Google Chat Formatting

Expert knowledge for converting Markdown and plain text to Google Chat's limited formatting syntax. Google Chat supports a subset of formatting that differs from standard Markdown.

Core Expertise

Format Conversion

• Transform Markdown headers to bold text
• Convert list markers to bullet symbols
• Adapt bold/emphasis syntax to Google Chat format
• Preserve code blocks and inline code
• Ensure mobile-friendly spacing and readability

Google Chat Limitations

• No native header support (use bold instead)
• Limited text formatting (bold, italic, strikethrough, code)
• Bullet symbols (•) instead of hyphen lists
• No nested formatting (bold inside italic, etc.)
• No tables, images, or advanced Markdown features

Conversion Rules

Headers → Bold Text

Google Chat has no header support. Convert all headers to bold text:

# Header           → *Header*
## Subheader       → *Subheader*
### Section        → *Section*
#### Subsection    → *Subsection*

Pattern: Remove all # symbols and wrap text in single asterisks.

Text Formatting

Google Chat uses single asterisks for bold (not double):

**bold**          → *bold*
__bold__          → *bold*
*italic*          → _italic_
_italic_          → _italic_
~~strikethrough~~ → ~strikethrough~

Key differences:

• Bold: Single asterisks *text* (not **text**)
• Italic: Single underscores _text_ (not *text*)
• Strikethrough: Single tildes ~text~
• No nested formatting support

Code Formatting

Preserve code blocks and inline code unchanged:

`inline code`     → `inline code` (unchanged)
```code block```  → ```code block``` (unchanged)

Behavior: Backticks work identically in Google Chat.

Lists

Replace Markdown list markers with bullet symbols:

- item            → • item
* item            → • item
+ item            → • item
1. numbered       → 1. numbered (keep numbered lists)

Pattern: Replace -, *, + at line start with • (bullet symbol U+2022).

Special Patterns

Label formatting (common in structured messages):

**Label:**        → *Label:*
**Status:** text  → *Status:* text

Pattern: Bold labels followed by colons become single-asterisk bold.

Whitespace

Normalize spacing for readability:

Multiple



blank lines      → Single blank line between sections

Trailing spaces  → Remove all trailing whitespace

Pattern: Collapse multiple blank lines to single blank line, strip trailing spaces.

Essential Commands

Convert Markdown File

# Read file, convert, write output
cat input.md | sed -E 's/^#{1,6} (.+)$/*\1*/g' | \
  sed -E 's/\*\*([^*]+)\*\*/\*\1\*/g' | \
  sed -E 's/^[*+-] /• /g' > output.txt

Convert Inline Text

# Quick conversion of text string
echo "## Header\n**bold** text\n- item" | \
  sed -E 's/^#{1,6} (.+)$/*\1*/g' | \
  sed -E 's/\*\*([^*]+)\*\*/\*\1\*/g' | \
  sed -E 's/^[*+-] /• /g'

Process Clipboard (macOS)

# Convert clipboard content
pbpaste | sed -E 's/^#{1,6} (.+)$/*\1*/g' | \
  sed -E 's/\*\*([^*]+)\*\*/\*\1\*/g' | \
  sed -E 's/^[*+-] /• /g' | pbcopy

Batch Processing

# Convert all .md files in directory
for file in *.md; do
  sed -E 's/^#{1,6} (.+)$/*\1*/g' "$file" | \
    sed -E 's/\*\*([^*]+)\*\*/\*\1\*/g' | \
    sed -E 's/^[*+-] /• /g' > "${file%.md}.gchat.txt"
done

Common Patterns

Meeting Notes

Input (Markdown):

# Meeting Notes - 2024-01-15

## Attendees
- Alice Johnson
- Bob Smith

## Decisions
**Priority:** High
**Timeline:** Q1 2024

### Action Items
1. Review proposal
2. Update docs

Output (Google Chat):

*Meeting Notes - 2024-01-15*

*Attendees*
• Alice Johnson
• Bob Smith

*Decisions*
*Priority:* High
*Timeline:* Q1 2024

*Action Items*
1. Review proposal
2. Update docs

Status Updates

Input (Markdown):

## Project Status

**Status:** In Progress
**Blockers:** None
**Next Steps:**
- Code review
- Deploy to staging

Output (Google Chat):

*Project Status*

*Status:* In Progress
*Blockers:* None
*Next Steps:*
• Code review
• Deploy to staging

Release Notes

Input (Markdown):

# Release v1.2.0

## New Features
- OAuth2 authentication
- Dark mode support

## Bug Fixes
- Fixed timeout issue
- **Critical:** Security patch applied

Output (Google Chat):

*Release v1.2.0*

*New Features*
• OAuth2 authentication
• Dark mode support

*Bug Fixes*
• Fixed timeout issue
• *Critical:* Security patch applied

Best Practices

Structure and Readability

Use blank lines between sections:

*Header*

Content here

*Next Header*

Format labels consistently:

*Label:* description
*Status:* value
*Priority:* high

Keep lines short for mobile viewing:

• Aim for 60-80 characters per line
• Break long paragraphs into shorter chunks
• Use lists for multiple items

Preserving Intent

Maintain hierarchy with indentation:

*Main Topic*
• First-level item
  • Sub-item (2 spaces indent)
• Another first-level item

Preserve code context:

To run the server: `npm start`

Configuration:
```json
{
  "port": 3000
}

