Why are the Mishna and Gemara often printed next to one another in the Talmud?

The Mishna and Gemara are printed together because the Gemara serves as a collection of commentaries on and elaborations of the Mishna. In the structure of the Talmud, the Gemara is reproduced in direct juxtaposition to the Mishna to facilitate this relationship.12

This layout reflects the text-centered approach of Talmudic study, where the Mishna—a comprehensive compendium of oral law—acts as the foundational text for the dialectic discussions found in the Gemara. By placing them together in the center column of the page, the printed editions allow for the active interpretation and study that defined the rabbinic academies. This standard page format, established by early printed editions such as those from Venice in the 16th century, ensures that the primary legal text and its subsequent analytical commentary remain linked for the reader.314