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Go URL to Markdown API

Convert any URL to clean, LLM-ready markdown with one HTTP request in Go — no headless browser, no readability pipeline, no servers to maintain.
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Convert a URL to markdown in Go

No module and no browser — the Microlink REST API turns any URL into clean markdown with a single HTTP GET. Here it is with net/http from the Go standard library.
Step 01 · Convert any URL
A few lines with the standard library — no module to add. Point it at a page and read the markdown string from the JSON response.
convert.go
package main

import (
  "encoding/json"
  "fmt"
  "net/http"
  "net/url"
)

func main() {
  params := url.Values{
    "url":                 {"https://example.com"},
    "data.markdown.attr":  {"markdown"},
    "meta":                {"false"}, // skip metadata for a faster response
  }

  res, err := http.Get("https://api.microlink.io?" + params.Encode())
  if err != nil {
    panic(err)
  }
  defer res.Body.Close()

  var payload struct {
    Data struct {
      Markdown string `json:"markdown"`
    } `json:"data"`
  }
  json.NewDecoder(res.Body).Decode(&payload)

  fmt.Println(payload.Data.Markdown)
}
Step 02 · Scope the extraction
Pass a CSS selector to keep just the article body and drop headers, footers, and sidebars — fewer tokens, better embeddings.
scoped.go
package main

import (
  "encoding/json"
  "fmt"
  "net/http"
  "net/url"
)

func main() {
  params := url.Values{
    "url":                    {"https://example.com/blog/post"},
    "data.markdown.attr":     {"markdown"},
    "data.markdown.selector": {"article"}, // keep just the article body
    "meta":                   {"false"},
  }

  res, err := http.Get("https://api.microlink.io?" + params.Encode())
  if err != nil {
    panic(err)
  }
  defer res.Body.Close()

  var payload struct {
    Data struct {
      Markdown string `json:"markdown"`
    } `json:"data"`
  }
  json.NewDecoder(res.Body).Decode(&payload)

  fmt.Println(payload.Data.Markdown)
}
Step 03 · Render JavaScript pages
Client-side rendered content only exists after JavaScript runs — prerender with a real browser and wait for the content, still one request.
spa.go
package main

import (
  "encoding/json"
  "fmt"
  "net/http"
  "net/url"
)

func main() {
  params := url.Values{
    "url":                    {"https://app.example.com/docs"},
    "data.markdown.attr":     {"markdown"},
    "data.markdown.selector": {"main"},
    "prerender":              {"true"},    // render JS in a real browser first
    "waitForSelector":        {"main h1"}, // wait until the content exists
    "meta":                   {"false"},
  }

  res, err := http.Get("https://api.microlink.io?" + params.Encode())
  if err != nil {
    panic(err)
  }
  defer res.Body.Close()

  var payload struct {
    Data struct {
      Markdown string `json:"markdown"`
    } `json:"data"`
  }
  json.NewDecoder(res.Body).Decode(&payload)

  fmt.Println(payload.Data.Markdown)
}
Step 04 · Get markdown back directly
Skip the JSON envelope entirely: embed=markdown returns the page as text/markdown, ready to write into a file or a queue.
embed.go
package main

import (
  "io"
  "net/http"
  "net/url"
  "os"
)

func main() {
  params := url.Values{
    "url":                {"https://example.com"},
    "data.markdown.attr": {"markdown"},
    "meta":               {"false"},
    "embed":              {"markdown"}, // respond with text/markdown
  }

  res, err := http.Get("https://api.microlink.io?" + params.Encode())
  if err != nil {
    panic(err)
  }
  defer res.Body.Close()

  markdown, _ := io.ReadAll(res.Body)

  os.WriteFile("page.md", markdown, 0o644)
}

Drop it into your framework

A Gin handler, an Echo route, or a queue worker — the same request becomes your own URL-to-markdown primitive for agents and RAG pipelines.
  • Gin
  • Echo
  • Worker
  • Plain Go
package main

import (
  "io"
  "net/http"
  "net/url"

  "github.com/labstack/echo/v4"
)

func main() {
  e := echo.New()

  // GET /markdown?url=https://example.com
  e.GET("/markdown", func(c echo.Context) error {
    params := url.Values{
      "url":                {c.QueryParam("url")},
      "data.markdown.attr": {"markdown"},
      "meta":               {"false"},
      "embed":              {"markdown"},
    }

    res, err := http.Get("https://api.microlink.io?" + params.Encode())
    if err != nil {
      return echo.ErrBadGateway
    }
    defer res.Body.Close()

    markdown, _ := io.ReadAll(res.Body)

    return c.Blob(http.StatusOK, "text/markdown; charset=utf-8", markdown)
  })

  e.Logger.Fatal(e.Start(":1323"))
}

Skip the readability pipeline maintenance

Rolling your own means fetching HTML, running a readability extractor like go-readability, converting to markdown, and adding chromedp when a page needs JavaScript. The API gives you clean markdown from any page without any of the moving parts.

