Embed Metadata

Render frontmatter metadata (Obsidian Properties) inside your notes with a lightweight inline [%key] or {{key}} syntax.

The intent for developing this is as a lightweight replacement for Dataviews =this.key embedded metadata rendering, specifically if Obsidian Bases cover most everything else.

Demo

Installation

This plugin is not yet added to the Community List, pending approval. You can either manually install it by creating a folder within your .obsidian/plugin/ folder called embed-metadata and and download a release within, resulting in a main.js, style.css and manifest.js.

The easiest way would be by adding this repository to BRAT, a plugin installer from the community which you can install via Obsidian.

Usage

Add frontmatter (Properties) to a note:

---
title: Stay out of the sun!
tags:
  - Alexander
  - Cynic
author_name: Diogenes
---

Then reference it in the note body:

What do you think of [%title] as book title?
We recommend using those tags: [%tags]
The Author called [%author_name] is really funny!

The syntax markers are replaced in reading view and live preview. Source mode keeps the syntax as plain text. If a key is missing, the marker is left unchanged. Inline code and code blocks are ignored in preview. If a key exists but has no value, the marker renders empty.

Built-in keys (when enabled):

• filename (full file name with extension)
• basename (file name without extension)
• extension
• path (vault-relative path)
• folder (parent folder path)
• link (wikilink to the file)
• ctime (created time)
• mtime (last modified time)

Settings

Use Settings → Community plugins → Embed Metadata to choose the syntax format: [%key] or {{key}}.

• Optional case-insensitive key lookup
• Optional built-in keys (enabled by default; frontmatter keys take priority)
• Optional outline rendering (experimental; replaces markers in the Outline sidebar)

Visual look options apply in Live Preview:

• Bold / Italic / Underline toggles
• Optional underline color override (defaults to text color)
• Optional highlight with theme color or override
• Hover emphasis (subtle style shift on hover)

Note: Obsidian Properties do not support nested properties in Reading view or Live Preview. If you use nested YAML, use Source mode to view them, or flatten keys (for example, author_name).

Migration

You can migrate existing notes:

• Migrate from dataview converts dataviews backticked =this.key syntax to your selected format.
• Migrate to current syntax converts the other supported syntax formats to the selected one.

Each migration opens a review modal listing matching files with counts. Deselect any files you want to skip, then confirm the migration (it edits your files). Vault-wide Markdown file scanning is used only for these user-initiated migrations, not during normal rendering or autocomplete.

Autocomplete

Type the configured opener ([% or {{) to see a dropdown of frontmatter keys from the current file. Results are sorted alphabetically and update as you type.

Disclaimer

AI was used during the development of this project.