown-exec

What it is and what it does

Markdown Exec is a Markdown extension that transforms code blocks into executable snippets. When you mark a code block with `exec="on"`, the extension runs that code and injects the output back into the document in place of the original block. It works as a plugin for MkDocs or as a standalone Markdown extension, integrating with pymdown-extensions' SuperFences to handle multiple languages including Python, bash, and console sessions.

The package is designed for documentation workflows where you want code examples to stay synchronized with their actual output—write a Python snippet that generates HTML or a bash command that lists files, and the rendered documentation automatically shows what that code produces. It supports optional ANSI color rendering for terminal output via the `ansi` extra, and can be configured to expect specific exit codes or handle errors gracefully.

Use it for

• Auto-generate API documentation by executing code examples that produce formatted output
• Keep shell command examples in docs synchronized with their real output
• Build documentation sites where Python snippets compute and display results
• Create reproducible tutorials where code blocks run during the build and embed their results
• Generate tables or formatted lists in Markdown by executing Python code that produces them

Worth the install?

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Install

markdown-exec on PyPI

Before you install

Low friction: pure Python wheel with a single runtime dependency (pymdown-extensions). Actively maintained with recent releases; last commit 2026-07-08. Requires Python 3.10 or later.

Requires Python 3.10 or later; pymdown-extensions must be installed as a runtime dependency.

License in practice

ISC license is permissive and imposes minimal restrictions; suitable for both open-source and commercial use without copyleft obligations.

Quickstart

pip install markdown-exec

from markdown import Markdown
from markdown_exec import formatter, validator

Markdown(
    extensions=["pymdownx.superfences"],
    extension_configs={
        "pymdownx.superfences": {
            "custom_fences": [{
                "name": "python",
                "class": "python",
                "validator": validator,
                "format": formatter,
            }]
        }
    }
)

Package facts

Evidence: markdown_exec-1.12.3-py3-none-any.whl

Tags

More Software Development packages

See also cogapp · pytest-markdown-docs · doccmd · markdown-callouts · mkdocs-markdownextradata-plugin · md2pdf · mkdocs-kroki-plugin · mkdocs-macros-plugin · mkdocs-click · sybil