DIY extraction pipeline

  • Fetch HTML, then chain go-readability + an HTML-to-md converter yourself
  • Every site breaks your selectors in its own special way
  • JavaScript-rendered pages need chromedp — a 300 MB browser
  • Each browser eats hundreds of MB of RAM per worker
  • You build the queueing, retries, caching and autoscaling
  • Output quality drifts as sites change; you own the fixes

Microlink for Go

  • One HTTP request — net/http from the standard library, no module to add
  • Runs anywhere: a single static binary, serverless, containers, your laptop
  • Real browser rendering built in with prerender=true
  • CSS selector scoping keeps tokens focused on the content
  • Cached responses from a global edge network
  • Autoscaled fleet with a 99.9% uptime SLA

Built for the way you write Go.

A REST API that feels native in Go — one call, JSON back, and at home in anything from a CLI tool to a worker fleet. Read the URL to Markdown guide to go deeper.

  • No Browser to Install

    No headless browser to install or keep patched. JavaScript rendering runs on Microlink’s side with prerender=true.

  • Standard Library Only

    net/http and encoding/json ship with Go — the examples compile with zero external modules.

  • LLM-Ready Output

    Clean markdown instead of HTML noise — around 80% fewer tokens on average, so agents spend context on meaning, not markup.

  • CSS Selector Scoping

    Extract the whole page or narrow to article, main, or any selector — precise content targeting for better embeddings.

  • JavaScript Rendering

    SPAs and client-rendered docs are rendered in a real browser first, with waitForSelector to catch late content.

  • Documents Too

    Point it at a PDF or an office file — docx, xlsx, pptx — and the content is converted to markdown the same way.

  • Framework Friendly

    Drop it into Gin, Echo, or a queue worker as a handler in a few lines.

  • text/markdown Responses

    embed=markdown returns the page as text/markdown — pipe it straight into a file, a queue, or a prompt.

  • Generous Free Tier

    Sign up for a free API key: 100 requests per month with every Pro feature, no credit card.

  • No Browser to Install

    No headless browser to install or keep patched. JavaScript rendering runs on Microlink’s side with prerender=true.

  • Standard Library Only

    net/http and encoding/json ship with Go — the examples compile with zero external modules.

  • LLM-Ready Output

    Clean markdown instead of HTML noise — around 80% fewer tokens on average, so agents spend context on meaning, not markup.

  • CSS Selector Scoping

    Extract the whole page or narrow to article, main, or any selector — precise content targeting for better embeddings.

  • JavaScript Rendering

    SPAs and client-rendered docs are rendered in a real browser first, with waitForSelector to catch late content.

  • Documents Too

    Point it at a PDF or an office file — docx, xlsx, pptx — and the content is converted to markdown the same way.

  • Framework Friendly

    Drop it into Gin, Echo, or a queue worker as a handler in a few lines.

  • text/markdown Responses

    embed=markdown returns the page as text/markdown — pipe it straight into a file, a queue, or a prompt.

  • Generous Free Tier

    Sign up for a free API key: 100 requests per month with every Pro feature, no credit card.

Try it live in the playground

Paste a URL and see the exact markdown output before you write a line of Go.
URL to Markdown
Turn any URL into clean, structured markdown. Supports ad blocking, HTML selectors, JavaScript rendering, and inline editing. Copy or download the result. No login required.

Go URL to Markdown FAQ

Everything Go developers ask before integrating the Microlink URL to Markdown API.

Do I need a headless browser?

No. JavaScript rendering runs on Microlink’s managed browser fleet — pass prerender=true and the page is rendered before conversion. Your Go process stays browser-free.

Do I need to install a module?

No. The examples use net/http and encoding/json from the Go standard library — they compile with zero external dependencies.

How do I convert only the article body?

Pass a CSS selector with data.markdown.selector=article and the extraction is scoped to that element — headers, footers, and sidebars are dropped before conversion, which keeps token counts down.
See the URL to Markdown guide for scoping strategies.

Does it work in a single static binary?

Yes. Because there is no browser binary or CGO dependency to ship, your Go service stays a single static binary — the rendering fleet runs on Microlink’s side.

Is there a free tier or do I need an API key?

Yes, and it is free: sign up for an API key and you get 100 requests per month with every Pro feature, no credit card. Add it as x-api-key and start converting.
When you need more volume, pick a paid plan: same key, bigger quota. See pricing for the limits.

Can I get the response as markdown instead of JSON?

Yes. Add embed=markdown and the API responds with text/markdown directly — handy for piping into files, queues, or prompts without parsing an envelope.

Start converting in Go

Sign up for a free API key: 100 requests per month with every Pro feature, no credit card. Send your first request and ship markdown in minutes.
Get your free API key
Read the API docs
Free API key
100 requests/month
No credit card