Tech riderRev. 4 Oct 2026

Asciidoctor

Ch 027.5of 38 Documentation Generators

1Runs onAPI, Browser, Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Web, Windows
2CostsFree plan
3Source inputsAsciiDoc files; AsciiDoc strings
4CI/CD integrationYes
5Output formatsHTML 5, XHTML, DocBook 5, man pages, PDF, EPUB3, Reveal.js, Bespoke
6Programming languagesRuby, Java, JavaScript, JVM languages

6 lines stated Written from the maker's own pages: asciidoctor.org, docs.asciidoctor.org

Visit site Alternatives

Overview

Asciidoctor is ranked #2 of 38 in documentation generators on Specifiction. It runs on API, Browser extension, Linux, macOS, Self-hosted, Web, Windows. There is a free plan.

Asciidoctor plans and pricing

All plans

Asciidoctor Free Open source under the MIT license · Core converters include HTML 5, DocBook 5 and man pages; PDF and EPUB 3 use separate gems docs.asciidoctor.org · 4 Oct 2026

Compared on documentation generators

Free plan: Yesasciidoctor.org
Source inputs: AsciiDoc files; AsciiDoc stringsasciidoctor.org
CI/CD integration: Yesasciidoctor.org
Output formats: HTML 5, XHTML, DocBook 5, man pages, PDF, EPUB3, Reveal.js, Bespokeasciidoctor.org
Programming languages: Ruby, Java, JavaScript, JVM languagesasciidoctor.org

Facts

Purpose: Asciidoctor is an open source text processor and publishing toolchain for converting AsciiDoc into HTML5, DocBook, PDF, EPUB 3, manual pages, and other formats.asciidoctor.org · 3 Oct 2026
Built-in converters: The core processor includes built-in converters for HTML5, DocBook 5, and man pages; PDF and EPUB 3 converters are provided by separate gems.asciidoctor.org · 3 Oct 2026
HTML features: Its default HTML experience includes a stylesheet and integrations for Font Awesome, highlight.js, Rouge, Pygments, and MathJax.asciidoctor.org · 3 Oct 2026
Runtimes: Asciidoctor runs on Ruby, on the JVM through AsciidoctorJ, and in JavaScript environments through Asciidoctor.js.asciidoctor.org · 3 Oct 2026
Integrations: The project ecosystem includes Maven and Gradle plugins, browser extensions, an IntelliJ plugin, and tools such as Asciidoctor Diagram.asciidoctor.org · 3 Oct 2026
Operating systems: The site says Asciidoctor works on Linux, macOS, and Windows.asciidoctor.org · 3 Oct 2026
Distribution: Asciidoctor is distributed as a RubyGem, a Docker image, packages for numerous Linux distributions, and a macOS package through Homebrew and MacPorts.asciidoctor.org · 3 Oct 2026
Requirements: The documented Ruby implementations are CRuby 2.3–3.3, JRuby 9.1–9.4, and TruffleRuby (GraalVM).asciidoctor.org · 3 Oct 2026
API and safety: The Ruby API documentation says its default safe mode is :secure.docs.asciidoctor.org · 3 Oct 2026
License: Asciidoctor use is granted under the MIT License.docs.asciidoctor.org · 3 Oct 2026
Support: The project lists community chat, documentation, GitHub source repositories, and issue trackers as community resources.docs.asciidoctor.org · 3 Oct 2026
Intended users: The project describes its goal as providing an accessible, comprehensive, open source toolchain and workbench for writing and publishing AsciiDoc across platforms and runtimes.docs.asciidoctor.org · 3 Oct 2026
Runtime options: Asciidoctor can run using Ruby, a JVM through AsciidoctorJ, or JavaScript through Asciidoctor.js.docs.asciidoctor.org · 4 Oct 2026
Interfaces: The processor provides a command line interface and a Ruby API for processing documents.docs.asciidoctor.org · 4 Oct 2026
HTML integrations: Its default HTML output includes Font Awesome, highlight.js, Rouge, Pygments and MathJax integrations.asciidoctor.org · 4 Oct 2026
Build integrations: The project provides plugins that integrate Asciidoctor with Apache Maven, Gradle and Javadoc builds.docs.asciidoctor.org · 4 Oct 2026
Editor integrations: Asciidoctor.js powers AsciiDoc preview extensions for Chrome, Atom, Brackets and other web-based tools.docs.asciidoctor.org · 4 Oct 2026
Security modes: Asciidoctor offers UNSAFE, SAFE, SERVER and SECURE modes, with SECURE as the default for the API and UNSAFE as the default for the CLI.docs.asciidoctor.org · 4 Oct 2026
Security limitation: The project states that safe modes do not sanitize generated output and are not a comprehensive security framework.docs.asciidoctor.org · 4 Oct 2026