diff --git a/Auto Run Docs/02a-backend-engine.md b/Auto Run Docs/02a-backend-engine.md
index f4edafe..2e778e4 100644
--- a/Auto Run Docs/02a-backend-engine.md	
+++ b/Auto Run Docs/02a-backend-engine.md	
@@ -20,7 +20,8 @@ Implement the core experiment execution engine: LLM adapters, response caching,
 - [x] Implement backend/engine/scorers/embedding.py — uses a configurable embedding endpoint (Ollama nomic-embed-text or any OpenAI-compatible embedding API) to compute cosine similarity between output and reference answer. Normalize to 0.0–1.0 range.
   <!-- Completed: EmbeddingScorer using httpx async calls to OpenAI-compatible /embeddings endpoint, cosine similarity normalized to [0,1]. Reads reference from context["reference"]. 19 tests in test_scorer_embedding.py, all passing. -->
 
-- [ ] Implement backend/engine/scorers/format.py — checks if output matches expected format. Supports: json (valid JSON parse), markdown (has headers, lists), length (within min/max token count), structure (matches a provided JSON schema).
+- [x] Implement backend/engine/scorers/format.py — checks if output matches expected format. Supports: json (valid JSON parse), markdown (has headers, lists), length (within min/max token count), structure (matches a provided JSON schema).
+  <!-- Completed: FormatScorer with 4 format checks (json, markdown, length, structure). JSON schema validation via jsonschema library with basic fallback. 38 tests in test_scorer_format.py, all passing. -->
 
 - [ ] Implement backend/engine/scorers/keyword.py — checks for presence/absence of required keywords in output. Configurable with required_present and required_absent lists. Score = (found / required) ratio.
 
diff --git a/backend/engine/scorers/__init__.py b/backend/engine/scorers/__init__.py
index afaddb9..1c70065 100644
--- a/backend/engine/scorers/__init__.py
+++ b/backend/engine/scorers/__init__.py
@@ -2,5 +2,6 @@
 
 from engine.scorers.base import BaseScorer
 from engine.scorers.embedding import EmbeddingScorer
+from engine.scorers.format import FormatScorer
 
-__all__ = ["BaseScorer", "EmbeddingScorer"]
+__all__ = ["BaseScorer", "EmbeddingScorer", "FormatScorer"]
diff --git a/backend/engine/scorers/format.py b/backend/engine/scorers/format.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e0d7210
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/engine/scorers/format.py
@@ -0,0 +1,173 @@
+"""Format scorer — checks if LLM output matches expected formats.
+
+Supports four format checks:
+- json: valid JSON parse
+- markdown: has headers and/or lists
+- length: within min/max token count
+- structure: matches a provided JSON schema
+"""
+
+import json
+import re
+from typing import Any
+
+from engine.scorers.base import BaseScorer
+
+
+class FormatScorer(BaseScorer):
+    """Score outputs based on format compliance.
+
+    Args:
+        format_type: One of "json", "markdown", "length", "structure".
+        min_tokens: Minimum token count (for "length" mode).
+        max_tokens: Maximum token count (for "length" mode).
+        json_schema: JSON schema dict (for "structure" mode).
+    """
+
+    VALID_FORMATS = {"json", "markdown", "length", "structure"}
+
+    def __init__(
+        self,
+        format_type: str = "json",
+        min_tokens: int | None = None,
+        max_tokens: int | None = None,
+        json_schema: dict | None = None,
+    ) -> None:
+        if format_type not in self.VALID_FORMATS:
+            raise ValueError(
+                f"Invalid format_type '{format_type}'. "
+                f"Must be one of: {', '.join(sorted(self.VALID_FORMATS))}"
+            )
+        self.format_type = format_type
+        self.min_tokens = min_tokens
+        self.max_tokens = max_tokens
+        self.json_schema = json_schema
+
+    @property
+    def name(self) -> str:
+        return "format"
+
+    def score(self, input_data: Any, output: str, context: dict) -> float:
+        """Score output based on format compliance.
