How to Add Math Equations to Confluence (LaTeX Guide)
How to Add Math Equations to Confluence
Confluence is excellent for documentation — but if you try to write a mathematical equation natively, you'll quickly discover it has no support for it. No LaTeX renderer, no equation editor, no formula blocks. Just plain text.
For engineers, data scientists, researchers, and educators, this is a real problem. LaTeX Math for Confluence solves it — adding full LaTeX rendering powered by MathJax directly inside Confluence Cloud.
What Is LaTeX?
LaTeX is the standard notation system for mathematical, scientific, and engineering formulas. It's used in academic papers, research docs, and technical specifications worldwide.
A simple example — the quadratic formula written in LaTeX:
x = \frac{-b \pm \sqrt{b^2 - 4ac}}{2a}
Which renders as the familiar formula you learned in school. LaTeX Math for Confluence turns that syntax into a properly rendered equation inside your Confluence page.
Adding an Inline Equation
Inline equations appear within a line of text — perfect for referencing variables or simple expressions mid-sentence.
- Open a Confluence page in edit mode
- Type
/LaTeX Inlineto insert the inline macro - Type your LaTeX expression inside the macro
- The equation renders inline with your text
Example: Writing E = mc^2 inline renders Einstein's mass-energy equivalence right inside your sentence.
Adding a Block Equation
Block equations display on their own line, centred — ideal for key formulas, derivations, or anything you want to stand out.
- Open a Confluence page in edit mode
- Type
/LaTeX Blockto insert the block macro - Write your LaTeX inside the macro
- The equation renders as a centred display formula
Example: A block equation for the normal distribution probability density function:
f(x) = \frac{1}{\sigma\sqrt{2\pi}} e^{-\frac{1}{2}\left(\frac{x-\mu}{\sigma}\right)^2}
Live Preview as You Type
You don't have to save the page to see how your formula looks. The LaTeX macro includes a live preview panel that renders your equation in real time as you type. If you make a syntax error, it flags it immediately — no more saving, checking, editing, saving again.
Common LaTeX Expressions for Confluence
Here are a few frequently used formulas to get started:
| What you want | LaTeX |
| Fraction | \frac{a}{b} |
| Square root | \sqrt{x} |
| Summation | \sum_{i=1}^{n} x_i |
| Integral | \int_{a}^{b} f(x)\,dx |
| Greek letters | \alpha, \beta, \gamma, \sigma |
| Subscript / superscript | x_i, x^2 |
| Matrix | \begin{bmatrix} a & b \\ c & d \end{bmatrix} |
| Limit | \lim_{x \to \infty} f(x) |
| Partial derivative | \frac{\partial f}{\partial x} |
| Infinity | \infty |
Who Uses LaTeX Math for Confluence?
Data science and ML teams — document model architectures, loss functions, and statistical methods alongside their methodology notes.
Engineering teams — write technical specs with signal processing formulas, control system equations, or physics derivations.
Finance teams — document quantitative models, pricing formulas, and risk calculations.
Educators and researchers — publish course materials, research summaries, and academic content directly in Confluence.
Academic institutions — use Confluence as a shared knowledge base where equations are first-class content.
Access Control for Admins
Not every team needs LaTeX editing rights. LaTeX Math for Confluence lets admins control who can insert and edit macros — so you can restrict formula editing to specific users while everyone else reads the rendered output.
Runs on Atlassian Forge
LaTeX Math for Confluence is built on Atlassian Forge — all rendering happens within Atlassian's infrastructure. No data is sent to external servers.
Getting Started
- Install LaTeX Math for Confluence from the Atlassian Marketplace
- Open any Confluence page in edit mode
- Type
/LaTeX Inlineor/LaTeX Block - Start writing equations
Full documentation: /docs/latex-math-for-confluence
Questions? Reach out via our support portal.
