Side-by-side comparisons with the Mac Markdown apps you're probably choosing between. Pricing, memory footprint, native vs Electron, Mermaid support, QuickLook, and which ones are still maintained.
MacDown has no Apple Silicon build: last release Jan 2020, Homebrew cask disabled 1 Sept 2026, Rosetta ends after macOS 27. Here is what to run instead.
Markdown Better View costs $9.99 with Quick Look, Mermaid and KaTeX, but needs macOS 15. Where it beats MacMD Viewer — and where it does not.
MacMD Viewer vs Marked 2: MacMD has Finder QuickLook and 12 document themes; Marked 2 has custom CSS, seven export formats and writing stats.
Marked QL is a $9.99 Quick Look extension from the author of Marked. It previews; MacMD Viewer previews and reads. Where each one ends.
MarkText is free, open source and active again since May 2026. MacMD Viewer is the native SwiftUI reader with Finder QuickLook and Mermaid.
MD-Viewer is free on the Mac App Store and exports PDF — but it is a 119 MB download with no Quick Look and no Mermaid. Both facts checked at the source.
MDHero is free, MIT-licensed, under 8 MB and renders KaTeX — but Apple Silicon only, with no Quick Look extension. Where each app wins.
Meva is free to start, cross-platform, renders LaTeX; Pro costs $14.99. MacMD Viewer costs $19.99 and previews in Finder. An honest side-by-side.
Obsidian is a 293 MB Electron vault app, free for any use; MacMD Viewer is a 16 MB native SwiftUI reader. Side by side, verified 29 July 2026.
QLMarkdown is free, open source and actively maintained in 2026. Here is where it wins, and where MacMD Viewer's standalone reading app earns its $19.99.
Telescopo's viewer is free, full access from $4.99/mo; MacMD Viewer is $19.99 once. Real gaps: QuickLook in Finder, macOS 14 support, no tier ladder.
Typora is a native Cocoa app, not Electron — verified 29 July 2026. The real split: Typora edits, MacMD Viewer reads with Quick Look in Finder.
Read the Best Markdown Viewer for Mac in 2026 roundup, start with the MD viewer for Mac page, or see all MacMD Viewer features.