+
+        Returns 1.0 if the output matches the expected format, 0.0 otherwise.
+        For length checks, returns a proportional score based on how close the
+        output is to the acceptable range.
+        """
+        checkers = {
+            "json": self._check_json,
+            "markdown": self._check_markdown,
+            "length": self._check_length,
+            "structure": self._check_structure,
+        }
+        return checkers[self.format_type](output)
+
+    def _check_json(self, output: str) -> float:
+        """Check if output is valid JSON."""
+        try:
+            json.loads(output.strip())
+            return 1.0
+        except (json.JSONDecodeError, ValueError):
+            return 0.0
+
+    def _check_markdown(self, output: str) -> float:
+        """Check if output contains markdown formatting (headers and/or lists).
+
+        Scoring:
+        - 0.5 for having headers (lines starting with #)
+        - 0.5 for having lists (lines starting with - or * or numbered)
+        - 1.0 for having both
+        """
+        score = 0.0
+
+        # Check for headers
+        if re.search(r"^#{1,6}\s+\S", output, re.MULTILINE):
+            score += 0.5
+
+        # Check for lists (unordered or ordered)
+        if re.search(r"^[\s]*[-*]\s+\S", output, re.MULTILINE) or re.search(
+            r"^[\s]*\d+[.)]\s+\S", output, re.MULTILINE
+        ):
+            score += 0.5
+
+        return score
+
+    def _check_length(self, output: str) -> float:
+        """Check if output length is within min/max token bounds.
+
+        Uses whitespace tokenization as an approximation.
+        Returns 1.0 if within bounds, scaled score if outside.
+        """
+        token_count = len(output.split())
+
+        if self.min_tokens is None and self.max_tokens is None:
+            return 1.0
+
+        min_t = self.min_tokens or 0
+        max_t = self.max_tokens or float("inf")
+
+        if min_t <= token_count <= max_t:
+            return 1.0
+
+        # Score proportionally based on distance from acceptable range
+        if token_count < min_t:
+            return max(0.0, token_count / min_t) if min_t > 0 else 0.0
+
+        # token_count > max_t
+        if max_t > 0 and max_t != float("inf"):
+            # Linearly decay: at 2x max, score = 0
+            ratio = max_t / token_count
+            return max(0.0, 2 * ratio - 1.0)
+
+        return 0.0
+
+    def _check_structure(self, output: str) -> float:
+        """Check if output matches a JSON schema.
+
+        Returns 1.0 if valid against the schema, 0.0 otherwise.
+        """
+        if self.json_schema is None:
+            return 0.0
+
+        try:
+            parsed = json.loads(output.strip())
+        except (json.JSONDecodeError, ValueError):
+            return 0.0
+
+        try:
+            import jsonschema
+            jsonschema.validate(instance=parsed, schema=self.json_schema)
+            return 1.0
+        except ImportError:
+            # Fallback: basic type and required-field checking without jsonschema
+            return self._basic_schema_check(parsed, self.json_schema)
+        except jsonschema.ValidationError:
+            return 0.0
+
+    def _basic_schema_check(self, data: Any, schema: dict) -> float:
+        """Basic JSON schema validation without jsonschema library.
+
+        Checks type and required fields only.
