Snipsy - markdown-aware text snippets

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Plugin/Theme Disclaimer

Is this project open source? Yes
Is this project completely free? Yes
Is this project vibe-coded beyond the author’s ability to comprehend how it works? No
Community Directory: link

MIT licensed, 242 tests, ~90% coverage.

Snipsy - markdown-aware text snippets for Obsidian

Snipsy is hotstrings for Obsidian: you type :todo , you get - [ ] .
No scripting, no hotkey to invoke, no firing inside fenced code blocks.

Typing :todo expands inline into a Markdown task checkbox

Why I built it

I kept retyping the same chunks of Markdown - task checkboxes, callouts, table skeletons. The existing text expanders either leaned on JavaScript templating, or weren’t Markdown-aware - they’d happily expand a trigger inside a fenced code block and quietly break the example you were writing.

So Snipsy does one thing: simple trigger-to-text expansion that knows where it is. It won’t fire inside fenced code blocks, inline code, or frontmatter, so it doesn’t break technical notes.

To be clear about scope: Snipsy is not trying to compete with Templater. Templater is a powerful tool and I have a lot of respect for it - but it’s a different thing, built for dynamic, scripted templates. Snipsy is the simple end of the spectrum: hotstrings, ready-made packs, no scripting. If you need logic and JavaScript, use Templater. If you want fast inline shortcuts with zero setup, that’s where Snipsy fits.

I wrote up the whole development story - shipping to the community catalog, the six-month review queue, what I’d do differently - in a separate article: https://dev.to/dimagious/life-after-the-merge-why-publishing-an-obsidian-plugin-is-just-the-beginning-1pga

Key features

  • Hotstrings - type a trigger, it expands inline as you type. No picker, no hotkey to invoke.
  • Markdown-aware - never expands inside fenced code blocks, inline code, or frontmatter.
  • Starter packs - curated snippet packs for common scenarios, installable in one click.
  • Community packs - packs are plain YAML files; anyone can contribute one via a pull request, no marketplace, no review queue.
  • Espanso-compatible - import existing Espanso package.yml files.
  • Import preview - before a pack touches your settings, Snipsy shows a diff: added rows, conflicting triggers highlighted, an explicit prompt per collision.

Snipsy community packs browser

How to install

Snipsy is in the official Community Plugins catalog - install it in one click from Settings → Community plugins → Browse, search for “Snipsy”.

Links

  • Community directory: https://community.obsidian.md/plugins/snipsidian
  • GitHub: https://github.com/Dimagious/snipsidian

If you try it out - I’d love to know which snippet packs you’re missing from the starter set. If there’s demand for a pack, I’ll build it. Bug reports and feature requests are welcome too, via the built-in Feedback tab or a GitHub issue.