diff --git a/src/converters/html-to-markdown.ts b/src/converters/html-to-markdown.ts
index 61e1d9a..7d919b5 100644
--- a/src/converters/html-to-markdown.ts
+++ b/src/converters/html-to-markdown.ts
@@ -194,7 +194,10 @@ function createTurndownService(): TurndownService {
       const text = content.replace(/[\r\n]+/g, " ").replace(/\|/g, "\\|").trim();
       const index = directCellIndex(node);
       const prefix = index === 0 ? "| " : " ";
-      return prefix + text + " |";
+      const rawSpan = parseInt((node as HTMLElement).getAttribute?.("colspan") ?? "1", 10);
+      const span = Number.isFinite(rawSpan) && rawSpan > 1 ? rawSpan : 1;
+      const extra = span > 1 ? " |".repeat(span - 1) : "";
+      return prefix + text + " |" + extra;
     },
   });
 
diff --git a/tests/converters/html-to-markdown.test.ts b/tests/converters/html-to-markdown.test.ts
index e4865f4..48f57ab 100644
--- a/tests/converters/html-to-markdown.test.ts
+++ b/tests/converters/html-to-markdown.test.ts
@@ -288,7 +288,7 @@ describe("htmlToMarkdown", () => {
     expect(result).toContain("| Magic Number | 17 |");
   });
 
-  it("separator column count respects colspan on first-row cells", () => {
+  it("colspan cells emit extra empty columns to keep table width consistent", () => {
     const html = `
       <table>
         <tr><td colspan="2">Header</td></tr>
@@ -296,7 +296,7 @@ describe("htmlToMarkdown", () => {
       </table>
     `;
     const result = htmlToMarkdown(html);
-    expect(result).toContain("| Header |");
+    expect(result).toContain("| Header | |");
     expect(result).toContain("| --- | --- |");
     expect(result).toContain("| Left | Right |");
   });
@@ -351,7 +351,7 @@ describe("htmlToMarkdown", () => {
       </div>
     `;
     const result = htmlToMarkdown(html);
-    expect(result).toContain("| someuser |");
+    expect(result).toContain("| someuser | |");
     expect(result).toContain("| --- | --- |");
     expect(result).toContain("| Magic Number | 17 |");
     expect(result).toContain("| Job | Celebrity Nobody |");