Make Obsidian Look & Function Like Apple Notes

[peeragetalkers]

As a convert from Apple Notes, I found Obsidian to be quite minimal compared to what I’m used to. Below is a table of workarounds I’ve discovered that aim to bridge that gap.

While the list isn’t exhaustive and some solutions may work better than others, this can help Apple Notes users feel more at home in Obsidian.

If any of these features resonate with you, please consider supporting the linked feature requests by hearting the respective post and sharing your use case in the comments.

If you know of other alternatives or have additional features to suggest, please share them in the comments.

Themes

Cupertino

GitHub - aaaaalexis/obsidian-cupertino: A native look and feel Obsidian theme designed for a clean, focused, and mobile-friendly writing experience.

Baseline

GitHub - aaaaalexis/obsidian-baseline: Baseline sets a new standard for your Obsidian vault experience.

Cupertino style preset:

macOS Tahoe style preset:

Velocity

GitHub - Gonzalo-D-Sales/obsidian-velocity: A radically modern theme for Obsidian.

Minimal

Home - Minimal Documentation

macOS configuration:

Things 3

GitHub - MrParalloid/obsidian-things: Obsidian Things 3 Theme

Features

I put a next to what I actually use. (But this isn’t to say that other entries aren’t worth taking a look at.)

Feature	Workaround(s)	Request
Shortcuts.app support	• Obsidian URI • Advanced URI • Actions for Obsidian app (freemium) • Lumberjack • Apple Shortcuts - Share your ideas!	-
Auto delete trashed items after 30 days	[macOS] Set up with Hazel (paid)	-
Click image to enlarge	• Image toolkit • CSS snippet (also comes with Minimal theme)	Enlarge image
Display note count next to folder name	• File Explorer Note Count • Novel word count • File Tree Alternative • FolderFile Splitter • Notebook Navigator	Show Folder Note Count in File Explorer
[iOS/ipadOS] Long press app icon to select quick action	Can create home screen shortcuts with: • Obsidian URI • Lumberjack	[Feature] App shortcuts/3D touch
Manage trash in app	• Trash explorer • Obsidian Sync (paid) allows to view & restore deleted files	Manage Obsidian Trash from within the app
File explorer note previews	• File Preview • MAKE.MD > Spaces > Click vault name > Open Overview • Featured Image • Notebook Navigator	Note list view with fragments of note body
Search in attachments. Image OCR	Omnisearch (with extensions)	OCR images/screenshots to make them searchable
Two pane file explorer	• FolderFile Splitter • Notebook Navigator • MAKE.MD > Spaces > Click vault name > Open Overview • File Tree Alternative > Settings > Evernote View > Horizontal	Option to separate folders from notes in file explorer
Show date created and/or modified in-note	• Template for Templater • Linter YAML rule • Update frontmatter modified date • Last Modified Timestamp in Status Bar • Update Time • Update time on edit • Front Matter Timestamps • Novel word count • Native file explorer: hover over note (desktop), long tap on note (mobile)	[Mobile] Show date created & modified for notes
View notes in grid layout	See list of plugins here.	Grid Layout/Masonry Gallery
Rename & delete tags	• Tag Wrangler • Notebook Navigator	Tag Mass Action
Create URL previews	• Auto Card Link • Nifty Links • Rich Links • Link Embed	Embed URL Link to show Preview Boxes
Copy image from note	• Image toolkit • Image Context Menus	Copy image from a note
Note first line = note title	• First Line is Title • Auto Filename	• Use H1 or YAML property “title” instead of filename • Note title automatically generated from first words of the Note
“All Notes” folder. View all recently created/modified notes	• Bookmark path:/ search query - add to ribbon with Hotkeys for Bookmarks & Commander • Recent Files • Chronology • Bases • Notebook Navigator	Flat view - Folder toggle
Trash current file button in note	Add with Commander	-
Change sort order per folder	• Custom File Explorer sorting • Notebook Navigator	Per folder sort settings
Change text case	• Text Format • Templates for Templater	Uppercase lowercase
Cursor in note body on creation	• Template for Templater • First Line is Title	-
More highlight colors	• Template for Templater • Highlightr • Editing Toolbar	Better text marking functionality - #9 by zettelstraum
Underline text	• Bind template for Templater to hotkey. Add mobile toolbar button with Commander • Editing Toolbar • cMenu	Hotkey for underline toggle
Global search in PDF attachments	Omnisearch with Text Extractor	Global Search text in PDFs
Show note path in search	Add path:/./ to search query (can bookmark it & add to ribbon with Hotkeys for Bookmarks & Commander)	Show file path in search/backlinks (breadcrums)
Drawing tools	• Excalidraw • Tldraw	Canvas — Drawing and Pencil or Pen support
Auto sort checked items to bottom of list	Apple Notes Checkbox	Move completed tasks to list within note
Pin note to top of folder	Notebook Navigator	• Pinning a page in file explorer • File Explorer Custom Sort
Click in note in Reading view to start editing	Locked Notes	• Fully visual editor mode • Click within Reader to edit at location
Select and manipulate multiple files in Search	Notebook Navigator	Select and manipulate multiple flies in search pane like file explorer
Arrange folders in custom order	Notebook Navigator	File Explorer Custom Sort
Put []# ^|\/: in title	• First Line is Title • Filename Sanitizer • Safe Filename Linter	Use H1 or YAML property "title" instead of or in addition to filename as display name

No satisfactory solution found yet

Feature	Request
Vault indexed by system search	Access Obsidian notes via Spotlight search
Easier access to vault search, tag pane on mobile	Faster Switching between Files, Search, Tags, Bookmarks in sidebar on mobile
[macOS] move note to folder by drag and dropping tab	Move file via drag and drop tab to folder

Last updated 2025-12-02.

[liam]

Wow, this is a great list!

[iamrobmat]

Also I would like to add multiple tag browsing as in apple notes. Currently there’s no easy option to choose two tags. In Apple Notes you just select two buttons.

[peeragetalkers]

There’s a way, at least on desktop. If the search view and the tags view are open in different sidebars, selecting tags while holding down Ctrl/Cmd adds each one to the search field, allowing you to search for multiple tags. Unfortunately, this doesn’t work if using the Tag Wrangler plugin. Related issue: Feature request: Select multiple tags for search · Issue #119 · pjeby/tag-wrangler · GitHub

[czottmann]

Hey, thanks for including Actions For Obsidian in there, appreciate it! Just letting you know that its entirely FOSS and OS-agnostic companion plugin Actions URI can also be used standalone – it adds a lot of functionality to Obsidian’s URI scheme.