Use case · for developers
Real modal editing, not a half-baked “vim keybindings” toggle — that is one of the few things almost no commercial GUI markdown editor actually ships. Markd.ly does. This is the honest version of what that means and where it stops.
Mac · Windows · one license, both desktops · lifetime $19 launch / $29 retail
Markd.ly Pro includes a vim mode in the editor: modal editing with normal, insert, visual (character) and command-line modes — the core motions (h j k l, w b e, 0 $, gg G, f t) and operators (d c y with motions, dd yy, . repeat) you reach for without thinking — inside a fast native markdown editor with live preview, not a terminal and not a browser tab. It is a focused, deliberate subset, not a full vim emulator (see “The honest limits” below).
This is rare on purpose: most polished markdown editors are built for prose-first writers and skip modal editing entirely. Developers and technical writers who live in vim usually end up using a code editor for markdown just to keep their keystrokes — and lose the focused writing surface. Markd.ly is the uncommon middle: a writing-grade editor that still speaks vim.
Vim mode is a Pro feature
Markd.ly Free is a complete local editor (create, edit, save, preview, Mermaid, KaTeX) on Mac, Windows, iPhone, and Android — but vim mode is part of the one-time Pro purchase ($19 launch / $29 retail, lifetime, desktop-only).
Deepest on Mac today
The Mac direct-download build is the reference implementation with the deepest Pro toolset. Windows Pro tooling, including vim mode, is rolling in across the 1.x series — do not assume Windows parity yet. If you specifically need vim mode on Windows today, verify the current Windows build before buying.
Not on mobile
Mobile is a free local editor with no Pro tools. There is no vim mode on iPhone / Android.
Because it is a real markdown editor, vim mode sits next to the rest of the Pro toolset: Pandoc-compatible export to DOCX/PDF/EPUB/Reveal.js, AES-256-GCM encrypted documents, a snippet library with variables, custom CSS / theme editor, advanced workspace search, and MCP write access for AI agents (Mac). Plus the free essentials — live preview, Mermaid, KaTeX, files-on-disk plain .md, no account.
No sync
Your files stay on the disk you saved them to. Markd.ly has no sync of any kind.
Windows Pro is incomplete
If you specifically need vim mode on Windows today, verify the current Windows build before buying — Windows Pro tooling is rolling out across 1.x, not all shipped.
It's a deliberate subset, not a full vim emulator
Plainly, what it does not have: linewise (V) and blockwise (Ctrl-v) visual modes, named registers, macros (q), marks, and ex commands beyond :w :q :wq :set. There is no custom keymap or .vimrc. If you want your full .vimrc, every plugin, and an arbitrary keymap, a terminal vim/Neovim with a markdown setup is more configurable — and we would rather say that here than oversell. Markd.ly's vim mode is for keeping your core editing muscle memory in a writing app, not reproducing a bespoke vim rig.
Native Mac & Windows editor with real vim mode in Pro. Lifetime $19 launch / $29 retail. Mac deepest today; Windows rolling across 1.x.
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