Obsidian Note Type

Features

• Adds a Note Type dropdown in the Properties editor to change the current note's type.
• Switching a note type populates properties and content from a template (supports built-in syntax and Templater).
• Default note type: automatically apply a note type to new files.

This plugin is heavily inspired by the latest update of Octarine (v0.42). Essentially, it just changes the Templater/QuickAdd template-filling workflow (Run command -> Choose template) into a dropdown-based switcher, but in my personal opinion, it greatly improves the user experience. Huge thanks to Octarine for the idea!

Getting Started

1. Install the plugin.
2. Add your Note Types (see configuration details below).
3. Open any note — use the dropdown at the top of the Properties editor to switch note types.

How It Works

The plugin does not introduce new note syntax, just binds a configurable property key (default: noteType) to represent the note type. A dropdown is displayed in the Properties editor listing all predefined note types. When a type is selected, the corresponding template is formatted and applied, both properties (frontmatter) and body content are populated.

Configuration

Base Settings

Setting	Description
Property key	The frontmatter property key used to identify the note type (default: noteType).
Hide note type property	When enabled, the raw property input is hidden — only the styled dropdown is shown.

Note Types

Define your note types here. Each note type has the following options:

Field	Description
Key	Unique identifier written to the configured property key.
Name	Display name shown in the dropdown.
Icon	Icon from Lucide displayed alongside the name.
Color	Color applied to the icon and name in the dropdown.
Template	Path to the template file used when this note type is selected.
Formatter	The engine used to process the template (see below).

Formatters

Default (Built-in)

Uses {{ variable }} or {{ date:format }} syntax with variable. The following variables are available:

• now / date: Alias for moment().format(). see: https://momentjs.com/docs

  {{ now }} // default: YYYY-MM-DD hh:mm:ss
  {{ now:YYYY-MM-DD }}
  

• ctime / mtime: create time / modify time of current note

  {{ ctime }} // default: YYYY-MM-DD hh:mm:ss
  {{ mtime:YYYY-MM-DD }}
  

• name / ext / fullname: name of current note.

  {{ fullname }} // foo.md
  {{ name }} // name
  {{ ext }} // md
  

Templater

More complex templates can be implemented using the Templater plugin, see: Templater document

Overwrite Behavior

When a note already has content, you can control how templates are applied. If Show conflict modal is enabled, you will be prompted to choose the behavior each time a conflict occurs. Otherwise, the default settings are used.

Property Behavior

Option	Description
Replace	Replace all properties with the template's properties.
Keep	Keep existing properties, skip conflicting ones from the template.
Overwrite	Keep existing properties, but overwrite those that conflict with the template.

Content Behavior

Option	Description
Replace	Replace with the template's content.
Keep	Preserve the existing note content (do not replace).

Default Note Type

Setting	Description
Enable default note type	When a file without a note type is opened, automatically assign the default note type and apply its template.
Default note type	The note type to use as the default.
Empty note only	Only apply the note type to empty files.