How to export Typora documents to Word and PDF

Typora exports PDF on its own: open the document and choose File → Export → PDF. Word (.docx) export needs one more step, because Typora hands that format to Pandoc, a free converter you install once. After that, Word export sits in the same File → Export menu. Typora's Snap package for Linux already includes Pandoc; on macOS and Windows, Typora's instructions tell you to install it.

Menu paths and quotes below come from Typora's Export page and Install and Use Pandoc page, and from Pandoc's install page, all checked in October 2026.

What can Typora export without extra software?

Typora's Export page says it directly: "Typora supports exporting the current document into PDF, HTML, HTML (without styles) and the Image format." Everything else goes through Pandoc: "More formats (like Word, RTF, etc) are supported via pandoc."

Format	Built in	Needs Pandoc
PDF	Yes	No
HTML, HTML (without styles)	Yes	No
Image	Yes	No
Word (.docx)	No	Yes
RTF, ODT, EPUB, LaTeX, wiki formats	No	Yes
PDF (LaTeX / Pandoc)	No	Yes, plus a PDF engine (added in preferences)

If you only need PDF, you can skip the Pandoc sections.

How do you export a Typora document to PDF?

1. Open the document in Typora.
2. Choose File → Export in the menu bar. Export has no default keyboard shortcut in Typora's Shortcut Keys table.
3. Pick PDF, then choose a file name and folder.

One limit is worth knowing before you start. Typora's Export page says: "Please note that on the Windows / Linux version, only light themes are supported for PDF Export, as well as for print." If you write in a dark theme on Windows or Linux, set a light theme for the PDF in the settings below.

How do you change PDF page size, margins and page breaks?

Typora keeps export settings in the preferences panel. Open it with Ctrl + , on Windows and Linux or Command + , on macOS (Shortcut Keys), then go to the Export section. The PDF options listed on the Export page are:

• Paper Size: A4, A5 or a custom size, plus margins.
• Theme: which Typora theme styles the PDF.
• Page Break: "Page Break Between Top Headings" starts each top-level heading on a new page. For a break anywhere else, put <div style="page-break-after:always"></div> in the document.
• Header / Footer: text with variables such as ${pageNo} and ${pageCount}, which is how you add page numbers.
• PDF Metadata: taken from the document's YAML front matter.
• Add Custom Content.

For styling that should only apply on paper, add CSS inside @media print { ... } in Custom CSS.

Typora can also make PDFs through Pandoc and LaTeX, but the Export page says this item is not in the export menu by default. To add it, open the Export section in preferences, click Add in the export item list and choose PDF (LaTeX / Pandoc). It needs Pandoc plus a PDF engine (for example pdflatex, xelatex or weasyprint) and has its own Template and Extra Arguments settings. It is mainly useful if you already work with LaTeX templates; the built-in PDF export covers ordinary documents.

How do you install Pandoc for Typora's Word export?

Typora's Export page: "For formats other than HTML, PDF and Images, Typora use pandoc for exporting." and "To make them work, please install pandoc first." The Install and Use Pandoc page adds that these features "require Pandoc (≥ v2.0) to be installed", and that "If you are using the Snap version of Typora, the pandoc is included in the snap." On macOS, Windows and other Linux installs, Typora's page gives install steps:

System	Typora's instructions	Pandoc's own page
macOS	Package installer from Pandoc's releases, or brew install pandoc	Same: installer or brew install pandoc
Windows	.msi from the releases page; on Windows 11, winget install pandoc	winget install --source winget --exact --id JohnMacFarlane.Pandoc or choco install pandoc; the MSI updates your PATH
Linux	sudo apt install pandoc	Package manager, the amd64 .deb (sudo dpkg -i $DEB), or the tarball

To check the install, open a terminal and run:

pandoc --version

The first line shows the version. It has to be 2.0 or later.

On Linux, Pandoc's install page asks you to "Check whether the pandoc version in your package manager is not outdated." Typora doesn't say anything specific about distribution packages, but if pandoc --version shows something older than 2.0, install the .deb or tarball from the releases page instead.

