Obsidian Dataview is a query language and indexing plugin for Obsidian that lets you treat your vault of Markdown files as a queryable database.
The plugin solves the problem of extracting and organizing information scattered across Markdown documents. It indexes data from YAML frontmatter and inline fields (written as Key:: Value syntax within document text), then exposes that data through multiple query interfaces. Users can filter, sort, group, and transform their notes without leaving Obsidian, turning unstructured Markdown into structured information.
Dataview suits anyone maintaining a vault with consistent metadata patterns—personal wikis, book or game libraries, project trackers, or task management systems. The plugin offers four query modes at increasing levels of power: a SQL-like pipeline query language for simple cases, inline expressions embedded directly in Markdown, a JavaScript API for complex operations, and inline JavaScript expressions. If you already annotate your notes with metadata and want to aggregate or display that data dynamically, this tool eliminates the need for external databases or spreadsheets. The JavaScript API is particularly valuable if you know the language, as it provides capabilities beyond the declarative query language.
Development on the project shows consistent engagement with bug fixes and feature additions appearing regularly. The maintainer responds to issues and pull requests, indicating active stewardship of the codebase. Documentation is comprehensive, with a full reference site and examples covering common use cases. The project maintains backward compatibility while evolving its query capabilities and performance.
