Bases Note Templates
theluckystrike1 downloadsCreates new notes from a base with a template file, the base's filter values as properties, a folder and a name pattern.
- Overview
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Bases Note Templates makes the New button of a base start each note from a template. You pick a template note for the base. When you press New, the new note gets the properties and the text of that template, plus the values of the base filters, in the right folder, with a file name from a pattern.
A base filtered by status == "todo" and project == "[[Apollo]]" then gives notes like 2026-10-10 Apollo.md, with status: todo, project: "[[Apollo]]" and the headings of your task template already in place. You no longer make a note, delete it, and insert a template by hand.
One template for each base, the filter values, the folder and the name pattern are free. Pro adds more templates with a list to pick from, a template for each view, Templater, and Duplicate as new note. Pro costs $5 a month, or $15 once, through GitHub Sponsors. When you have paid $15 in total, Pro stays on.
Features
A template for the New button
Press New in a base as usual. The app makes the note and writes the filter values. Then the plugin adds the template: its properties go in first, and its text becomes the body of the note. The app's popover shows the result, so you can type right away.
The plugin waits for the app to finish its own step, then changes the note once. If the base has no setup, the New button works exactly as before.
Filter values as properties
A value from the filters wins over the same property in the template. The template above says status: draft, but the view shows only status == "todo", so the new note gets todo and shows up in the view. An empty value never hides a template value: the app adds an empty property for each column, and the template's priority: normal stays.
The plugin reads the same filter rules as the app: ==, >= and <=, contains, containsAll and containsAny, file.hasTag, file.inFolder, file.folder ==, file.hasProperty, and !prop.isEmpty(). Values can be text, numbers, true or false, lists, link(), date() and today(). A test in the app compares the result with what the New button of Obsidian writes for the same base.
Folder and name pattern
Run "Set up templates for this base" from an open base. Choose the template, a folder and a name pattern. With no folder, notes go to the folder in the filters, such as file.inFolder("Tasks"), else to your default location for new notes.
The name pattern can use {{date}}, {{date:YYYY-MM-DD}}, {{time}}, {{base}}, {{view}}, {{template}} and any filter property, such as {{project}}. A link loses its brackets, so [[Apollo]] gives Apollo. Characters that a file name cannot hold are removed. If the name is taken, the plugin adds a number, like the app does.
Templates can use the variables of the core Templates plugin: {{title}}, {{date}} and {{time}}, with or without a format. They work in the text and in property values.
Command and header button
"New note from template in this base" makes the same note without the New button and opens it in a new tab. A base with a setup also gets a button in its tab header that does the same. Both use only the public view interface of Obsidian.
More templates with a list to pick from (Pro)
Add up to 10 templates to a base. When you press New, run the command or select the header button, a list asks which template to use. Press Escape and the note stays as the app made it.
A template for each view (Pro)
Give a view its own template, for example a Bug template for the Bugs view of a Tasks base. In that view, the view template comes first in the list.
Duplicate as new note (Pro)
Right-click a row of a base and select "Duplicate as new note", or run "Duplicate the current note as a new note". The plugin copies the note, with all its properties, to a new note next to it and opens it. The copy shows up in the same base.
With Pro, the plugin can also hand a new note to Templater. If the note still has Templater tags after Templater had its own chance, the plugin asks Templater to fill them in.
Install
When Bases Note Templates is listed in the community directory, open Settings, then Community plugins, then Browse, and search for "Bases Note Templates". Select Install, then Enable.
To install by hand, download main.js, manifest.json and styles.css from the latest release. Put the three files in <vault>/.obsidian/plugins/bases-note-templates/. Reload the list of community plugins, then turn on Bases Note Templates.
Bases Note Templates needs Obsidian 1.13.4 or newer and the Bases core plugin. It was tested on desktop with Obsidian 1.13.4 and 1.14.4.
Usage
- Make a template note, for example
Templates/Task.md, with the properties and headings that each new note needs. - Open a base file and run "Set up templates for this base".
