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Rich text editor

Tier: Free, Premium, Ultimate
Offering: GitLab.com, GitLab Self-Managed, GitLab Dedicated

The rich text editor is the default text editor for new users in GitLab.

You can use the rich text editor in:

Wikis
Issues
Epics
Merge requests
Designs

Features of the editor include:

Format text, including as bold, italics, block quotes, headings, and inline code.
Format ordered lists, unordered lists, and checklists.
Insert links, attachments, images, video, and audio.
Create and edit a table structure.
Insert and format code blocks with syntax highlighting.
Preview Mermaid, PlantUML, and Kroki diagrams in real time.

To track work on adding the rich text editor to more places across GitLab, see epic 7098.

Switch to the rich text editor

Use the rich text editor to edit descriptions, wiki pages, add comments.

To switch to the rich text editor: In a text box, in the lower-left corner, select Switch to rich text editing.

Switch to the plain text editor

If you want to enter Markdown source in the text box, return to using the plain text editor.

To switch to the plain text editor: In a text box, in the lower-left corner, select Switch to plain text editing.

Compatibility with GitLab Flavored Markdown

The rich text editor is fully compatible with GitLab Flavored Markdown. It means that you can switch between plain text and rich text modes without losing any data.

Input rules

Rich text editor also supports input rules that let you work with rich content as if you were typing Markdown.

Supported input rules:

Input rule syntax	Content inserted
`# Heading 1` through `###### Heading 6`	Headings 1 through 6
`bold` or `__bold__`	Bold text
`_italics_` or `italics`	Italicized text
`~~strike~~`	Strikethrough
`[link](https://example.com)`	Hyperlink
`code`	Inline code
```rb + `Enter` ```js + `Enter`	Code block
`* List item`, or `- List item`, or `+ List item`	Unordered list
`1. List item`	Numbered list
`<details>`	Collapsible section

Tables

Unlike in raw Markdown, you can use the rich text editor to insert block content paragraphs, list items, diagrams (or even another table!) in table cells.

Insert a table

To insert a table:

Select Insert table .
From the dropdown list, select the dimensions of the new table.

Edit a table

Inside a table cell, you can use a menu to insert or delete rows or columns.

To open the menu: In the upper-right corner of a cell, select the chevron .

Operations on multiple cells

Select multiple cells and merge or split them.

To merge selected cells into one:

Select multiple cells - select one and drag your cursor.
In the upper-right corner of a cell, select the chevron > Merge N cells.

To split merged cells: In the upper-right corner of a cell, select the chevron > Split cell.

Paste into a table cell

When you press Control+V (or Command+V on macOS), GitLab merges the copied cells into the table by default.

To choose how the content is pasted:

In the upper-right corner of the target cell, select the chevron .
Select one of these options:
- Paste into cell: Inserts the copied content at the cursor. A copied table becomes a table nested inside the cell.
- Paste and merge into table: Distributes the copied cells across the table (default behavior).

The first time you use either option, your browser might ask for permission to read your clipboard.

The paste options appear only when your browser can read the clipboard. Browsers allow this only on pages served over HTTPS or from localhost, so the options are not available on a GitLab Self-Managed instance served over plain HTTP.

Insert diagrams

Insert Mermaid and PlantUML diagrams and preview them live as you type the diagram code.

To insert a diagram:

In the top bar of a text box, select More options and then Mermaid diagram or PlantUML diagram.
Enter the code for your diagram. The diagram preview appears in the text box.