Wiremd
The text-first UI design tool for developers who think in code. Create wireframes and mockups as fast as you can type—no clicking, no dragging, just pure markdown magic.
Install / Use
/learn @akonan/WiremdREADME
wiremd
Text-first UI design tool - Create wireframes and mockups using Markdown syntax
wiremd is a markdown-based UI wireframing tool that lets you create wireframes and mockups using familiar markdown syntax with intuitive extensions. Write your UI designs as text, render them as beautiful wireframes.
Why wiremd?
- Designer-friendly syntax - No complex DSL to learn, just extended Markdown
- Version control ready - Store your wireframes as plain text in Git
- Fast iteration - Update designs as quickly as you can type
- Collaboration - Review wireframe changes in pull requests
- Developer handoff - Export to HTML or framework components
- No vendor lock-in - Open source MIT license, runs anywhere
Quick Example
Contact Form
Create a contact.md file:
## Contact Form
Name
[_____________________________]{required}
Email
[_____________________________]{type:email required}
Message
[_____________________________]{rows:5}
[Submit]* [Cancel]
Generate a wireframe:
wiremd contact.md --style sketch
This renders into a styled HTML wireframe with a form, inputs, and buttons.
Grid Layout
Create a features.md file:
## Product Features {.grid-3}
### :rocket: Fast
Lightning quick performance
### :shield: Secure
Bank-level security
### :gear: Flexible
Fully customizable
Generate a wireframe:
wiremd features.md --style sketch
This creates a responsive 3-column grid layout with icons and descriptions.
Features
- ✅ Markdown-first - Valid markdown that degrades gracefully
- ✅ Full markdown support - Headings, text formatting, lists, links, images, blockquotes, code blocks, tables
- ✅ Grid layouts - Responsive multi-column grids (2, 3, 4+ columns) with simple
.grid-Nsyntax - ✅ Visual syntax - Looks like what it renders
- ✅ Fast to write - Intuitive shortcuts for common patterns
- ✅ Extensible - Add classes and attributes as needed
- ✅ Multiple outputs - HTML, JSON, React (JSX/TSX), Tailwind CSS, Figma (via plugin)
- ✅ 7 visual styles - sketch (Balsamiq-inspired), clean, wireframe, tailwind, material, brutal, none
- ✅ Full CLI tool - Watch mode, live-reload dev server, style switching
- ✅ Rich examples - Showcase files demonstrating all styles
- ✅ Framework renderers - React, Tailwind CSS classes (Vue, Svelte coming soon)
- ✅ VS Code extension - Live preview with real-time updates and style switching
Project Structure
This is an open-source MIT-licensed project containing:
src/- Core parser and renderer librarytests/- Comprehensive test suite (48 tests)docs/- Documentation site (Live at akonan.github.io/wiremd)examples/- Example wireframesfigma-plugin/- Figma plugin for importing wiremd designsobsidian-plugin/- Obsidian plugin for live wireframe previewsvscode-extension/- VS Code extension with live preview and style switching
Installation
npm
npm install -g wiremd
yarn
yarn global add wiremd
pnpm
pnpm add -g wiremd
Homebrew (macOS)
brew install akonan/wiremd/wiremd
From Source
git clone https://github.com/akonan/wiremd.git
cd wiremd
npm install
npm run build
npm link
CLI Usage
# Generate HTML with default sketch style
wiremd wireframe.md
# Output to specific file
wiremd wireframe.md -o output.html
# Use alternative styles
wiremd wireframe.md --style clean # Modern minimal
wiremd wireframe.md --style wireframe # Traditional grayscale
wiremd wireframe.md --style tailwind # Utility-first with purple accents
wiremd wireframe.md --style material # Google Material Design
wiremd wireframe.md --style brutal # Neo-brutalism style
wiremd wireframe.md --style none # Unstyled semantic HTML
# Watch mode with live-reload dev server
wiremd wireframe.md --watch --serve 3000
# Generate different output formats
wiremd wireframe.md --format json # JSON AST output
wiremd wireframe.md --format react # React/JSX component
wiremd wireframe.md --format tailwind # HTML with Tailwind CSS classes
Exporting to Figma
wiremd designs can be imported into Figma as fully editable, native Figma designs using the wiremd Figma Plugin.
