# groff

Hacker Approved page: https://hackerapproved.com/p/groff/

5 people recommended groff in Hacker News comments, 1 had mixed feelings and none criticized it, November 2025 to October 2026. It was recommended in 5 of 12 months, in 5 threads. It does not meet the Hacker Approved badge rule.

**Verdict:** Free, long-established typesetting system for manuscripts and publishing. Basic syntax is easy, but typographical marks need escaping.

Summary written by Claude from 9 comments. It was written before the November 2026 recount, and 7 of those comments still count.

## Why people recommend it

- Easy basic syntax (2 comments in the sample): "using simple groff is very capable for basic manuscripts without having to fall down a deep dark rabbit hole" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48700116)) "the basic syntax can be easy enough" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48697154))

## Other typesetting systems people recommend

- [Typst](https://hackerapproved.com/p/typst/): 164 recommend, 26 mixed, 26 criticize
- [LaTeX](https://hackerapproved.com/p/latex/): 85 recommend, 40 mixed, 76 criticize
- [Quarto](https://hackerapproved.com/p/quarto/): 24 recommend, 3 mixed, 5 criticize
- [TeX](https://hackerapproved.com/p/tex/): 21 recommend, 6 mixed, 11 criticize

## The badge

A product earns the Hacker Approved badge when at least 10 people recommend it, recommenders outnumber critics at least 2 to 1 (mixed feelings count toward neither side), it was recommended in at least 4 of the 12 months and in at least 5 different threads, and no single thread supplies more than half of the people who recommend it. Health and money products are never badged.

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "groff", https://hackerapproved.com/p/groff/ (5 recommend, 1 mixed, 0 criticize; Hacker News comments, November 2025 to October 2026).

Counts updated 2 Nov 2026, with data through October 31, 2026.