The easiest way to read Markdown files in Chrome

AI tools create a lot of .md files. They are excellent for writing, but not always pleasant to read.

These days, I keep seeing files like README.md, PLAN.md, NOTES.md, and draft articles generated in Markdown.

Opening them in an IDE feels like overkill. IDEs assume that I want to edit the file, search through code, or make changes. But most of the time, all I want is simple: open the file and read it comfortably.

Open a Markdown file directly in Chrome and read it like a formatted article.

The flow is simple:

1. AI tools create .md files.
2. Chrome opens the local file.
3. Markdown Viewer renders it like a readable article.

The solution

Install Markdown Viewer, a browser extension that renders Markdown files inside Chrome.

Before: Raw Markdown text with symbols like #, -, and backticks everywhere.

After: Headings, lists, code blocks, tables, links, and images rendered like a normal article.

Setup

1. Install Markdown Viewer from the Chrome Web Store.
2. Open chrome://extensions.
3. Locate the Markdown Viewer extension and click the Details button.

Next, turn on Allow access to file URLs.

Open .md files in Chrome by default

To make this even smoother, set Chrome as the default app for .md files.

1. Right-click any .md file.
2. Choose Get Info on macOS, or Open with on Windows.
3. Select Google Chrome.
4. On macOS, click Change All.... On Windows, enable Always use this app.

Now you can double-click a Markdown file and read it directly in Chrome.

Small note

If the file still opens as raw text, check whether Allow access to file URLs is enabled. That is the setting people usually miss.

Reference: Markdown Viewer GitHub repository