# MD010 - Use spaces instead of tabs
Aliases: `no-hard-tabs`
## What this rule does
Replaces tab characters with spaces to ensure consistent indentation across all editors and platforms.
## Why this matters
- **Consistency**: Tabs display differently in different editors (2, 4, or 8 spaces wide)
- **Team collaboration**: Mixed tabs and spaces create confusing indentation and merge conflicts
- **Tool compatibility**: Many Markdown tools and platforms expect spaces for proper formatting
- **Readability**: Consistent spacing makes documents easier to read and maintain
## Examples
### ✅ Correct
```markdown
* Shopping list
* Fruits
* Apples
* Bananas
* Vegetables
* Carrots
* Broccoli
Remember to check for freshness!
```
### ❌ Incorrect
> `→` represents a hard tab character.
```markdown
* Shopping list
→* Fruits
→→* Apples
→→* Bananas
→* Vegetables
→→* Carrots
→→* Broccoli
→Remember to check for freshness!
```
### 🔧 Fixed
```markdown
* Shopping list
* Fruits
* Apples
* Bananas
* Vegetables
* Carrots
* Broccoli
Remember to check for freshness!
```
## Configuration
```toml
[MD010]
spaces-per-tab = 4 # Number of spaces to replace each tab with (default: 4)
```
### Configuration options explained
- `spaces-per-tab`: How many spaces to use when replacing each tab character
## Automatic fixes
This rule automatically replaces each tab character with the configured number of spaces (default: 4). This ensures your document looks the same in every editor.
## Learn more
- [CommonMark specification](https://spec.commonmark.org/0.31.2/#tabs) - Technical details about tab handling
## Related rules
- [MD009](md009.md) - Remove trailing spaces
- [MD007](md007.md) - Keep list indentation consistent
- [MD005](md005.md) - Keep list indentation consistent