How to Format HTML Code (Free Formatter)

Messy, unindented HTML is hard to read and debug. An HTML formatter (also called a beautifier or prettifier) automatically indents your code, adds consistent spacing, and organizes tags for readability.

Why Format HTML?

Readability — Properly indented code is easier to scan and understand
Debugging — Formatted code makes it simpler to spot unclosed tags and nesting errors
Collaboration — Consistent formatting helps teams work on the same codebase
Maintenance — Clean code is easier to update months later

Free Online HTML Formatters

HTML Formatter (htmlformatter.com)

Paste your HTML, click format, and copy the result. Supports custom indentation settings.

Prettier Playground

The online version of Prettier, a widely used code formatter. Handles HTML, CSS, and JavaScript with opinionated but consistent formatting.

Code Beautify

Paste messy HTML and get formatted output instantly. Also supports JSON, CSS, XML, and other formats.

FreeFormatter.com

Simple paste-and-format tool with options for indent size and tag handling.

Formatting in Code Editors

VS Code

Install the Prettier extension
Right-click in your HTML file and select Format Document
Or press Shift+Alt+F (Windows) / Shift+Option+F (Mac)
Enable "Format On Save" in settings for automatic formatting

Sublime Text

Install HTML-CSS-JS Prettify via Package Control
Use the keyboard shortcut to format the current file

Online Editors

CodePen, JSFiddle, and similar tools often have a "Tidy" or "Format" button built in.

Before and After

Unformatted:

<div><p>Hello</p><ul><li>Item 1</li><li>Item 2</li></ul></div>

Formatted:

<div>
  <p>Hello</p>
  <ul>
    <li>Item 1</li>
    <li>Item 2</li>
  </ul>
</div>

Tips

Use 2 or 4 spaces for indentation (pick one and stay consistent)
Format your code before committing to version control
Set up auto-formatting in your editor to avoid manual cleanup
After formatting, upload your HTML to Linkyhost's HTML viewer to preview how it renders in the browser