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How to Add a Page Break in Markdown (for PDF)

Markdown has no page-break syntax — here’s how to force a new page when exporting to PDF, with \newpage, an HTML comment, CSS, or automatic breaks before headings.

Updated · 4 min read

Plain Markdown has no concept of pages, so there’s no official page-break syntax. When you export to PDF, though, you often need one: a cover page, chapters, an appendix. Here are the options and when to use each.

1. \newpage on its own line

The simplest option, borrowed from LaTeX and Pandoc:

## Chapter 1

Some text.

\newpage

## Chapter 2

The Markdown to PDF editor also accepts \pagebreak, <!-- pagebreak --> and [pagebreak]. In the live preview you’ll see a dashed “Page break” line where the new page starts.

2. An HTML element with CSS

If your tool doesn’t support \newpage, raw HTML usually works because most converters render through a browser:

<div style="break-after: page"></div>

break-after: page is the modern property; older guides use page-break-after: always, which browsers still understand.

3. Automatic breaks before headings

For long documents it’s easier to let headings decide. In the editor, open Style → Document → Start a new page before and choose Each H1 or H1 & H2. The first heading in the document never gets a blank page before it.

With your own CSS (Style → Custom CSS) you can do the same thing:

.doc h2 { break-before: page; }

Keeping things together

The opposite problem — content splitting badly — is handled automatically:

  • headings stay with the paragraph that follows them,
  • table rows, short code blocks, diagrams, equations and callouts aren’t split,
  • table headers repeat on every page when a long table continues.

To keep a specific block together, wrap it:

<div style="break-inside: avoid">

…content that must stay on one page…

</div>

Quick reference

You want Use
Force a new page here \newpage
Every chapter on a new page Style → Start a new page before → Each H1
Keep a block on one page <div style="break-inside: avoid">
A cover page Front matter title: + Style → Cover page

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