BBCode to Markdown Converter
Free online BBCode to Markdown converter — convert forum BBCode back to Markdown instantly with live preview. Paste a phpBB, vBulletin, MyBB, XenForo, or SMF post and get clean Markdown for GitHub, Notion, Obsidian, and Discord. 100% client-side: nothing is uploaded.
Rendered preview
How to convert BBCode to Markdown
- Paste your BBCode into the input box — a whole forum post or a snippet. phpBB, vBulletin, MyBB, XenForo, and SMF dialects are accepted.
- Tune the options. Pick your bullet character, choose whether single line breaks are preserved, or enable batch mode to convert many posts at once — separate posts with a delimiter line (default
===POST===). - Copy the Markdown — conversion is live, so the output is always current. Paste it into GitHub, Notion, Obsidian, or Discord.
BBCode → Markdown syntax mapping
| BBCode | Markdown output |
|---|---|
[b]bold[/b] | **bold** |
[i]italic[/i] | *italic* |
[u]underline[/u] | <u>underline</u> (no Markdown equivalent) |
[s]strike[/s] | ~~strike~~ |
[quote]…[/quote] | > … |
[quote="name"]…[/quote] | > **name** wrote: + quoted lines |
[code]…[/code] | Fenced block, or `…` when single-line |
[code=php]…[/code] | ```php fenced block |
[c]…[/c] | `…` inline code |
[list][*]a[*]b[/list] | - a / - b |
[list=1][*]a[*]b[/list] | 1. a / 2. b |
[url=https://…]text[/url] | [text](https://…) |
[url]https://…[/url] | <https://…> |
[img]https://…/i.png[/img] |  |
[size=200]…[/size] | # … (scales down with size) |
[color=red]…[/color] | <span style="color:red">…</span> |
[center]…[/center] | <div align="center">…</div> |
[table][tr][td]…[/td][/tr][/table] | GitHub-style pipe table |
[spoiler]…[/spoiler] | <details> collapsible block |
[hr] | --- |
Built for every forum migration
Whether you search for a bbcode to markdown converter, want to convert bbcode to markdown online, or need a phpbb to markdown, vbulletin to markdown, xenforo to markdown, mybb to markdown, or smf to markdown migration helper, this page does the same job: turn forum bbcode to markdown free, with no sign-up and no uploads. Convert a forum post to markdown for archiving, translate bbcode lists to markdown without retyping [*] items, turn bbcode tables to markdown pipe grids, and keep bbcode quotes in markdown with author attribution intact. Your bulletin board code to markdown conversion runs locally in milliseconds — bbcode code blocks become fenced markdown, ready for GitHub, Notion, or Obsidian.
What people use it for
- Forum → Discourse / GitHub: migrating phpBB or vBulletin communities to Markdown-native platforms — convert announcement posts, FAQs, and guides without losing formatting.
- Archiving old threads: turn SMF, MyBB, or XenForo thread exports into Markdown files you can read natively in Obsidian or Notion, with quotes, lists, and tables preserved.
- Batch cleanup: paste dozens of posts separated by a delimiter line and convert them all in one pass — ideal for moderation queues and content audits.
- Docs rescue: recover tutorials trapped in dead forums as portable Markdown, with
[code=language]blocks keeping their syntax highlighting.
Frequently asked questions
What is a BBCode to Markdown converter?
A BBCode to Markdown converter rewrites forum BBCode — the bracket-tag markup used by phpBB, vBulletin, MyBB, XenForo, and SMF — as Markdown. Paste a forum post with [b], [i], [quote], [list], [url], [img], [code], and [table] tags and this free online tool outputs clean Markdown you can paste into GitHub, Notion, Obsidian, Discord, or any Markdown editor.
How do I convert BBCode to Markdown online?
Paste or type your BBCode into the input box. The conversion happens live as you type — no button needed. Toggle batch mode to convert several posts at once (split on a delimiter line), choose your bullet style and line-break handling, then click Copy Markdown or Download .md to save the result. A rendered preview shows exactly how the Markdown will look.
Which BBCode tags are supported?
Bold, italic, underline, strikethrough, inline code and fenced code blocks (including [code=language]), quotes with [quote="name"] authors, ordered and unordered lists with [*] and [li] items plus nesting, links, email links, images, [size] headings, [color], [center] and [align], [table] grids, [hr], [spoiler], [youtube] embeds, sub/superscript, and [noparse] literals.
How are BBCode lists converted to Markdown?
[list][*]apple[*]banana[/list] becomes a bulleted list (- apple, - banana), while [list=1], [list type=decimal], and [list=a] become numbered lists (1., 2.). [li]…[/li] items are understood too, nested lists are indented so they keep working in GitHub, Notion, and Obsidian, and you can switch the bullet character between - and * in the options.
What happens to [size], [color], and [center] tags?
Markdown has no native equivalent for these, so the converter maps them honestly instead of dropping them: [size=200]…[/size] becomes an ATX heading (# …), scaling down with the size value — both the phpBB percent scale and the vBulletin 1–7 scale are understood. [color=red] becomes a <span style="color:…"> tag and [center] becomes <div align="center">, which GitHub and most Markdown renderers display correctly.
What happens to broken or unknown BBCode tags?
Nothing is silently dropped or invented. Unknown tags like [foo] pass through verbatim, unmatched closing tags like [/b] pass through verbatim, and unclosed formatting tags like [b]text pass through verbatim so you can see exactly what was not understood. Mis-nested tags are closed forgivingly and unclosed lists or tables are auto-closed — the same honesty rules covered by dozens of automated test cases.
Can I convert Markdown back to BBCode?
This tool converts one direction only: BBCode to Markdown. For the reverse direction — Markdown to BBCode for posting on phpBB, vBulletin, MyBB, and SMF forums — use our companion Markdown to BBCode converter.
Is my BBCode uploaded to a server?
No. The entire conversion runs in JavaScript inside your browser — zero network requests, zero tracking, zero uploads. Your BBCode and the generated Markdown never leave your device, so it is safe for private forum archives, moderation queues, and unreleased announcements.
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