Editor formatting reference
Some fields in TestRail allow for rich text formatting. You can use rich text formatting in TestRail by using an easy to learn syntax called Markdown.
For example, to make a word appear italic, just surround it with asterisks like *this*. Likewise, to make a word appear bold, surround it with two **asterisks**.
There are syntax elements to make lists, add links, include code blocks, headers, images, and a lot more. Please see below for a list of available syntax options and for examples on how to use them.
The syntax reference and highlighting were inspired by Stack Overflow.
On this page:
Italics and bolds
There are multiple ways to emphasize words using *asterisks* or _underscores_.
- A single *asterisk* or _underscore_ will _italicize the text_
- Two **asterisks** or __underscores__ will __bold the text__
- Three ***asterisks*** or ___underscores___ will ___make the text bolded AND italicized___
Input
*This is italicized*, and so is _this_.
**This is bold**, and so is __this__.
You can use ***italics and bold together*** if you ___have to___.
Output
Code and preformatted text
To make a code block, indent four spaces:
Input
____printf(“hello world!”); /* a multiline
comment */
The text will be wrapped in tags and displayed in a monospaced typeface. The first four spaces will be stripped off, but all other whitespace will be preserved.
You cannot use Markdown or HTML within a code block, which makes them a convenient way to show samples of Markdown or HTML syntax:
If code blocks are embedded in text blocks, they require an empty line before and after.
Code spans
Use backticks to create an inline <code> span:
Input
Press the ` <Tab>` key, then type a ` $` .
Output
(The backtick key is in the upper left corner of most keyboards.)
Like code blocks, code spans will be displayed in a monospaced typeface. Markdown and HTML will not work within them.
Note that, unlike code blocks, code spans require you to manually escape any HTML within!
Links
There are two ways to write links. The second one is easier to read than the first:
Input
Here’s an inline link to [Google](https://www.google.com/).
Here’s a reference-style link to [Google][1].
[1]: https://www.google.com/Output
The link definitions can appear anywhere in the document — before or after the place where you use them.
Headers
You can underline text to make the two top-level headers:
Input
Header 1
=======
Header 2
———–
Output
The number of = or – signs does not matter. You can get away with just one. But using enough to underline the text makes your titles look better in plain text.
You can also use hash marks for several levels of headers:
Input
# Header 1 #
## Header 2 ##
### Header 3 ###
Output
The closing # characters are optional.
Horizontal rules
You can insert a horizontal rule <hr/> by putting three or more hyphens, asterisks, or underscores on a line by themselves:
Input
Rule #1 --- Rule #2 ******* Rule #3 ___
Output
Rule #1 _____________________________________________________________________ Rule #2 _____________________________________________________________________ Rule #3 _____________________________________________________________________
You can also use spaces between the characters:
Rule #4
- - - -
All of these examples produce the same output.
Simple lists
A bulleted list:
Input
– Use a minus sign for a bullet
+ Or plus sign
* Or an asterisk
Output
A numbered list:
Input
1. Numbered lists are easy
2. Markdown keeps track of the numbers for you
7. So this will be item 3.
Output
A double-spaced list:
Input
– This list gets wrapped in <p> tags
– So there will be extra space between items
Output
Blockquotes
Blockquotes are indented.
Add a > to the beginning of any line to create a blockquote.
Input
> The syntax is based on the way email programs
> usually do quotations. You don’t need to hard-wrap
> the paragraphs in your blockquotes, but it looks much nicer if you do.
Output
Images
Images are exactly like links, but they have an exclamation point in front of them:
Input
.
Output
The word in square brackets is the alt text which appears if the browser can’t show the image. Be sure to include meaningful alt text for screen-reading software.
Tables
Requires TestRail 5.0 or later. Tables can be formatted as follows:
Input
| A header | Another header |
| ———– | ——————– |
| First | row |
| Second | row |
Output
| A header | Another header |
| First | row |
| Second | row |
The first line specifies the table header and column alignments. The alignments are determined by colon characters in the respective header cells at the beginning/end of the cells. The following alignments are supported:
| :Header | Left-aligned (default) |
| :Header: | Centered |
| Header: | Right-aligned |
The table cells themselves support a limited set of rich-text formatting. The following features are supported inside a table cell:
- Code spans (for fixed-font formatting)
- Links
Advanced lists
You can put other Markdown blocks in a list. Simply indent four spaces for each nesting level:
Input
1. Lists in a list item: - Indented four spaces. * indented eight spaces. - Four spaces again. 2. Multiple paragraphs in a list items: It's best to indent the paragraphs four spaces You can get away with three, but it can get confusing when you nest other things. Stick to four.
3. Preformatted text in a list item: Skip a line and indent eight spaces. That's four spaces for the list and four to trigger the code block.
Output
Advanced blockquotes
You can put other Markdown blocks in a blockquote. To do so, add a > followed by a space:
Paragraph breaks in a blockquote:
Input
> The `>` on the blank lines is required
> to create a single blockquote.
>
> If you leave out the extra `>`
> you will end up with
> two distinct blockquotes.
Output
