Creating links within notes in Obsidian is a fundamental way to connect your ideas and build a personal knowledge base. You can achieve this primarily using Obsidian's intuitive WikiLinks [[ ]] for internal connections and standard Markdown [ ]( ) for external web pages or files.
Mastering Internal Links with WikiLinks
Obsidian's powerful internal linking system, known as WikiLinks, allows you to effortlessly connect to other notes, specific headings, or even individual blocks of text within your vault.
1. Linking to Other Notes
The most common way to create an internal link is to simply enclose the name of another note in double square brackets.
- Syntax:
[[Note Name]] - Example:
[[Daily Journal 2023-10-27]] - How to create: Begin typing
[[, and Obsidian will automatically suggest existing notes that match your input, making it easy to find and link to the desired note.
2. Linking to Headings Within the Same Note
You can create direct links to specific sections (headings) within the note you are currently editing. This is incredibly useful for navigating long notes.
- Syntax:
[[#Heading Text]] - How to create: Type
[[#(double square brackets followed by a hash). Obsidian will then present a dynamic list of all available headings within the current note. Select the desired heading from this list to automatically complete the link. - Example:
[[#Key Takeaways]](This would link to a heading titled "Key Takeaways" within the same note).
3. Linking to Headings in Other Notes
To connect to a heading that resides in a different note, you combine the note's name with the heading's text, separated by a hash symbol (#).
- Syntax:
[[Note Name#Heading Text]] - How to create: Start with
[[, type the note name, then add#. Obsidian will suggest headings from that specific note. - Example:
[[Project Alpha Notes#Next Steps]](This links to the "Next Steps" heading in a note named "Project Alpha Notes").
4. Linking to Specific Blocks of Text (Block References)
For even more granular linking, Obsidian allows you to link directly to a specific paragraph, list item, or code block. These are called block references.
- Syntax:
[[Note Name#^block-id]] - How to create:
- Create a block ID at the end of the target block of text by adding
^block-id(e.g.,This is an important paragraph. ^important-para). - Then, in your linking note, type
[[Note Name#^and Obsidian will suggest existing block IDs from that note.
- Create a block ID at the end of the target block of text by adding
- Example:
[[Research Notes#^key-finding]]
5. Customizing Link Display Text (Aliases)
You can change how a link appears in your note by adding a pipe | followed by your desired display text. This creates an "alias" for the link, making your notes more readable.
- Syntax:
[[Link Destination|Display Text]] - Examples:
- To an entire note:
[[My Project Plan|View the Full Project Plan]] - To a heading:
[[Meeting Notes 2023-10-26#Action Items|Today's Actions]]
- To an entire note:
Further Reading on Internal Links
For more detailed information on Obsidian's internal linking features, refer to the official Obsidian Help documentation on Internal Links.
Embedding Content
Beyond just linking, Obsidian also allows you to embed entire notes, headings, or blocks directly into another note using an exclamation mark !. This means the content itself is displayed, not just a clickable link.
- Syntax:
![[Note Name]]or![[Note Name#Heading]]or![[Note Name#^block-id]] - Benefit: This displays the content of the linked note/section directly within the current note, rather than just providing a clickable link, making it useful for creating dashboards or composite documents.
Linking to External Webpages and Resources
For external websites or files outside your Obsidian vault, you use standard Markdown link syntax.
- Syntax:
[Display Text](URL) - Example:
[Visit the Obsidian Forum](https://forum.obsidian.md/) - Practical Insight: These links open in your default web browser when clicked.
Quick Reference: Obsidian Link Types
| Link Type | Syntax | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Internal Links (WikiLinks) | ||
| To Another Note | [[Note Name]] |
Connects to an existing note within your vault. |
| To Heading (Same Note) | [[#Heading Text]] |
Jumps to a specific heading in the current note. |
| To Heading (Other Note) | [[Note Name#Heading Text]] |
Links to a specific heading within another note. |
| To Specific Block (Block Ref) | [[Note Name#^block-id]] |
Points to a paragraph, list item, or code block. |
| Custom Display Text | ||
| Alias for Any Link | [[Link Destination|Display Text]] |
Changes the visible text of any internal link. |
| External Links (Markdown) | ||
| To Webpage/External File | [Display Text](URL) |
Connects to external websites or files outside the Obsidian vault. |
| Embedding | ||
| Embed Content | ![[Note Name]] or ![[...#...]] |
Displays the content of the linked note, heading, or block directly. |
Conclusion
Obsidian's flexible linking capabilities empower you to build a dense, interconnected web of knowledge, transforming individual notes into a dynamic, navigable personal wiki. By mastering WikiLinks and standard Markdown links, you can efficiently organize, retrieve, and contextualize your information.