+        """
+        schema_type = schema.get("type")
+        if schema_type:
+            type_map = {
+                "object": dict,
+                "array": list,
+                "string": str,
+                "number": (int, float),
+                "integer": int,
+                "boolean": bool,
+                "null": type(None),
+            }
+            expected = type_map.get(schema_type)
+            if expected and not isinstance(data, expected):
+                return 0.0
+
+        if schema_type == "object" and isinstance(data, dict):
+            required = schema.get("required", [])
+            if required:
+                present = sum(1 for k in required if k in data)
+                return present / len(required)
+
+        return 1.0
diff --git a/backend/requirements.txt b/backend/requirements.txt
index fd8b4eb..74dcde4 100644
--- a/backend/requirements.txt
+++ b/backend/requirements.txt
@@ -15,3 +15,4 @@ psycopg2-binary>=2.9,<3.0
 aiosqlite>=0.20,<1.0
 python-multipart>=0.0.9
 jinja2>=3.1,<4.0
+jsonschema>=4.20,<5.0
diff --git a/backend/tests/test_scorer_format.py b/backend/tests/test_scorer_format.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ee1602e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/tests/test_scorer_format.py
@@ -0,0 +1,228 @@
+"""Tests for the FormatScorer."""
+
+import asyncio
+import json
+from typing import Any
+
+import pytest
+
+from engine.scorers.format import FormatScorer
+
+
+class TestFormatScorerInit:
+    def test_valid_format_types(self):
+        for fmt in ("json", "markdown", "length", "structure"):
+            scorer = FormatScorer(format_type=fmt)
+            assert scorer.format_type == fmt
+
+    def test_invalid_format_type_raises(self):
+        with pytest.raises(ValueError, match="Invalid format_type"):
+            FormatScorer(format_type="xml")
+
+    def test_name_property(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer()
+        assert scorer.name == "format"
+
+    def test_is_base_scorer(self):
+        from engine.scorers.base import BaseScorer
+        scorer = FormatScorer()
+        assert isinstance(scorer, BaseScorer)
+
+
+class TestJsonFormat:
+    def test_valid_json_object(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="json")
+        assert scorer.score(None, '{"key": "value"}', {}) == 1.0
+
+    def test_valid_json_array(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="json")
+        assert scorer.score(None, '[1, 2, 3]', {}) == 1.0
+
+    def test_valid_json_string(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="json")
+        assert scorer.score(None, '"hello"', {}) == 1.0
+
+    def test_valid_json_number(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="json")
+        assert scorer.score(None, '42', {}) == 1.0
+
+    def test_valid_json_with_whitespace(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="json")
+        assert scorer.score(None, '  {"key": "value"}  ', {}) == 1.0
+
+    def test_invalid_json(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="json")
+        assert scorer.score(None, "not json at all", {}) == 0.0
+
+    def test_empty_string(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="json")
+        assert scorer.score(None, "", {}) == 0.0
+
+    def test_partial_json(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="json")
+        assert scorer.score(None, '{"key":', {}) == 0.0
+
+
+class TestMarkdownFormat:
+    def test_headers_only(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="markdown")
+        output = "# Title\n\nSome text here."
+        assert scorer.score(None, output, {}) == 0.5
+
+    def test_lists_only_unordered(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="markdown")
+        output = "Some text\n- item one\n- item two"
+        assert scorer.score(None, output, {}) == 0.5
+
+    def test_lists_only_ordered(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="markdown")
+        output = "Some text\n1. first\n2. second"
+        assert scorer.score(None, output, {}) == 0.5
+
+    def test_both_headers_and_lists(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="markdown")
+        output = "# Title\n\n- item one\n- item two"
+        assert scorer.score(None, output, {}) == 1.0
+
+    def test_no_markdown(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="markdown")
+        output = "Just plain text without any formatting."
