How to export Google Docs to Markdown with images

What happens when you download Markdown from Google Docs?

Google Docs exports a Markdown file under File > Download > Markdown (.md), and this export works well for text-only documents. When a Doc contains pictures, Google Docs converts each picture into a base64 string inside the file. Base64 strings make the file huge and hard to edit in code editors, static site generators or Obsidian.

Method 1: combine Markdown download with the zipped web page

You can build a clean Markdown folder for free by combining two built-in Google Docs downloads: the Markdown file for the text and the zipped web page for the images. You then delete the base64 data and point each image link to a file. Matching generic names like image1.png to each paragraph is slow.

1. Open your document in Google Docs.
2. Choose File > Download > Markdown (.md) to get the document text.
3. Choose File > Download > Web Page (.html, zipped) and unpack the images folder.
4. Open the Markdown file in a text editor and delete the base64 image definitions at the bottom.
5. Replace each image reference with the file path to the matching picture in your images folder.

To convert the PNG files to WebP with this method, you need a separate tool.

Method 2: export content.md and an images folder with Pluckr

Pluckr exports a Google Doc as one ZIP file that holds content.md and an images folder. Every image tag in content.md points to the matching file in the images folder, and Pluckr keeps the alt text of each image. You can also rename the files and convert them to WebP in the same step.

1. Open your document in Google Docs.
2. Choose Extensions > Pluckr > Extract images.
3. Optional: open Bulk rename to set a file name pattern like {doc}-{n}.
4. Open Output settings and choose a format such as WebP.
5. Tick Add the Doc as Markdown (content.md).
6. Click Convert and download your ZIP bundle.

# 5 Ways to Speed Up Your Site With Better Images

Images are usually the heaviest part of a page. A slow hero image pushes back your Largest Contentful Paint.

![Analytics dashboard on a laptop](./images/5-ways-to-speed-up-01.webp)

To include structured metadata, tick Add alt text files (CSV and JSON).

How do the Google Docs Markdown export methods compare?

Three methods export a Google Doc to Markdown. The built-in .md download is free but embeds images as base64. The manual method is free and gives separate images after hand edits. Pluckr costs $12 once and gives clean relative links, bulk renaming and WebP or AVIF conversion with no hand edits.

Questions