Markdown Better View vs free Quick Look options
Free ways to preview Markdown in Finder exist — Quick Look plugins like QLMarkdown, PreviewMarkdown and Glance, and the free viewer QuickMD. Here’s what they get you, and what a one-time $9.99 adds. Verified June 2026.
Short version: if all you want is a Finder preview and your budget is zero, the free options work — QuickMD is a capable free viewer, and free plugins add a Quick Look preview. Markdown Better View ($9.99) is for when you want a signed, no-fuss app with a Quick Look extension and a real reading experience: themes, table of contents, find, reading mode, folder→tabs and live reload.
| Markdown Better View | QuickMD (free) | Free QL plugins* | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $9.99 once | Free | Free / $2.99 |
| Standalone reader app | Yes | Yes | No (preview only) |
| Quick Look in Finder | Yes + thumbnails | ? | Yes |
| Table of contents · find | Yes | ? | No |
| Reading mode | Yes | No | No |
| Folder → native tabs | Yes | Yes | No |
| Live reload on save | Yes | ? | No |
| Math (KaTeX) · Mermaid | Yes | Yes | ? |
| Signed & notarized | Yes | Yes (App Store) | Often not** |
*Free QL plugins = QLMarkdown, PreviewMarkdown, Anybox Markdown Preview ($2.99), Glance. **QLMarkdown’s Homebrew cask is deprecated (unsigned); Glance’s maintained fork needs a Gatekeeper/quarantine workaround. “?” = not clearly stated by the vendor.
When free is enough
If you only need to press Space in Finder and glance at a rendered .md,
a free Quick Look plugin does the job. If you want a free app with themes and Mermaid,
QuickMD is a genuinely good free viewer — start there if your budget is zero.
When Markdown Better View is worth $9.99
Pay once for a single signed, notarized app — no xattr quarantine
workarounds, no deprecated casks — that bundles the Quick Look extension and thumbnails
and a full reader: five themes, table of contents with scrollspy, instant find, reading
mode, folder→tabs and live reload. One app, maintained, no fuss. See the
full roundup or the
Quick Look setup guide.
FAQ
- Is there a free Markdown Quick Look extension for Mac?
- Yes — PreviewMarkdown is free, and QLMarkdown is free and open source (though its Homebrew cask is deprecated because it is unsigned). Anybox Markdown Preview is $2.99. They add a Finder preview but are not full reading apps.
- Is there a free Markdown viewer app, not just a Quick Look plugin?
- Yes — QuickMD is a free native viewer with themes, tabs, LaTeX and Mermaid. If you do not need a no-setup Quick Look extension plus reading features like find and reading mode, it is a good free starting point.
- Why pay $9.99 when free options exist?
- For a signed, notarized app with no Gatekeeper workarounds, a no-setup Quick Look extension and thumbnails, and a full reading experience — table of contents, instant find, reading mode, folder→tabs, live reload — in one maintained app. Free plugins give you a preview and nothing more.
- Are the free Quick Look plugins safe to install?
- The code is generally fine, but some are unsigned: QLMarkdown’s Homebrew cask is deprecated for failing Gatekeeper, and Glance’s maintained fork needs a quarantine workaround. That means bypassing macOS’ notarization check — only do it for software you trust.