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Introduction

What is JSDoc?​

JSDoc is an API documentation generator for JavaScript. You embed documentation comments directly in your source code — right next to the code they describe — and JSDoc scans those comments to produce a complete HTML documentation website.

The core idea is simple: a specially-formatted comment block above any symbol tells JSDoc everything it needs to know about that symbol.

/**
 * Adds two numbers together.
 * @param {number} a - The first operand.
 * @param {number} b - The second operand.
 * @returns {number} The sum of a and b.
 */
function add(a, b) {
  return a + b;
}

Run JSDoc on that file and you get a ready-to-publish documentation site — no extra tooling required.

Core concepts​

Block tags

@param, @returns, @type, and 60+ other tags that describe your code.

Inline tags

{@link} and {@tutorial} — used inside descriptions to create hyperlinks.

Guides

How to document ES2015 classes, modules, and complex type relationships.

Configuration

Tune JSDoc's behaviour with a JSON or JS configuration file.

How JSDoc comments work​

Every JSDoc comment starts with /** (two stars after the slash) and ends with */. Comments that begin with /* or /*** (three or more stars) are ignored — a deliberate escape hatch to suppress blocks you don't want documented.

/** This comment IS parsed by JSDoc. */

/* This comment is NOT parsed. */

/*** This comment is NOT parsed either. */

Inside the comment block, the first block of free text before any tags becomes the description. Tags begin with @ and may include a type (in {curly braces}), a name, and further description text.

What JSDoc produces​

By default JSDoc generates static HTML using its built-in default template. The output is fully self-contained — no server required. You can:

  • Host it on GitHub Pages, Netlify, or any static host.
  • Swap in a custom template or a community template for a different look.
  • Integrate JSDoc into your build pipeline (npm run docs).

Next steps​

  1. Install JSDoc

    Get JSDoc into your project via npm. Installation →

  2. Write your first comment

    Learn the comment syntax and run JSDoc for the first time. Quickstart →

  3. Explore every tag

    Browse the complete tag reference. Tags →

Official reference: Official JSDoc documentation