Quick Start
-
Generate JSON from your wiremd file:
wiremd your-mockup.md --format json -o mockup.json -
Install the Figma Plugin:
- Open Figma → Plugins → Browse plugins
- Search for "wiremd Importer"
- Click Install
-
Import to Figma:
- Open the wiremd Importer plugin
- Paste your JSON
- Choose a visual theme (Sketch, Clean, Wireframe, or Minimal)
- Click "Import to Figma"
Your wiremd design will appear as a new Figma page with:
- Native Figma frames and text nodes
- Auto-layout for responsive designs
- Fully editable components
- Professional styling based on your chosen theme
Visual Themes
- Sketch - Balsamiq-style hand-drawn look (perfect for brainstorming)
- Clean - Modern, polished design (great for presentations)
- Wireframe - Traditional grayscale (ideal for specifications)
- Minimal - Bare-bones styling (customize yourself)
What Gets Imported
✅ All layout components (containers, grids, navigation) ✅ Form elements (buttons, inputs, selects, checkboxes, radios) ✅ Content (headings, paragraphs, lists, tables, code blocks) ✅ Proper spacing, padding, and auto-layout constraints ✅ Theme-specific styling (colors, fonts, shadows)
See figma-plugin/README.md for complete documentation.
Using in Obsidian
wiremd has a native Obsidian plugin that brings live wireframe previews directly into your notes.
Features
- Live Preview: Automatically render wiremd code blocks as interactive previews in Obsidian
- 7 Visual Styles: Switch between sketch, clean, wireframe, tailwind, material, brutal, or none
- Quick Style Switching: Click the style badge to instantly change preview styles
- Export Functionality: Export wiremd previews as standalone HTML files
- Mobile Optimized: Touch-friendly interface with responsive design
- Command Palette Integration: Access all features via Obsidian commands
Installation
-
Clone the plugin into your Obsidian vault's plugins folder:
cd /path/to/your/vault/.obsidian/plugins/ git clone https://github.com/akonan/wiremd-obsidian.git wiremd-preview cd wiremd-preview npm install npm run build -
Enable the plugin in Obsidian:
- Open Settings → Community Plugins
- Turn off "Safe mode" if needed
- Click "Reload" to refresh the plugins list
- Find "Wiremd Preview" and toggle it on
-
Create wiremd blocks in your notes:
```wiremd ## Login Form Username [____________________________] Password [****************************] [Sign In]{.primary} [Cancel] ```
The plugin will automatically render a live preview with your chosen style!
Available Commands
- Set style - Change the rendering style (7 commands for each style)
- Toggle auto-preview - Enable/disable automatic rendering
- Refresh previews - Manually refresh all wiremd previews
- Export as HTML - Export current wiremd block as standalone HTML
- Export all styles - Export in all 7 styles at once
- Copy to clipboard - Copy rendered HTML to clipboard
See the wiremd-obsidian repository for complete documentation.
Programmatic API
import { parse, renderToHTML, renderToJSON, renderToReact, renderToTailwind } from 'wiremd';
// Parse markdown to AST
const ast = parse(`
## Contact Form

Name
[_____________________________]
[Submit]{.primary}
`);
// Render to HTML with visual style
const html = renderToHTML(ast, { style: 'sketch' });
// Render to JSON
const json = renderToJSON(ast, { pretty: true });
// Render to React component (TypeScript)
const reactComponent = renderToReact(ast, {
typescript: true,
componentName: 'ContactForm'
});
// Render to HTML with Tailwind CSS classes
const tailwindHTML = renderToTailwind(ast, { pretty: true });
Documentation
Not sure where to start? → Documentation Guide
📖 Learning & Reference
| Document | Description | Best For | |----------|-------------|----------| | Syntax Showcase | Comprehensive interactive guide with live examples | Learning by example, copying patterns | | Quick Reference | One-page syntax cheat sheet | Quick lookups, experienced users | | Syntax Guide | User-friendly tutorial with best practices | Structured learning | | FAQ | Common questions and troubleshooting | Solving problems, known issues |
📖 📚 View Full Documentation → - Complete documentation site with interactive examples
🚀 Getting Started
| Document | Description | |----------|-------------| | 🌐 Live Documentation Site | Full docs with interactive examples | | 🚀 Getting Started | Installation and first steps | | 📝 Syntax Reference | Complete syntax guide | | 🎮 Interactive Playground | Try wiremd in your browser | | **[⚙️ API Documentation](ht