- Choose the template. Add a folder and a name pattern if you want them. Select Save.
- Press New in the base, or run "New note from template in this base".
- For Pro, sponsor on GitHub, then open the settings and select "Sign in with GitHub".
The plugin sets no default hotkeys. You can give any command a hotkey in Settings, then Hotkeys.
Pro
Pro unlocks more templates for each base with a list, view templates, Templater, and Duplicate as new note. To get it:
- Sponsor theluckystrike on GitHub Sponsors with $5 a month, or $15 once. When you have paid $15 in total, Pro stays on.
- In Obsidian, open the settings of Bases Note Templates and select "Sign in with GitHub".
- The plugin copies a code and opens github.com/login/device. Paste the code there and approve.
Without Pro, a base with more templates uses its first template, and view templates wait. Your setup stays saved and comes back when Pro is on.
Settings
| Setting | Default | Allowed values |
|---|---|---|
| Use templates with the New button | On | On or off |
| Date format | YYYY-MM-DD | moment.js tokens |
| Time format | HH:mm | moment.js tokens |
| Run Templater on new notes | On | On or off (Pro) |
"Bases with templates" lists each base that has a setup. Delete an entry to remove its setup. The plugin keeps the setup when you rename or move the base or a template.
FAQ
Does the app not do this already?
Partly. The New button writes the filter values, and it puts the note in the folder of file.inFolder(). Obsidian 1.13.4 and 1.14.4 also read a hidden newItemTemplate key in a base file, but it copies only the template's properties, not its text, and then the filter values are lost. There is no view template, no name pattern and no setting for it.
Does it change my base files?
No. The setup lives in the plugin's data.json. Base files stay as they are.
Why is the New button of an embedded base not changed?
When a base is embedded in a note, the active tab is the note, so the plugin cannot tell which base made the new note. It leaves that note alone. Open the base file and use New or the command there.
What if another plugin makes an empty note while a base is open?
The plugin changes a new note only when it is empty and sits in the folder where the New button of that base puts notes. Other notes are left alone.
Are formulas in filters supported?
Filters that compare with a formula or with this are skipped when the command makes a note. The New button of the app still writes them.
Payment, account and network
The core features are free and stay free. Pro features need a GitHub Sponsors sponsorship of theluckystrike: $5 a month or more, or $15 once. When you have paid $15 in total, Pro stays on. Your notes stay readable and editable with or without Pro.
GitHub handles the payment. Sponsor at https://github.com/sponsors/theluckystrike. You need no account for the free features. Pro needs the GitHub account that sponsors.
Until you select "Sign in with GitHub" in the settings, Bases Note Templates makes no network requests. Sign in uses the GitHub device flow. Bases Note Templates sends its public client ID and the scope read:user to https://github.com/login/device/code and shows you a code. While you enter the code at https://github.com/login/device, it asks https://github.com/login/oauth/access_token every few seconds whether sign in is done. The scope read:user is read-only access to your profile, which GitHub needs to show the sponsorship tier. It gives no access to repositories and no write access.
After sign in, Bases Note Templates sends one query to https://api.github.com/graphql: does the signed-in account sponsor theluckystrike, at which tier, and how much it has paid theluckystrike in total. It asks again at most once every 7 days, or when you select Refresh. It sends no note content, file names or other vault data, and it has no telemetry.
Pro keeps working for 14 days without a successful check. The GitHub token stays in the secret storage of Obsidian on this device. It is not written to data.json or other vault files, so it does not sync or reach a git repository. The local storage of this device keeps your GitHub login, the tier and the time of the last check. Sign out deletes the token. You can also revoke the access in your GitHub settings, under Applications.
Support
Report a bug or ask for a feature in the issue tracker of this repository. Please include your Obsidian version, the filters of the base and the template that shows the problem.
To build from source:
npm ci
npm run build
npm test
The tests check golden cases for the filter rules, the merge and the name patterns. End-to-end tests press New in real Obsidian 1.13.4 and 1.14.4 and compare the result with the app's own filter values.
License
MIT