How to Import a Markdown File Into Notion

You have a Markdown file with notes, documentation, or a blog draft that you want to bring into Notion. Notion does not offer a direct one-click import for plain .md files, which often leads to confusion when the Import menu only shows options for other formats. This article explains the two reliable methods to convert and import a Markdown file into a Notion page. You will learn how to use Notion’s built-in import feature with a file extension trick and how to use a free third-party converter for more complex Markdown content.

Why Notion Does Not Import Markdown Files Directly

Notion’s import system was designed to pull from major productivity platforms like Evernote, Asana, and Trello. Markdown is a plain-text format with no official standard — there are many flavors (GitHub Flavored Markdown, CommonMark, etc.) and no universal metadata schema. Notion decided not to build a dedicated Markdown parser, so the Import menu in Settings & Members does not list .md as an option.

When you attempt to drag a .md file into a Notion page, nothing happens. Notion only accepts drag-and-drop for images, videos, and PDFs. The workaround is to convert the Markdown content into a format Notion does recognize: HTML. HTML shares many structural elements with Markdown — headings, lists, links, and code blocks — so the conversion preserves most of your original formatting.

What You Need Before Starting

You need a Markdown file saved on your computer. The file should use the .md or .markdown extension. For the rename method, you need to see file extensions in your operating system. On Windows 11, open File Explorer, click the View menu, and enable File name extensions. On macOS, open Finder, go to Finder > Settings > Advanced, and check Show all filename extensions.

Method 1: Rename the Markdown File to HTML and Import

This method uses Notion’s built-in HTML import. It works best for Markdown files with basic formatting: headings, bold, italic, bullet lists, numbered lists, links, and fenced code blocks. Tables and embedded images may not transfer correctly.

1. Rename the file extension from .md to .html
   Right-click your Markdown file and select Rename. Change the extension from .md to .html. Confirm the warning about changing the file extension. The file icon may change to a browser icon.
2. Open Notion and go to Settings & Members
   Click the gear icon in the left sidebar to open Settings & Members. Then click the Settings tab on the left panel of the pop-up window.
3. Click Import and select HTML
   Under the Workspace section, click the Import button. In the list of supported formats, select HTML. Notion will open a file picker dialog.
4. Select the renamed .html file
   Navigate to the renamed file, select it, and click Open. Notion processes the file and creates a new page in your workspace with the imported content.
5. Review and adjust the imported content
   Open the newly created page. Check that headings, lists, and code blocks appear correctly. You may need to reformat tables manually by converting them to Notion table blocks. Add any missing images by dragging them into the page.

Method 2: Use a Third-Party Markdown to Notion Converter

If your Markdown file contains tables, footnotes, images, or complex nested lists, the rename method will likely drop or corrupt that formatting. A dedicated converter tool preserves more of the original structure. One free option is the Markdown to Notion converter available at markdowntonotion.com.

1. Open the converter website
   Go to markdowntonotion.com in your browser. The page shows a large text area labeled Paste your Markdown here.
2. Copy the content of your Markdown file
   Open your .md file in a plain-text editor like Notepad, VS Code, or TextEdit. Press Ctrl+A to select all text, then Ctrl+C to copy. Return to the converter page.
3. Paste the Markdown into the converter
   Click inside the text area and press Ctrl+V to paste your Markdown content. The converter immediately renders a preview on the right side showing how the content will look in Notion.
4. Click Copy to Clipboard
   Below the preview pane, click the Copy to Clipboard button. The converter copies the Notion-compatible rich text to your clipboard.
5. Create a new Notion page and paste
   In Notion, click the Add a page button in the left sidebar. Give the page a title. Click into the body area and press Ctrl+V to paste. Notion renders the content as native blocks — headings, bullet lists, code blocks, and even simple tables appear correctly.

Common Issues When Importing Markdown to Notion

Notion Import Button Does Not Accept .md Files

If you try to select a .md file directly in the Import dialog, it will be grayed out or not appear. This is expected behavior. Rename the file to .html before importing. Do not rename the file inside Notion’s file picker — use File Explorer or Finder first.

Tables and Images Are Missing After Import

Notion’s HTML import does not parse Markdown tables or embedded image paths. If your Markdown file uses table syntax like | Header 1 | Header 2 |, the import will flatten the table into plain text. To preserve tables, use the third-party converter method. For images, upload the image files separately by dragging them into the Notion page after import.

Code Blocks Lose Syntax Highlighting

Fenced code blocks with a language tag like “`python are converted to plain Notion code blocks without language labeling. After import, click inside the code block, then click the language dropdown in the block toolbar to set the correct language. Notion supports dozens of languages for syntax highlighting.

Import Methods Compared: Rename vs Converter

Feature	Rename .md to .html	Third-Party Converter
Setup required	Rename file in File Explorer	Copy and paste into a website
Preserves headings	Yes	Yes
Preserves tables	No	Yes
Preserves images	No	No (uploads needed separately)
Preserves footnotes	No	Yes
Preserves code block language tags	No	No
File size limit	None (Notion’s HTML import limit is 5 MB)	Depends on browser memory
Offline capable	Yes	No (requires internet)

For simple Markdown files with only headings and lists, the rename method is faster and works offline. For complex files with tables, footnotes, or multiple code blocks, the third-party converter saves significant reformatting time.

Conclusion

You can now import a Markdown file into Notion by renaming the file to .html and using the built-in HTML import, or by using the Markdown to Notion converter for advanced formatting. Both methods produce a new Notion page with your content converted into native blocks. For your next project, try using the converter method when your Markdown file contains tables — you will avoid the manual table rebuild that the rename method requires. Remember to set code block languages manually after import to restore syntax highlighting.