# `MD060` - Table column style

Tags: `table`

Aliases: `table-column-style`

Parameters:

- `style`: Table column style (`string`, default `any`, values `aligned` /
  `any` / `compact` / `tight`)

This rule is triggered when the column separators of a
[GitHub Flavored Markdown table][gfm-table-060] are used inconsistently.

This rule recognizes three table column styles based on popular use.

Style `aligned` ensures table delimiters are vertically aligned:

```markdown
| Character | Meaning |
| --------- | ------- |
| Y         | Yes     |
| N         | No      |
```

The `aligned` style ignores cell content, so the following is also valid:

```markdown
| Character | Meaning |
|-----------|---------|
|     Y     |     Yes |
|     N     |      No |
```

Style `compact` avoids extra padding with a single space around cell content:

```markdown
| Character | Meaning |
| --- | --- |
| Y | Yes |
| N | No |
```

Style `tight` uses no padding at all for cell content:

```markdown
|Character|Meaning|
|---|---|
|Y|Yes|
|N|No|
```

When this rule's `style` parameter is set to `aligned`, `compact`, or `tight`,
every table must match the corresponding pattern and any violations will be
reported. By default, or when the `any` style is used, each table is analyzed to
see if it satisfies any supported style. If so, no violations are reported. If
not, violations are be reported for whichever style would produce the *fewest*
issues (i.e., whichever style is the closest match).

Note: Delimiter placement for the `aligned` style is based on visual appearance
and not character count. Because editors typically render [emoji][emoji] and
[CJK characters][cjk-characters] at *twice* the width of
[Latin characters][latin-script], this rule takes that into account for tables
using the `aligned` style. The following table is correctly formatted and will
appear aligned in most editors and monospaced fonts:

<!-- markdownlint-capture -->
<!-- markdownlint-disable extended-ascii -->

```markdown
| Response | Emoji |
| -------- | ----- |
| Yes      | ✅    |
| No       | ❎    |
```

<!-- markdownlint-restore -->

Rationale: Consistent formatting makes it easier to understand a document.

[cjk-characters]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CJK_characters
[emoji]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emoji
[gfm-table-060]: https://docs.github.com/en/get-started/writing-on-github/working-with-advanced-formatting/organizing-information-with-tables
[latin-script]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin_script