| name | obsidian-markdown |
| description | Reference for Obsidian-specific markdown syntax beyond standard CommonMark — wikilinks, callouts, embeds, properties, dataview, and templater. Use when creating or editing files intended for the Obsidian vault. |
Obsidian Markdown Extensions
Reference for Obsidian-specific markdown syntax beyond standard CommonMark. Use when creating or editing files intended for the Obsidian vault.
Properties (Frontmatter)
YAML block at file start, delimited by ---. Obsidian reads these as typed properties.
---
title: My Note
date: 2026-03-01
tags:
- project/alpha
- status/active
status: in_progress
aliases:
- Alt Name
cssclasses:
- wide-page
---
Property types: text, number, checkbox, date, datetime, list, tags
Reserved properties: tags, aliases, cssclasses
Internal Links (Wikilinks)
[[Note Name]] # Link to note
[[Note Name|Display Text]] # Link with alias
[[Note Name#Heading]] # Link to heading
[[Note Name#^block-id]] # Link to block
[[Note Name#Heading|Display]] # Heading link with alias
Embeds — prefix with ! to render inline:
![[Note Name]] # Embed entire note
![[Note Name#Heading]] # Embed section
![[image.png]] # Embed image
![[image.png|300]] # Embed image with width
![[audio.mp3]] # Embed audio player
![[video.mp4]] # Embed video player
![[document.pdf]] # Embed PDF
![[document.pdf#page=3]] # Embed specific PDF page
Block References
Add a ^block-id at the end of any block (paragraph, list item, etc.):
This is a paragraph I want to reference. ^my-block
- List item with reference ^list-ref
Link to it: [[Note Name#^my-block]]
Embed it: ![[Note Name#^my-block]]
Block IDs: lowercase letters, numbers, hyphens. Obsidian auto-generates 6-char hex IDs when you type ^ in the link autocomplete.
Tags
#tag # Simple tag
#nested/tag # Nested tag (creates hierarchy)
#project/alpha # Convention: category/value
Tags work in body text and in tags: frontmatter property. Nested tags create browsable hierarchies in the tag pane.
Callouts
> [!note] Optional Title
> Callout body content.
> [!warning]
> No title — uses type name as title.
> [!tip]- Foldable (collapsed by default)
> Content hidden until expanded.
> [!tip]+ Foldable (expanded by default)
> Content visible, can be collapsed.
Built-in types: note, abstract/summary/tldr, info, todo, tip/hint/important, success/check/done, question/help/faq, warning/caution/attention, failure/fail/missing, danger/error, bug, example, quote/cite
Nesting: Callouts can nest inside each other with additional > levels.
Comments
%%This text is invisible in reading view%%
%%
Multi-line comments
also work
%%
Footnotes
Here is a sentence with a footnote.[^1]
[^1]: This is the footnote content.
Inline footnote^[This is inline footnote content].
Math (LaTeX)
Inline: $E = mc^2$
Block:
$$
\sum_{i=1}^{n} x_i = x_1 + x_2 + \cdots + x_n
$$
Tables (Standard + Extended)
| Left | Center | Right |
|:-----|:------:|------:|
| a | b | c |
Task Lists
- [ ] Unchecked
- [x] Checked
- [/] In progress (community convention)
- [-] Cancelled (community convention)
Highlights and Formatting
==highlighted text== # Yellow highlight
**bold** and *italic* # Standard
~~strikethrough~~ # Standard
`inline code` # Standard
Best Practices for This Vault
- Always use wikilinks (
[[Note]]) not markdown links for internal vault links
- Frontmatter on every file — at minimum:
title, date, tags
- Use nested tags for categorization:
#status/active, #project/opened, #type/podcast
- Block references for granular linking — better than duplicating content
- Aliases for notes with multiple names (e.g., person's full name + first name)
- Callouts for important information, warnings, or collapsible sections
- Comments (
%%...%%) for Claude-only notes that shouldn't render in Obsidian