**Keep numbered lists intact**:
- Use numbered lists for sequential steps
- Use bullet lists for unordered items
- Don't convert numbering to bullets

### Avoiding Common Mistakes

**Don't nest formatting**:

❌ bold and italic (not supported) ✅ bold and italic (separate)

**Don't use double formatting**:

❌ bold (Markdown syntax) ✅ bold (Google Chat syntax)

**Don't leave extra whitespace**:

❌ Header

Content

❌ Trailing spaces here

✅ Header

Content (no trailing spaces)

## Troubleshooting

### Conversion Issues

**Headers not converting**:
```bash
# Check for tabs instead of spaces after #
sed -E 's/^#{1,6}[ \t]+(.+)$/*\1*/g'

Bold not converting:

# Handle underscores and asterisks
sed -E 's/(\*\*|__)([^*_]+)(\*\*|__)/\*\2\*/g'

Lists not converting:

# Handle indented lists
sed -E 's/^[ \t]*[*+-] /• /g'

Validation

Check for unconverted Markdown:

# Look for remaining double asterisks
grep '\*\*' output.txt

# Look for unconverted headers
grep '^#' output.txt

Test in Google Chat:

1. Copy converted text
2. Paste into Google Chat
3. Verify formatting renders correctly
4. Check on mobile device

Integration Examples

With Clipboard (macOS)

# Create shell function in ~/.config/fish/functions/gchat.fish
function gchat
    pbpaste | \
      sed -E 's/^#{1,6} (.+)$/*\1*/g' | \
      sed -E 's/\*\*([^*]+)\*\*/\*\1\*/g' | \
      sed -E 's/^[*+-] /• /g' | \
      pbcopy
    echo "✓ Converted to Google Chat format (in clipboard)"
end

With Files

# Convert README.md for Google Chat
function readme-to-gchat
    set input $argv[1]
    set output (basename $input .md).gchat.txt

    cat $input | \
      sed -E 's/^#{1,6} (.+)$/*\1*/g' | \
      sed -E 's/\*\*([^*]+)\*\*/\*\1\*/g' | \
      sed -E 's/^[*+-] /• /g' > $output

    echo "✓ Created: $output"
end

With Git Commit Messages

# Format commit message for Google Chat
function commit-to-gchat
    git log -1 --pretty=%B | \
      sed -E 's/^#{1,6} (.+)$/*\1*/g' | \
      sed -E 's/\*\*([^*]+)\*\*/\*\1\*/g' | \
      sed -E 's/^[*+-] /• /g' | \
      pbcopy
    echo "✓ Commit message formatted for Google Chat"
end

Limitations

Unsupported Markdown Features

Tables - No equivalent in Google Chat:

Use plain text lists or key-value pairs instead

Images - No inline image support:

Share image links or upload separately

Links - Limited link formatting:

[text](url) → text: url (expand links)

Block quotes - No block quote support:

> Quote → "Quote" (use quotation marks)

Horizontal rules - No HR support:

--- → ────────── (use Unicode box drawing)

