Pandoc Cheatsheet - Document Conversion Command Reference

Copy-pasting a document between formats usually destroys the structure you worked for. Pandoc converts between Markdown, HTML, PDF, DOCX and EPUB by mapping to a document model, so headings, tables and citations survive. This reference covers basic interchange, Chinese-PDF fonts, templates/styles, slides, e-books and citations/math. Use it when your CMS, wiki or client insists on a format you don't author in. After reading you move content across formats with markup intact.

Dev Tools·38 commands·Last updated 2026-07-21

Basic Conversion 8

pandoc input.md -o output.html

Markdown to HTML

pandoc input.md -o output.pdf

Markdown to PDF (needs LaTeX)

pandoc input.md -o output.docx

Markdown to Word

pandoc input.html -o output.md

HTML to Markdown

pandoc input.docx -o output.md

Word to Markdown

pandoc input.md -o output.epub

Markdown to EPUB

pandoc -f markdown -t html5 input.md -o output.html

Explicitly set input/output formats

pandoc input.md -o output.org

Markdown to Org-mode

PDF Advanced Options 5

pandoc input.md -o output.pdf --pdf-engine=xelatex

Use xelatex engine (Chinese support)

pandoc input.md -o output.pdf -V mainfont="Noto Sans CJK SC"

Specify a Chinese font

pandoc input.md -o output.pdf --toc

Generate a table of contents

pandoc input.md -o output.pdf --toc --toc-depth=3

TOC depth of 3 levels

pandoc input.md -o output.pdf -V geometry:margin=1in

Set page margins

Templates & Styles 5

pandoc -s input.md -o output.html

Produce standalone HTML (with head)

pandoc input.md --template=mytemplate.html -o output.html

Use a custom template

pandoc input.md --css=style.css --self-contained -o output.html

Inline CSS into a single file

pandoc input.md -H header.html -o output.html

Inject custom content into head

pandoc -o template.html --print-default-template html5

Print the default template

Metadata & Slides 5

pandoc input.md -V title="Title" -V author="Author" -o output.pdf

Set metadata

pandoc input.md -t beamer -o output.pdf

Markdown to Beamer slides

pandoc input.md -t slidy -o output.html

To Slidy HTML slides

pandoc input.md -t revealjs -o output.html

To reveal.js slides

pandoc input.md -f markdown -t plain

To plain text (strip formatting)

Citations & Math 6

pandoc input.md --citeproc -o output.pdf

Enable citation processing

pandoc input.md --bibliography=refs.bib --citeproc -o output.pdf

Specify a BibTeX library

pandoc input.md --csl=ieee.csl -o output.pdf

Specify citation style (CSL)

pandoc input.md --mathjax -o output.html

Render math with MathJax

pandoc input.md --katex -o output.html

Render math with KaTeX

pandoc --list-extensions markdown

List Markdown extensions supported

Common Flags 9

--highlight-style=tango

Code highlighting theme

--number-sections

Number section headings

--standalone / -s

Produce a complete document (with head/foot)

--metadata-file=meta.yaml

Read metadata from YAML

--filter=pandoc-filter

Use a custom filter

-V key=value

Pass a variable to the template

--wrap=auto

Auto-wrap lines (auto/preserve/none)

--columns=80

Set wrap column width

--reference-doc=template.docx

Use a Word reference doc for styling

Tips

Chinese PDFs must use the xelatex engine and a Chinese font, or text is garbled.
Markdown to Word may lose styles; convert to HTML first, then DOCX for better fidelity.
Run pandoc --list-output-formats to see all supported output formats.

Official References

Each command links to its official documentation below, so you can verify the latest usage and read deeper.

Pandoc User Guide

Maintained by LaoHand

Publicly updated on Jul 21, 2026, continuously proofread against official docs.

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