Obsidian CLI (Official, v1.12+)
The official Obsidian CLI connects to a running Obsidian instance via IPC. Requires Obsidian 1.12+ with CLI enabled in Settings > General.
Prerequisites
- Obsidian 1.12+ installed and running
- CLI enabled: Settings > General > Enable CLI
- The
obsidianbinary must be in your PATH
Important: Obsidian must be running for CLI commands to work. The CLI communicates with the running instance via IPC.
Platform Notes
- macOS/Windows: The Obsidian installer typically places the CLI binary in PATH automatically.
- Linux: You may need a wrapper script to avoid Electron flag injection that breaks CLI arg parsing. Ensure your wrapper is in PATH before the system
obsidianbinary. If running as a service, ensurePrivateTmp=falsefor IPC to work.
Complete Command Reference
Basics
obsidian version # Show Obsidian version
obsidian help # List all available commands
obsidian vault # Show vault info (name, path, files, size)
obsidian vault info=name # Just vault name
obsidian vault info=path # Just vault path
obsidian reload # Reload the vault
obsidian restart # Restart the app
Daily Notes
obsidian daily # Open today's daily note
obsidian daily silent # Open without focusing
obsidian daily:read # Read daily note contents
obsidian daily:append content="- [ ] Task" # Append to daily note
obsidian daily:prepend content="# Header" # Prepend to daily note
obsidian daily paneType=tab # Open in new tab (tab|split|window)
Files
obsidian read file=Recipe # Read by name (wikilink resolution)
obsidian read path="Work/notes.md" # Read by exact path
obsidian file file=Recipe # Show file info (path, size, dates)
obsidian create name=Note content="Hello" # Create a new note
obsidian create name=Note template=Travel # Create from template
obsidian create path="Work/note.md" content="text" # Create at exact path
obsidian create name=Note overwrite # Overwrite if exists
obsidian create name=Note silent newtab # Create silently in new tab
obsidian open file=Recipe # Open in Obsidian
obsidian open file=Recipe newtab # Open in new tab
obsidian delete file=Old # Delete (to trash)
obsidian delete file=Old permanent # Delete permanently
obsidian move file=Old to="Archive/Old.md" # Move/rename (include .md in target)
obsidian append file=Log content="Entry" # Append to file
obsidian append file=Log content="text" inline # Append inline (no newline)
obsidian prepend file=Log content="Header" # Prepend to file
obsidian unique name="Meeting" content="notes" # Create note with unique timestamp
obsidian wordcount file=Note # Word and character count
obsidian wordcount file=Note words # Words only
obsidian wordcount file=Note characters # Characters only
obsidian random # Open a random note
obsidian random:read # Read a random note
obsidian random folder="Work" # Random note from folder
obsidian recents # List recently opened files
obsidian recents total # Count of recent files
Search
obsidian search query="meeting notes" # Search vault
obsidian search query="TODO" matches # Show match context
obsidian search query="project" path="Work" limit=10 # Scoped search
obsidian search query="test" format=json # JSON output
obsidian search query="Bug" case # Case-sensitive search
obsidian search query="error" total # Count matches only
obsidian search:open query="TODO" # Open search view in Obsidian
Tasks
obsidian tasks daily # Tasks from daily note
obsidian tasks daily todo # Incomplete daily tasks
obsidian tasks daily done # Completed daily tasks
obsidian tasks all todo # All incomplete tasks in vault
obsidian tasks file=Recipe done # Completed tasks in file
obsidian tasks verbose # Tasks with file paths + line numbers
obsidian tasks total # Count of tasks
obsidian tasks status="/" # Tasks with custom status character
obsidian task daily line=3 toggle # Toggle task completion
obsidian task daily line=3 done # Mark task done
obsidian task daily line=3 todo # Mark task incomplete
obsidian task ref="Work/todo.md:5" toggle # Toggle by file:line reference
obsidian task daily line=3 status="/" # Set custom status
Tags & Properties
# Tags
obsidian tags all counts # All tags with counts
obsidian tags all counts sort=count # Sorted by frequency
obsidian tags file=Note # Tags in specific file
obsidian tags total # Total tag count
obsidian tag name=project verbose # Tag details with file list
obsidian tag name=project total # Count of files with tag
# Properties (frontmatter)
obsidian properties all counts # All properties with counts
obsidian properties all counts sort=count # Sorted by frequency
obsidian properties file=Note # Properties of specific file
obsidian properties name=status # Files with specific property
obsidian properties format=yaml # YAML output
obsidian properties format=tsv # TSV output
obsidian property:read name=status file=Note # Read a property value
obsidian property:set name=status value=done file=Note # Set a property
obsidian property:set name=due value="2026-03-01" type=date file=Note # Set with type
obsidian property:remove name=status file=Note # Remove a property
# Aliases
obsidian aliases # List all aliases in vault
obsidian aliases all # Include files without aliases
obsidian aliases file=Note # Aliases for specific file
obsidian aliases total # Count of aliases
obsidian aliases verbose # With file paths
