Skip to content

status

Getting Started with MkDocs

MkDocs is a static site generator that helps you create professional documentation websites from plain text files.
It’s specifically designed for technical documentation and widely used in both open-source and enterprise environments.

One of MkDocs' greatest advantages is its simplicity. You write in Markdown, a lightweight and easy-to-learn markup language, and MkDocs turns it into a fully functional website.

This guide walks you through how to run MkDocs for the first time on your local machine.

🛠️ Requirements

Before getting started, make sure you have:

  • Python 3.x
  • pip (Python package installer)
  • MkDocs installed via pip:

bash pip install mkdocs

  • A text editor (e.g., Visual Studio Code)
  • A terminal application (e.g., Git Bash, CMD, or Terminal)

Once these are ready, you can start working with MkDocs locally.

🚀 Previewing Your Documentation Locally

To see your documentation site in your browser:

  1. Open your terminal or command prompt.

  2. Navigate to your MkDocs project folder. For example:

bash cd C:\Users\YourName\technical-writing-portfolio\mkdocs-guide

  1. Start the development server:

bash mkdocs serve

  1. Open your browser and visit:

http://127.0.0.1:8000/

You should now see your documentation site live.

🔁 Real-Time Editing

While the development server is running, you can edit any .md file inside the docs/ folder.
MkDocs will automatically detect changes, rebuild the site, and refresh the browser — a feature known as live reload. This makes the editing process smooth and immediate.

📌 Why Local Preview Matters

Previewing your documentation locally allows you to:

  • Verify layout and structure before publishing
  • Catch formatting issues early
  • Improve the reading experience
  • Apply quick changes without deploying

This workflow follows modern Docs-as-Code practices, where documentation is treated like source code — stored in plain text, version-controlled, and collaboratively edited.

✅ Summary

You’ve just learned how to:

  • Set up your environment for MkDocs
  • Run your documentation site locally
  • Edit content with instant results

You're now ready to move forward and explore more advanced features.

➡️ Continue to: Advanced Usage