# Telegram markdown **Formatting options** The Bot API supports basic formatting for messages. You can use bold, italic, underlined and strikethrough text, as well as inline links and pre-formatted code in your bots' messages. Telegram clients will render them accordingly. You can use either markdown-style or HTML-style formatting. Note that Telegram clients will display an **alert** to the user before opening an inline link ('Open this link?' together with the full URL). Message entities can be nested, providing following restrictions are met:\ \- If two entities has common characters then one of them is fully contained inside another.\ \- *bold*, *italic*, *underline* and *strikethrough* entities can contain and to be contained in any other entities, except *pre* and *code*.\ \- All other entities can't contain each other. Links `tg://user?id=` can be used to mention a user by their ID without using a username. Please note: * These links will work **only** if they are used inside an inline link. For example, they will not work, when used in an inline keyboard button or in a message text. * These mentions are only guaranteed to work if the user has contacted the bot in the past, has sent a callback query to the bot via inline button or is a member in the group where he was mentioned. **MarkdownV2 style** To use this mode, pass *MarkdownV2* in the *parse\_mode* field. Use the following syntax in your message: ```` *bold \*text* _italic \*text_ __underline__ ~strikethrough~ *bold _italic bold ~italic bold strikethrough~ __underline italic bold___ bold* [inline URL](http://www.example.com/) [inline mention of a user](tg://user?id=123456789) `inline fixed-width code` ``` pre-formatted fixed-width code block ``` ```python pre-formatted fixed-width code block written in the Python programming language ``` ```` Please note: * Any character with code between 1 and 126 inclusively can be escaped anywhere with a preceding '\\' character, in which case it is treated as an ordinary character and not a part of the markup. * Inside `pre` and `code` entities, all '\`' and '\\' characters must be escaped with a preceding '\\' character. * Inside `(...)` part of inline link definition, all ')' and '\\' must be escaped with a preceding '\\' character. * In all other places characters '\_', '\*', '\[', ']', '(', ')', '\~', '\`', '>', '#', '+', '-', '=', '|', '{', '}', '.', '!' must be escaped with the preceding character '\\'. * In case of ambiguity between `italic` and `underline` entities `__` is always greadily treated from left to right as beginning or end of `underline` entity, so instead of `___italic underline___` use `___italic underline_\r__`, where `\r` is a character with code 13, which will be ignored. **HTML style** To use this mode, pass *HTML* in the *parse\_mode* field. The following tags are currently supported: ``` bold, bold italic, italic underline, underline strikethrough, strikethrough, strikethrough bold italic bold italic bold strikethrough underline italic bold bold inline URL inline mention of a user inline fixed-width code 
pre-formatted fixed-width code block
pre-formatted fixed-width code block written in the Python programming language
``` Please note: * Only the tags mentioned above are currently supported. * All `<`, `>` and `&` symbols that are not a part of a tag or an HTML entity must be replaced with the corresponding HTML entities (`<` with `<`, `>` with `>` and `&` with `&`). * All numerical HTML entities are supported. * The API currently supports only the following named HTML entities: `<`, `>`, `&` and `"`. * Use nested `pre` and `code` tags, to define programming language for `pre` entity. * Programming language can't be specified for standalone `code` tags. **Markdown style** This is a legacy mode, retained for backward compatibility. To use this mode, pass *Markdown* in the *parse\_mode* field. Use the following syntax in your message: ```` *bold text* _italic text_ [inline URL](http://www.example.com/) [inline mention of a user](tg://user?id=123456789) `inline fixed-width code` ``` pre-formatted fixed-width code block ``` ```python pre-formatted fixed-width code block written in the Python programming language ``` ```` Please note: * Entities must not be nested, use parse mode [MarkdownV2](https://core.telegram.org/bots/api#markdownv2-style) instead. * There is no way to specify underline and strikethrough entities, use parse mode [MarkdownV2](https://core.telegram.org/bots/api#markdownv2-style) instead. * To escape characters '\_', '\*', '\`', '\[' outside of an entity, prepend the characters '\\' before them. * Escaping inside entities is not allowed, so entity must be closed first and reopened again: use `_snake_\__case_` for italic `snake_case` and `*2*\**2=4*` for bold `2*2=4`. --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://doc.botboom.ru/nyuansy/telegram-markdown.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.