Links & Structure
obsidian backlinks file=Note # Files linking to Note
obsidian backlinks file=Note counts # With link counts
obsidian backlinks file=Note total # Count of backlinks
obsidian links file=Note # Outgoing links from Note
obsidian links file=Note total # Count of outgoing links
obsidian orphans # Files with no incoming links
obsidian orphans total # Count of orphans
obsidian orphans all # Include non-markdown files
obsidian deadends # Files with no outgoing links
obsidian deadends total # Count of deadends
obsidian unresolved # Broken/unresolved links
obsidian unresolved total # Count of unresolved
obsidian unresolved counts # With reference counts
obsidian unresolved verbose # With source file details
obsidian outline file=Note # Headings tree
obsidian outline file=Note format=md # Headings as markdown
obsidian outline file=Note total # Count of headings
Vault Info
obsidian files total # File count
obsidian files folder="Work" ext=md # Filter by folder and extension
obsidian folders # List all folders
obsidian folders total # Folder count
obsidian folders folder="Work" # Subfolders of path
obsidian folder path="Work" info=size # Folder size in bytes
obsidian folder path="Work" info=files # File count in folder
obsidian folder path="Work" info=folders # Subfolder count
Bookmarks
obsidian bookmarks # List all bookmarks
obsidian bookmarks total # Count of bookmarks
obsidian bookmarks verbose # With details
obsidian bookmark file="Work/note.md" # Bookmark a file
obsidian bookmark file="note.md" subpath="#heading" # Bookmark a heading
obsidian bookmark folder="Work" # Bookmark a folder
obsidian bookmark search="TODO" # Bookmark a search query
obsidian bookmark url="https://example.com" title="Example" # Bookmark a URL
Bases (Database Views)
obsidian bases # List all base files
obsidian base:views # List views in current base
obsidian base:query file=MyBase # Query base, default format
obsidian base:query file=MyBase format=json # JSON output
obsidian base:query file=MyBase format=csv # CSV output
obsidian base:query file=MyBase format=tsv # TSV output
obsidian base:query file=MyBase format=md # Markdown table
obsidian base:query file=MyBase format=paths # Just file paths
obsidian base:query file=MyBase view="View Name" # Query specific view
obsidian base:create name="New Item" # Create item in current base view
obsidian base:create content="text" silent # Create silently
Templates
obsidian templates # List available templates
obsidian templates total # Count of templates
obsidian template:read name=Daily # Read template content
obsidian template:read name=Daily resolve # Read with variables resolved
obsidian template:read name=Daily resolve title="My Note" # Resolve with title
obsidian template:insert name=Daily # Insert template into active file
Commands & Hotkeys
obsidian commands # List all command IDs
obsidian commands filter="editor" # Filter by prefix
obsidian command id=app:open-settings # Execute a command
obsidian hotkeys # List assigned hotkeys
obsidian hotkeys all # Include unassigned
obsidian hotkeys total # Count of hotkeys
obsidian hotkeys verbose # With command details
obsidian hotkey id=app:open-settings # Hotkey for specific command
obsidian hotkey id=app:open-settings verbose # With full details
Tabs & Workspaces
# Tabs
obsidian tabs # List open tabs
obsidian tabs ids # With tab IDs
obsidian tab:open # Open new empty tab
obsidian tab:open file="Work/note.md" # Open file in new tab
obsidian tab:open group=2 # Open in specific tab group
# Workspaces
obsidian workspaces # List saved workspaces
obsidian workspaces total # Count of workspaces
obsidian workspace # Show current workspace tree
obsidian workspace ids # With element IDs
obsidian workspace:save name="coding" # Save current layout
obsidian workspace:load name="coding" # Load saved workspace
obsidian workspace:delete name="old" # Delete saved workspace
History & Diff (File Recovery)
obsidian history file=Note # List version history for file
obsidian history:list # List all files with history
obsidian history:read file=Note # Read latest history version
obsidian history:read file=Note version=3 # Read specific version
obsidian history:restore file=Note version=3 # Restore a version
obsidian history:open file=Note # Open file recovery UI
obsidian diff file=Note # List/diff local versions
obsidian diff file=Note from=1 to=3 # Diff between versions
obsidian diff file=Note filter=local # Local versions only
obsidian diff file=Note filter=sync # Sync versions only
Sync (Obsidian Sync)
obsidian sync:status # Show sync status
obsidian sync on # Resume sync
obsidian sync off # Pause sync
obsidian sync:history file=Note # Sync version history
obsidian sync:history file=Note total # Count of sync versions
obsidian sync:read file=Note version=2 # Read a sync version
obsidian sync:restore file=Note version=2 # Restore a sync version
obsidian sync:deleted # List files deleted in sync
obsidian sync:deleted total # Count of deleted files
obsidian sync:open file=Note # Open sync history UI
Publish (Obsidian Publish)
obsidian publish:site # Show publish site info
obsidian publish:status # List all publish changes
obsidian publish:status new # New files to publish
obsidian publish:status changed # Changed files