How do you export a Typora document to Word?

1. Install Pandoc as above, then restart Typora.
2. Open the document.
3. Choose File → Export and pick the Word format (Typora's docs list it as "Word (.docx)").
4. Choose a file name and folder.

Word settings live in a separate place, per the Export page: "You can configure it from Export → Word (.docx) in the preferences panel." Two settings matter most.

Style Reference. This is a .docx file whose styles your export copies, so you can set fonts, heading colors and spacing once. Typora's Export page says: "To create your own style template for docx output, you can generate one from the command line." The command is:

pandoc -o custom-reference.docx --print-default-data-file reference.docx

Open custom-reference.docx in Word, change the built-in styles you care about (Normal, Heading 1, Heading 2 and so on), save it, and select it as the Style Reference.

Extra Arguments. Typora's Export page says that for any Pandoc-based export item you can add Pandoc command-line options in the “Extra Arguments” field. Leave it empty unless you need a specific option. The equation-numbering section below has one example.

What if Typora says "Require Pandoc to Continue"?

This usually means Pandoc isn't installed, or Typora can't find where it is installed. The Export page gives three steps:

1. "Install pandoc"
2. "Restart Typora after pandoc is newly installed."
3. "If still not working, manually set the pandoc path in Export → General from the preferences panel."

The Install and Use Pandoc page adds one more for Windows: "For Windows users, if Typora is still saying it cannot find Pandoc, you may need to restart your PC." The MSI installer adds Pandoc to your PATH (Pandoc's install page).

For step 3, enter the full path to the Pandoc program, the same one that answered pandoc --version in your terminal.

Why does PDF or Word export fail or look wrong?

Typora's Export page covers these cases, checked in October 2026:

• PDF export doesn't work on Windows. Typora suggests checking the Print Spooler service: open Start, search for Services and open it, then find Print Spooler, start it, and click Apply and OK.
• Line breaks or spaces are missing in the PDF. Go to Markdown → Whitespace / Line Break → Export / Print and enable "Preserve whitespace and single line break".
• A Pandoc error dialog appears. "When an export failed, the error dialog will show the pandoc command line parameters and error message." Copy the command, replace -f native with the path to your .md file, and run it in a terminal to see the full error.
• "Cannot Read Native". Typora's Export page says "This is usually a bug in Typora" and asks you to report it to Typora's support.

How do you re-export after editing?

Typora has two commands for this, described on its Export page. Use File → Export → Export with Previous to repeat it with the same format and settings, or File → Export → Export and Overwrite with Previous to replace the earlier file in place. Both use the last successful export in the same window and document, so they won't remember an export from a file you closed. Typora warns: "Please be careful since it will overwrite your previously exported file."

Why don't equation numbers work in the Word file?

According to the Export page, \label and \ref aren't supported in docx export. The workaround it gives is to install the pandoc-tex-numbering filter separately, then add -F pandoc-tex-numbering to the Word (.docx) extra arguments.

Is there a way to export Word and PDF without installing Pandoc?

Any editor that bundles a converter will skip the install step. Noteline, which we make, is one option: its desktop app ships with Pandoc and Typst inside, so File → Export as Word… (⌘⌥E or Ctrl+Alt+E) and File → Export as PDF… (⌘⌥P or Ctrl+Alt+P) work offline with nothing else installed, and single line breaks are kept without a setting. It opens the same .md files Typora saves. The gaps are real: there is no Style Reference you can swap, no PDF theme, paper size, margin, header, footer or page-break settings, no extra Pandoc arguments, and fonts are fixed per system. Word and PDF export is desktop only; the web editor downloads .md, and the phone apps print instead. If you depend on Typora's PDF themes, headers and Style Reference, Typora's own export is the more configurable route. For how local conversion keeps headings and tables intact, see Markdown to Word and PDF, fully offline. The desktop app is on the download page, and the trial and license terms are on the pricing page.