Introduction

SvelteKit combined with MDsveX provides an incredibly powerful way to create content-rich websites that blend markdown content with interactive Svelte components.

Table of Contents

• What is MDsveX?
• Setting Up Your Project
  • Installation
  • Configuration
• Interactive Components
• Code Highlighting
• Advanced Features
  • Custom Layouts
  • Frontmatter Processing
• Best Practices
• Performance Considerations
• Conclusion
• Resources

What is MDsveX?

MDsveX is a markdown preprocessor for Svelte that allows you to use Svelte components inside your markdown files. This means you can:

• Write content in markdown
• Embed interactive Svelte components
• Use frontmatter for metadata
• Apply layouts automatically

Setting Up Your Project

Installation

First, install the necessary dependencies:

npm install -D mdsvex rehype-slug rehype-autolink-headings

Configuration

Create an mdsvex.config.js file in your project root:

import { defineMDSveXConfig as defineConfig } from 'mdsvex';
import rehypeSlug from 'rehype-slug';
import rehypeAutolinkHeadings from 'rehype-autolink-headings';

const config = defineConfig({
	extensions: ['.svelte.md', '.md', '.svx'],

	remarkPlugins: [],

	rehypePlugins: [rehypeSlug, rehypeAutolinkHeadings],

	layout: {
		blog: './srclib/components/layouts/BlogLayout.svelte'
	}
});

export default config;

Interactive Components

One of the coolest features of MDsveX is the ability to embed Svelte components directly in your markdown:

Code Highlighting

MDsveX supports syntax highlighting out of the box:

interface BlogPost {
	id: number;
	title: string;
	excerpt: string;
	publishedAt: Date;
	tags: string[];
}

const post: BlogPost = {
	id: 1,
	title: 'My Amazing Post',
	excerpt: 'This is a great post about SvelteKit',
	publishedAt: new Date(),
	tags: ['svelte', 'tutorial']
};

Advanced Features

Custom Layouts

You can specify different layouts for different types of content using the frontmatter layout field:

---
layout: blog
title: 'My Blog Post'
---

Frontmatter Processing

MDsveX automatically processes frontmatter and makes it available to your layouts as props:

<!-- BlogLayout.svelte -->
<script>
	export let title;
	export let publishedAt;
	export let tags = [];
</script>

<h1>{title}</h1>
<time>{publishedAt}</time>

Best Practices

1. Organize your content: Keep markdown files in a dedicated src/content directory
2. Use consistent frontmatter: Define a schema for your frontmatter fields
3. Leverage layouts: Create reusable layouts for different content types
4. Interactive components: Use Svelte components to enhance your content

Performance Considerations

• MDsveX files are processed at build time
• Components are tree-shaken like regular Svelte components
• Static content is optimized automatically

Conclusion

MDsveX bridges the gap between static content and interactive web applications. It’s perfect for:

• Blogs with interactive examples
• Documentation sites with live demos
• Portfolios with rich project descriptions
• Landing pages with dynamic content

The combination of markdown’s simplicity and Svelte’s reactivity opens up endless possibilities for creating engaging, content-rich websites.

Resources

• MDsveX Documentation
• SvelteKit Documentation
• Remark Plugins
• Rehype Plugins

Want to learn more about building modern web applications? Check out my other tutorials on React, Vue.js, and full-stack development.