8 Factors for Effective Use of Obsidian Tags, Links, and Folders

Aesthetics, search, graph view, plugin usage, flexibility, and future-proofing preferences will impact how you use Obsidian.md tags, links, and folders.

Obsidian Tags Links and Folder | Image created using Canva by Author

How to use (or not) Tags, Links, and Folders— the perennial debate. There are a myriad of ways to use these organizational tools, and just as many articles and videos on the topic, many of which are linked at the end of this article.

For example, here is some of the advice from very experienced Obsidian users. You’ll quickly note that what works for one person — doesn’t work for another:

• Use only tags
• Use tags for people, places, and things
• Use tags of categories of items such as books, videos
• Use only links
• Start with tags, then turn them into links as the importance of the note increases
• Use Tags for less important things “Books-mentioned-that-might be-interesting-to-someday-read” tag compared to “Books- recommended-by-people-I -respect and definitely want to read” link.

Who’s right?

They all are! Tags, links, and folders (TLFs for short) are like clothes. Everyone’s preference for what they wear is different. Color, style, length, material, retro…