obsidian publish:status deleted # Deleted files
obsidian publish:status total # Count of changes
obsidian publish:list # List published files
obsidian publish:list total # Count of published files
obsidian publish:add file=Note # Publish a file
obsidian publish:add changed # Publish all changed files
obsidian publish:remove file=Note # Unpublish a file
obsidian publish:open file=Note # Open on published site
Themes & CSS Snippets
# Themes
obsidian theme # Show active theme
obsidian theme name="Minimal" # Get theme info
obsidian themes # List installed themes
obsidian themes versions # With version numbers
obsidian theme:set name="Minimal" # Set active theme
obsidian theme:install name="Minimal" # Install community theme
obsidian theme:install name="Minimal" enable # Install and activate
obsidian theme:uninstall name="Minimal" # Uninstall theme
# CSS Snippets
obsidian snippets # List installed snippets
obsidian snippets:enabled # List enabled snippets
obsidian snippet:enable name="custom" # Enable a snippet
obsidian snippet:disable name="custom" # Disable a snippet
Plugins
obsidian plugins # List all installed
obsidian plugins filter=core # Core plugins only
obsidian plugins filter=community # Community plugins only
obsidian plugins versions # With version numbers
obsidian plugins:enabled # List enabled plugins
obsidian plugins:enabled filter=community versions # Enabled community with versions
obsidian plugins:restrict # Check restricted mode status
obsidian plugins:restrict on # Enable restricted mode
obsidian plugins:restrict off # Disable restricted mode
obsidian plugin id=dataview # Get plugin info
obsidian plugin:enable id=dataview # Enable plugin
obsidian plugin:disable id=dataview # Disable plugin
obsidian plugin:install id=dataview # Install community plugin
obsidian plugin:install id=dataview enable # Install and enable
obsidian plugin:uninstall id=dataview # Uninstall community plugin
obsidian plugin:reload id=my-plugin # Reload plugin (dev)
Web Viewer
obsidian web url="https://example.com" # Open URL in web viewer
obsidian web url="https://example.com" newtab # Open in new tab
Developer Tools
# JavaScript evaluation
obsidian eval code="app.vault.getFiles().length" # Run JS in Obsidian context
# Screenshots
obsidian dev:screenshot # Screenshot to default path
obsidian dev:screenshot path=screenshot.png # Screenshot to file
# DevTools
obsidian devtools # Toggle Electron devtools
# Console & Errors (requires dev:debug on)
obsidian dev:debug on # Attach CDP debugger (required for console)
obsidian dev:debug off # Detach debugger
obsidian dev:console # Show captured console messages
obsidian dev:console limit=10 # Last 10 messages
obsidian dev:console level=error # Filter by level (log|warn|error|info|debug)
obsidian dev:console clear # Clear captured messages
obsidian dev:errors # Show captured JS errors
obsidian dev:errors clear # Clear errors
# DOM inspection
obsidian dev:dom selector=".workspace" # Query DOM elements
obsidian dev:dom selector=".nav-file" total # Count matching elements
obsidian dev:dom selector=".nav-file" text # Get text content
obsidian dev:dom selector=".nav-file" inner # Get innerHTML
obsidian dev:dom selector=".nav-file" all # All matches
obsidian dev:dom selector="h1" attr=class # Get attribute
obsidian dev:dom selector="h1" css=color # Get CSS property
# CSS inspection
obsidian dev:css selector=".workspace" # Inspect CSS with source locations
obsidian dev:css selector=".workspace" prop=background # Specific property
# Chrome DevTools Protocol
obsidian dev:cdp method="Page.getLayoutMetrics" # Raw CDP command
obsidian dev:cdp method="Runtime.evaluate" params='{"expression":"1+1"}'
# Mobile emulation
obsidian dev:mobile on # Enable mobile emulation
obsidian dev:mobile off # Disable mobile emulation
Multi-Vault
obsidian vaults # List known vaults
obsidian vaults verbose # With paths
obsidian vaults total # Count of vaults
obsidian vault=Notes daily # Target specific vault
obsidian vault=Notes search query="test" # Search in specific vault
Parameter Syntax
param=valuefor parameters (quote spaces:content="Hello world")- Bare words for flags:
obsidian tasks daily todo verbose - Multiline: use
\nfor newline,\tfor tab file=<name>resolves like wikilinks (name only, no path/extension needed)path=<path>requires exact path from vault rootvault=<name>must be the FIRST parameter to target a specific vault
Targeting Vaults
- If CWD is inside a vault, that vault is used
- Otherwise, the active vault is used
- Use
vault=<name>as FIRST parameter to target a specific vault
Troubleshooting
- "Cannot connect": Ensure Obsidian is running and CLI is enabled in Settings > General.
- "Command not found": Ensure the
obsidianbinary is in your PATH. - Linux IPC issues: If running headless or as a service, ensure the IPC socket is accessible (no
PrivateTmp, correct user context). - Electron flag conflicts (Linux): Use a wrapper script that omits electron-flags.conf for CLI invocations.
Notes
- CLI connects to running Obsidian via IPC singleton lock
- For non-interactive use (scripts/cron), ensure Obsidian is running first
moverequires the full target path including.mdextensionfolderscan be slow on large vaults (19k+ files)dev:consolerequiresdev:debug onto be run first