Canvas in Obsidian

Learn how to use the Canvas feature for visual note-taking and planning.

Canvas in Obsidian

Obsidian’s Canvas feature is a powerful visual workspace where you can arrange notes, images, cards, and even web links on a freeform board. It’s perfect for brainstorming, project planning, mind mapping, and visualizing connections between your ideas.

What is Canvas?

Canvas Overview

Canvas lets you create a board where you can:

• Place and move notes, images, and cards anywhere
• Draw connections between items
• Zoom in and out for big-picture or detailed views
• Organize your thoughts visually, beyond linear notes

Creating a New Canvas

1. Open the command palette (Ctrl+P or Cmd+P) and search for “Create new canvas”.
2. Or, click the plus icon in the sidebar and select Canvas.
3. Give your canvas a name and start adding content.

Adding Content to Your Canvas

• Notes: Drag existing notes onto the canvas, or create new ones directly.
• Cards: Add text cards for quick ideas or labels.
• Images: Drag and drop images from your computer or vault.
• Web Links: Paste URLs to add web cards.

Connecting and Arranging Items

• Drag items to arrange them however you like.
• Draw arrows or lines between cards and notes to show relationships.
• Group related items together for clarity.

Use Cases for Canvas

• Brainstorming sessions
• Project planning and roadmaps
• Mind mapping and idea organization
• Visualizing workflows or processes
• Creating dashboards or overviews

Tips

• Use color and grouping to organize your canvas visually.
• Zoom and pan to focus on different areas.
• Save multiple canvases for different projects or purposes.
• You can embed canvases within your notes for easy reference.

Canvas brings a new dimension to your note-taking in Obsidian—experiment with it to see how visual thinking can enhance your workflow!

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