+        assert scorer.score(None, output, {}) == 0.0
+
+    def test_nested_header_levels(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="markdown")
+        output = "## Subtitle\n\nContent here"
+        assert scorer.score(None, output, {}) == 0.5
+
+    def test_asterisk_list(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="markdown")
+        output = "Some text\n* item one\n* item two"
+        assert scorer.score(None, output, {}) == 0.5
+
+    def test_ordered_list_with_parenthesis(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="markdown")
+        output = "Text\n1) first\n2) second"
+        assert scorer.score(None, output, {}) == 0.5
+
+
+class TestLengthFormat:
+    def test_within_range(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="length", min_tokens=5, max_tokens=20)
+        output = "this is a ten word sentence for the test case"
+        assert scorer.score(None, output, {}) == 1.0
+
+    def test_exact_min(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="length", min_tokens=3, max_tokens=10)
+        assert scorer.score(None, "one two three", {}) == 1.0
+
+    def test_exact_max(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="length", min_tokens=1, max_tokens=3)
+        assert scorer.score(None, "one two three", {}) == 1.0
+
+    def test_below_min(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="length", min_tokens=10, max_tokens=20)
+        output = "only five words here now"
+        result = scorer.score(None, output, {})
+        assert 0.0 < result < 1.0
+        assert result == 5 / 10  # 0.5
+
+    def test_above_max(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="length", min_tokens=1, max_tokens=5)
+        output = "one two three four five six seven eight nine ten"
+        result = scorer.score(None, output, {})
+        assert 0.0 <= result < 1.0
+
+    def test_no_bounds(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="length")
+        assert scorer.score(None, "any text", {}) == 1.0
+
+    def test_only_min(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="length", min_tokens=3)
+        assert scorer.score(None, "one two three four", {}) == 1.0
+
+    def test_only_max(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="length", max_tokens=5)
+        assert scorer.score(None, "one two", {}) == 1.0
+
+    def test_empty_output(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="length", min_tokens=5)
+        # empty string splits to [''], which has length 1
+        result = scorer.score(None, "", {})
+        assert result < 1.0
+
+    def test_zero_min(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="length", min_tokens=0, max_tokens=10)
+        assert scorer.score(None, "hello", {}) == 1.0
+
+
+class TestStructureFormat:
+    def test_valid_structure(self):
+        schema = {
+            "type": "object",
+            "required": ["name", "age"],
+            "properties": {
+                "name": {"type": "string"},
+                "age": {"type": "integer"},
+            },
+        }
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="structure", json_schema=schema)
+        output = json.dumps({"name": "Alice", "age": 30})
+        assert scorer.score(None, output, {}) == 1.0
+
+    def test_missing_required_field(self):
+        schema = {
+            "type": "object",
+            "required": ["name", "age"],
+            "properties": {
+                "name": {"type": "string"},
+                "age": {"type": "integer"},
+            },
+        }
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="structure", json_schema=schema)
+        output = json.dumps({"name": "Alice"})
+        assert scorer.score(None, output, {}) == 0.0
+
+    def test_wrong_type(self):
+        schema = {"type": "array"}
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="structure", json_schema=schema)
+        output = json.dumps({"key": "value"})
+        assert scorer.score(None, output, {}) == 0.0
+
+    def test_valid_array_structure(self):
+        schema = {"type": "array"}
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="structure", json_schema=schema)
+        output = json.dumps([1, 2, 3])
+        assert scorer.score(None, output, {}) == 1.0
+
+    def test_no_schema_returns_zero(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="structure")
+        assert scorer.score(None, '{"key": "value"}', {}) == 0.0
+
+    def test_invalid_json_for_structure(self):
+        schema = {"type": "object"}
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="structure", json_schema=schema)
+        assert scorer.score(None, "not json", {}) == 0.0
+
+    def test_complex_schema(self):
+        schema = {
+            "type": "object",
+            "required": ["results"],
+            "properties": {
+                "results": {
+                    "type": "array",
+                    "items": {"type": "object"},
+                },
+            },
+        }
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="structure", json_schema=schema)
+        output = json.dumps({"results": [{"id": 1}, {"id": 2}]})
+        assert scorer.score(None, output, {}) == 1.0
+
+
+class TestAsyncScoring:
+    def test_async_delegates_to_sync(self):
+        scorer = FormatScorer(format_type="json")
+        result = asyncio.get_event_loop().run_until_complete(
+            scorer.score_async(None, '{"valid": true}', {})
+        )
+        assert result == 1.0