Installation

Mermaid Studio is available in two editions. Choose the one that fits your needs:

	Mermaid Studio Core	Mermaid Studio
Price	Free (optional Core license: $25/yr)	$49/yr (30-day free trial)
Free features	Syntax highlighting, preview, export for all 30 types	—
Paid features	Inspections, completions, formatting, refactoring for 6 core types	—

Not sure which to choose? Compare editions in detail →

Caution

The two editions cannot be installed at the same time. If you switch, uninstall the current edition first.

Installation

Mermaid Studio Core

1. Open your JetBrains IDE (IntelliJ IDEA, WebStorm, PyCharm, etc.)

2. Open Settings ( Command + Comma Command, Control + Alt + S CtrlAltS )

3. Navigate to Plugins > Marketplace

4. Search for “Mermaid Studio Core”

5. Click Install

6. Restart your IDE when prompted

Or install from the web: Mermaid Studio Core on JetBrains Marketplace

Mermaid Studio

1. Open your JetBrains IDE (IntelliJ IDEA, WebStorm, PyCharm, etc.)

2. Open Settings ( Command + Comma Command, Control + Alt + S CtrlAltS )

3. Navigate to Plugins > Marketplace

4. Search for “Mermaid Studio”

5. Click Install

6. Restart your IDE when prompted

Or install from the web: Mermaid Studio on JetBrains Marketplace

System Requirements

• IDE Version: IntelliJ IDEA 2025.3 or later (or equivalent version for other JetBrains IDEs)
• Platform: Windows, macOS, or Linux
• MCP Tools: Provided through the MCP Server plugin, available on every supported IDE version

Running the IDE on a remote host? See Remote Development for what Mermaid Studio supports and the JetBrains Gateway exclusion.

Bundled JetBrains Mermaid plugin

JetBrains IDEs from 2026.2 on ship with their own bundled Mermaid plugin, which overlaps with Mermaid Studio in Markdown previews and settings. When Mermaid Studio detects the bundled plugin enabled alongside it, a notification titled Bundled Mermaid plugin detected recommends disabling the bundled plugin for the best experience.

The notification offers two actions:

• Manage Plugins… — opens Settings > Plugins filtered to “Mermaid”, where you can switch the bundled Mermaid plugin off
• Don’t Show Again — suppresses the notification permanently; it otherwise reappears once per IDE session while both plugins are enabled

Mermaid Studio still works with the bundled plugin enabled, but diagrams in the Markdown preview are then rendered by the bundled plugin instead of Mermaid Studio. See Markdown Integration for exactly what changes in that configuration.

Troubleshooting

Plugin not appearing after installation

• Ensure you’ve restarted your IDE completely
• Check Settings > Plugins > Installed to verify the plugin is enabled
• Check the IDE log for errors: Help > Show Log in Finder/Explorer

Syntax highlighting not working

• Verify the file has a recognized extension (.mmd, .mermaid)
• Check that the plugin is enabled in Settings > Plugins > Installed

Diagrams not rendering in markdown preview

Mermaid Studio renders Mermaid fences in the standard Markdown preview automatically. If diagrams aren’t appearing:

• Check that Enable Mermaid in Markdown preview is on under Settings > Tools > Mermaid Studio > Markdown.
• If the bundled JetBrains Mermaid plugin is enabled, Mermaid Studio defers preview rendering to it; disable the bundled plugin under Settings > Plugins to restore Mermaid Studio’s renderer.