Google Chat Constraints

Character limit: 4096 characters per message

• Split long messages into multiple parts
• Use threaded replies for continuations

Formatting restrictions:

• No nested bold/italic
• No custom fonts or colors (except via bots)
• No superscript/subscript

Mobile rendering:

• Test on mobile devices
• Avoid complex formatting
• Keep lines short

Advanced Patterns

Sed-Based Transformation Chain

# Complete conversion pipeline
cat input.md | \
  # Convert headers
  sed -E 's/^#{1,6} (.+)$/*\1*/g' | \
  # Convert double asterisk bold to single
  sed -E 's/\*\*([^*]+)\*\*/\*\1\*/g' | \
  # Convert underscore bold to asterisk
  sed -E 's/__([^_]+)__/\*\1\*/g' | \
  # Convert list markers to bullets
  sed -E 's/^[*+-] /• /g' | \
  # Normalize multiple blank lines
  sed -E '/^$/N;/^\n$/D' | \
  # Remove trailing whitespace
  sed -E 's/[ \t]+$//' > output.txt

Preserving Code Blocks

# Skip code blocks during conversion
awk '
  /^```/ { in_code = !in_code }
  in_code { print; next }
  /^#{1,6} / { gsub(/^#{1,6} /, "*"); gsub(/$/, "*") }
  /\*\*[^*]+\*\*/ { gsub(/\*\*/, "*") }
  /^[*+-] / { gsub(/^[*+-] /, "• ") }
  { print }
' input.md > output.txt

Handling Edge Cases

# Complex conversion with edge case handling
function convert-to-gchat
    set input $argv[1]

    cat $input | \
      # Protect code blocks
      awk '/^```/,/^```/ { print; next } { print }' | \
      # Convert headers (all levels)
      sed -E 's/^#{1,6}[ \t]+(.+)$/*\1*/g' | \
      # Convert bold (asterisk and underscore)
      sed -E 's/(\*\*|__)([^*_]+)(\*\*|__)/\*\2\*/g' | \
      # Convert lists (handle indentation)
      sed -E 's/^([ \t]*)[*+-] /\1• /g' | \
      # Clean whitespace
      sed -E 's/[ \t]+$//' | \
      sed -E '/^$/N;/^\n$/D'
end

Quick Reference

Conversion Patterns

Markdown	Google Chat	Notes
# Header	*Header*	All header levels
**bold**	*bold*	Single asterisks
__bold__	*bold*	Underscores → asterisks
*italic*	_italic_	Single underscores
- item	• item	Bullet symbol
`code`	`code`	Unchanged

Sed Commands

# Headers
sed -E 's/^#{1,6} (.+)$/*\1*/g'

# Bold (asterisks)
sed -E 's/\*\*([^*]+)\*\*/\*\1\*/g'

# Bold (underscores)
sed -E 's/__([^_]+)__/\*\1\*/g'

# Lists
sed -E 's/^[*+-] /• /g'

# Collapse blank lines
sed -E '/^$/N;/^\n$/D'

# Strip trailing whitespace
sed -E 's/[ \t]+$//'

Resources

• Google Chat Formatting: https://support.google.com/chat/answer/7649118
• Markdown Guide: https://www.markdownguide.org/basic-syntax/
• Sed Reference: https://www.gnu.org/software/sed/manual/sed.html
• Unicode Bullet: U+2022 (•)