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Notes in Obsidian are stored as plain text files using Markdown. Because your data lives in a standard format, it is durable, portable, and not locked into any proprietary system — your notes will outlive any app, including Obsidian itself.

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Create a new note

1

Open a new note

Press Ctrl+N (or Cmd+N on macOS). A new, untitled note opens in the editor.
2

Give it a name

Type a name for your note — for example, Obsidian — and press Enter.
3

Write something

Click in the body of the note and start writing. For example:
Obsidian is the private and flexible writing app that adapts to the way you think.
Obsidian saves your notes automatically as you type. There is no save button and no need to press Ctrl+S.

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Format text with Markdown

Obsidian uses Markdown syntax for formatting. You write plain text with lightweight symbols, and Obsidian renders them as formatted output. Here are the most common formatting options:
FormatSyntaxResult
Heading# Heading 1Large heading
Bold**bold text**bold text
Italic*italic text*italic text
Inline code`code`code
Link[label](url)Clickable link
Bullet list- itemList item
Try it: Paste the following at the top of your note to add a heading: 
# Sharpen your thinking.
The # symbol followed by a space turns a line into a heading. Use ## and ### for subheadings. To make any selected text bold, press Ctrl+B (Cmd+B on macOS).
For a complete reference of Markdown syntax supported in Obsidian, see Basic formatting syntax.

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Editor modes

Obsidian offers two editing modes, which you can switch between from the editor’s context menu or via Settings → Editor:

Live Preview

The default mode. Markdown is rendered inline as you type — you see formatted output without leaving the editor. Click any formatted element to edit the underlying Markdown.

Source mode

Shows the raw Markdown source at all times. Useful if you prefer to see every character explicitly, or if you’re troubleshooting formatting.

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Explore the sandbox vault

If you want to see examples of all the formatting Obsidian supports before writing your own notes, open the Sandbox vault from the vault switcher. It contains pre-built notes that demonstrate headings, lists, tables, callouts, embeds, and more.

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Next steps

Link notes

Connect notes together to build a network of ideas.

Basic formatting syntax

Explore the full Markdown syntax Obsidian supports.

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