Foldstate

An Obsidian plugin that persists heading fold state across devices and sessions by embedding fold markers directly in your markdown files.

The problem

Obsidian stores fold state in localStorage, which means it's lost when you switch devices, reinstall the app, or use any sync tool (iCloud, Git, Obsidian Sync, etc.). Every time you open a note on a new device, all your headings are expanded.

How it works

When you fold a heading, the plugin appends %% fold %% to that line:

## My Section %% fold %%

Content hidden when folded...

## Another Section

Content always visible...

%% %% is Obsidian's native comment syntax — the marker is invisible in Reading view and syncs with your file via any tool you already use.

When you open a note, the plugin reads the markers and restores the fold state automatically. No manual steps, no separate state files.

Features

• Saves fold state on every fold/unfold — no manual save needed
• Restores state when you open a file
• Works with any sync tool (iCloud, Git, Dropbox, Obsidian Sync, etc.)
• Markers are hidden in Reading view
• No settings to configure

Installation

Manual installation

1. Download main.js and manifest.json from the latest release
2. Create a folder at <your vault>/.obsidian/plugins/obsidian-foldstate/
3. Copy both files into that folder
4. Open Obsidian → Settings → Community plugins and enable Foldstate

Requirements

• Obsidian 1.4.0 or later
• Live Preview or Source mode (fold state is not tracked in Reading view)

The marker format

The marker %% fold %% is appended to heading lines:

The marker only appears on headings that are currently folded. Unfolding a heading removes it automatically.

Development

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Build in watch mode
npm run dev

# Production build
npm run build

# Run tests
npm test

To test locally, copy main.js and manifest.json to .obsidian/plugins/obsidian-foldstate/ in a test vault and enable the plugin.

Contributing

Bug reports and pull requests welcome at github.com/samhopwell/obsidian-foldstate.