pandoc

name	pandoc
description	Universal document converter using pandoc. Convert between any supported formats including markdown, docx, html, pdf, latex, epub, rst, and many more.
triggers	["convert to","convert this","pandoc","export as"]

Pandoc Document Converter

Universal document converter supporting 50+ formats.

Quick Reference

# Basic conversion (auto-detect from extensions)
pandoc input.docx -o output.md

# Specify formats explicitly
pandoc input.txt --from docx --to markdown -o output.md
pandoc input.md --to pdf -o output.pdf

# Extract media (images) from document
pandoc input.docx -o output.md --extract-media=./media

# List all supported formats
pandoc --list-input-formats
pandoc --list-output-formats

Common Formats

Documents: markdown, docx, html, pdf, latex, epub, rst, odt, rtf, txt
Code/Data: json, yaml, csv, tsv
Web: html, xhtml
Markup: asciidoc, org, textile, mediawiki
Books: epub, fb2

Key Options

Option	Description
-f, --from	Input format
-t, --to	Output format
-o	Output file
--extract-media=DIR	Extract images to directory
--wrap=none	Don't wrap lines
--standalone	Full document with headers
--toc	Add table of contents
--pdf-engine=ENGINE	xelatex, pdflatex, lualatex, wkhtmltopdf
-V KEY=VAL	Set template variable
--resource-path=PATH	Search path for images/resources

Usage Examples

Document Conversions

# Word to Markdown with images
pandoc report.docx -o report.md --extract-media=./images

# Markdown to PDF (requires LaTeX)
pandoc README.md -o README.pdf --pdf-engine=xelatex

# Markdown to standalone HTML
pandoc doc.md -o doc.html --standalone --toc

# HTML to Word
pandoc page.html -o page.docx

# Multiple files to one PDF
pandoc chapter1.md chapter2.md chapter3.md -o book.pdf

Working with Images

# Extract all images from Word document
pandoc input.docx -o output.md --extract-media=./extracted_images

# Convert with specific image handling
pandoc input.docx -o output.md \
  --extract-media=./media \
  --resource-path=./media

Advanced Options

# Custom CSS for HTML output
pandoc input.md -o output.html --css=style.css

# Set metadata
pandoc input.md -o output.pdf -V geometry:margin=1in -V fontsize=12pt

# Filters (e.g., citeproc for citations)
pandoc input.md -o output.pdf --filter=pandoc-citeproc

# From stdin to stdout
cat file.md | pandoc -f markdown -t html > file.html

Installation

# macOS
brew install pandoc

# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt-get install pandoc

# Windows
choco install pandoc
# or
winget install JohnMacFarlane.Pandoc

# For PDF output, also install LaTeX:
# macOS: brew install --cask mactex-no-gui
# Ubuntu: sudo apt-get install texlive-xetex

Best Practices

1. Use file extensions - Pandoc auto-detects formats from extensions
2. Extract media - Always use --extract-media when images matter
3. Specify formats - Use -f/-t when auto-detection might fail
4. PDF engines - Use xelatex for better Unicode/font support
5. No wrap - Use --wrap=none for cleaner diffs in version control

Common Issues

Problem	Solution
"pdf-engine not found"	Install LaTeX (texlive/mactex)
Images not showing	Use --extract-media + --resource-path
Encoding issues	Use --from to specify input encoding
Missing fonts	Install fonts or use --pdf-engine=xelatex

See Also

• Full manual: https://pandoc.org/MANUAL.html
• Try online: https://pandoc.org/try/