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Obsidian Bases can turn project notes and their existing properties into a board, then embed that board inside a project note. If your workflow is lightweight and your project information already lives in Obsidian, you can update a card’s status without maintaining a duplicate board in another app. Bases is a view and editing layer over your vault files—not a promise to replace every feature of a dedicated task manager.
What Obsidian Bases does for project tracking
Bases is an Obsidian core plugin for creating database-like views of files and their properties. The underlying information remains in local Markdown files and their properties; the view configuration is kept in a .base file or in a base code block inside a Markdown file. You can display, edit, sort, and filter those files without moving project data into a separate task database. Obsidian’s Bases introduction explains the model.
For a simple workflow, give each project or task its own note and add properties such as status, due, and priority. A Kanban view grouped by status can then show those notes as cards in status columns. Change a card’s column and the note’s status property changes too, so the board and note do not need separate status updates.
Create a project board from note properties
1. Give project notes consistent properties
Start with one note per item you want on the board. Add a status property and use the same values consistently—for example, Next, In progress, and Done. Add due or priority only if you expect to use those fields. Notes without a status value will appear in a None column when the board is grouped by status.
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2. Create a base
Obsidian documents three ways to start a base: use the command palette, create one from the file explorer, or use the ribbon action. Configure which files the base should include, then choose the properties you want available in its view. The exact controls can vary with the installed Obsidian version; see Obsidian’s create-a-base instructions for the current workflow.
3. Add a Kanban view grouped by status
A base can contain multiple views, each with its own layout and configuration. Select the Kanban layout, then group the view by the editable status property. The property’s values become the columns. Choose which properties appear on each card so the board surfaces useful context—perhaps due date or priority—without overcrowding it.
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When you move a Markdown note card to another column, Obsidian changes the property value that determines its column. You can also create a note from a column. These interactions make the board an editing surface for the note data rather than an independent copy. Obsidian describes the behavior and its constraints in the Kanban view documentation.
4. Filter and sort for the work at hand
Use filters to limit the board to a project, active work, or another relevant subset. A filter can apply across every view in the base or only to the active view. Views can also be sorted and grouped by properties; current documentation says grouping supports one property. The view menu includes result limits, copying, and CSV export. For alternate ways to scan the same files, Bases offers table, list, cards, and map layouts as well as Kanban; some layouts may require an early-access version. See Obsidian’s views guide.
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Keep the board beside the project note
Once the base is saved, embed it in the project note where you want to see the board. Obsidian supports embedding a base file with an embed link, or placing the view configuration directly in a Markdown code block:
![[Projects.base]]embeds the saved base file.- A
basecode block embeds a base view directly in the note.
The saved-base approach is useful when you want to reuse the same board elsewhere; an embedded code block keeps its configuration in the note itself. Obsidian’s base creation guide covers both embedding options. The practical benefit is proximity: while reading a project note, you can see the related board without switching to a separately maintained task view.
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When formulas help—and when to skip them
Begin with editable properties such as status and due. Add a formula only when a calculated value would make the view meaningfully easier to use. Bases formulas can work with dates, text, numbers, conditional logic, lists, note properties, file properties, and other formulas. Their results can appear in views and can be used for filtering or sorting.
Obsidian’s formula examples include calculating a deadline two weeks after a start date, indicating whether an item is overdue based on its due date and completion status, and calculating a priority score from impact, urgency, and effort. These are options for derived information—not prerequisites for a useful project board.
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Know the Kanban and version limits
- Grouping by a formula or file property limits editing. In that case, cards and columns cannot be moved, and you cannot create notes from those columns. Use an editable note property such as
statuswhen you want to manage work by moving cards. - Kanban availability is version-sensitive. The official Kanban help page currently labels the layout early access and says it requires Obsidian 1.14 or later. Check your installed version and the current documentation before relying on that requirement, because app releases can change.
- Keep synced devices aligned when Bases formats change. Obsidian’s June 5, 2025 changelog for version 1.9.2 documented breaking changes to Bases formula syntax and file format. It advised people syncing devices to upgrade all devices at the same time to avoid issues when base files use different syntax. Consult the version 1.9.2 changelog and current release guidance before updating a multi-device setup.
Decide whether Bases fits your workflow
Bases is a natural fit when your project details already live in Obsidian, you are comfortable updating note properties, and its layouts, filters, and embedding meet your needs. It can reduce duplicated updates by making a board another view of the notes you already maintain.
A separate task app may suit you better if tasks need to exist independently of notes, or if your workflow depends on capabilities beyond the views and property editing Bases documents. Compare the actual tasks you need to track and the features you rely on; the available documentation does not establish a feature-for-feature equivalence with any particular task manager.
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