Keybinding reference

Markdown text objects

Operate on Markdown structures with standard Vim operators (d, c, y, v).

| Keybinding | Description |
| ------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| i* / a* | Inside/around bold (**...**) or italic (*...*) |
| i_ / a_ | Inside/around italic (_..._) |
| i` / a` | Inside/around inline code |
| i$ / a$ | Inside/around math ($...$ or $$...$$), with smart disambiguation |
| i~ / a~ | Inside/around strikethrough (~~...~~) |
| i= / a= | Inside/around highlight (==...==) |
| il / al | Inside/around links ([[wikilink]] or [text](url)) |
| iC / aC | Inside/around fenced code blocks |
| iB / aB | Inside/around blockquotes (>) |
| io / ao | Inside/around callouts (> [!type]) |
| it / at | Inside/around HTML/XML tags |
| ir / ar | Inside/around table row (raw markdown only) |
| i\| / a\| | Inside/around table cell (between \| pipes) |
| iS / aS | Subword | camelCase/snake_case segment. Around includes trailing separator |
| in / an | Number | Numeric literal (sign + decimal). Around includes surrounding space |
| iq / aq | Any quote | Nearest "/'/` pair on same line |
| iD / aD | Double brackets | Wikilink [[...]] content. Handles nesting |
| gL | URL | Forward-seeking URL selection (https://...) |
| i, / a, | Argument | Comma-separated argument with nesting support |
| ii / ai | Indentation | Lines with same-or-greater indentation level; around includes parent + trailing blanks |

Structural navigation

Jump between document structures. Works with counts (e.g., 3]h jumps 3 headings) and operators (e.g., d]h deletes to the next heading).

Keybinding	Description
]h / [h	Next/previous heading (any level)
]1–]6 / [1–[6	Next/previous heading of specific level
]l / [l	Next/previous list item (same indent level)
]n / [n	Next/previous link
]b / [b	Next/previous open buffer (tab)

Subword motions

Key	Action	Notes
w	Next subword start	Requires enableSubwordMotions setting. Stops at camelCase/snake_case/kebab-case boundaries
b	Previous subword start	Same
e	End of current/next subword	Same
ge	End of previous subword	Same

Table navigation

Navigate Markdown table cells without leaving Vim mode.

Keybinding	Description
]| or ]c	Move to the next table cell
[| or [c	Move to the previous table cell
]r	Move to same column in next row
[r	Move to same column in previous row

Table text objects

Operate on table cells with standard Vim operators.

Keybinding	Description
i|	Inside table cell (content between pipes)
a|	Around table cell (content plus trailing pipe)

Table manipulation

Manage table structure using the <leader>t prefix.

Keybinding	Description
<leader>tm	Insert table
<leader>to	Add row below
<leader>tO	Add row above
<leader>tJ	Move row down
<leader>tK	Move row up
<leader>tdd	Delete row
<leader>tiL	Add column to the right
<leader>tiH	Add column to the left
<leader>tL	Move column right
<leader>tH	Move column left
<leader>tdc	Delete column
<leader>tr	Realign table columns

Embedded table navigation

Available when the table widget is set to “Embedded” and the cursor enters a table. These keybindings are active in the table navigation layer (before entering a cell).

Keybinding	Description
h / l	Move cell highlight left / right
j / k	Move cell highlight down / up
i / a / c / s / Enter	Enter cell editing
Escape	Exit table
o / O	Add row below / above
dd	Delete row
dc	Delete column
J / K	Move row down / up
H / L	Move column left / right
I / A	Add column left / right
=	Realign table
Tab / Shift-Tab	Next / previous cell (in cell editing)

Picker shortcuts

Open picker sources with the <leader>f prefix.

Keybinding	Description
<leader>ff	Find files
<leader>fg	Live grep (vault search)
<leader>fb	Switch buffers
<leader>fh	Search headings
<leader>fo	Document outline
<leader>fk	Backlinks
<leader>ft	Search tags
<leader>fr	Recent files
<leader>fm	Jump to mark
<leader>fR	Registers
<leader>fp	Resume last picker

Harpoon

Pin files to numbered slots for instant switching. See harpoon for details.

Keybinding	Description
<leader>ha	Pin current file
<leader>hr	Remove current file
<leader>ht	Toggle pin
<leader>hp	Open harpoon picker
<leader>1–<leader>9	Jump to slot 1–9
<leader>hn	Next pin
<leader>hN	Previous pin

Keyboard shortcuts inside picker

Key	Action
<C-n> / <C-p>	Navigate down/up
<C-j> / <C-k>	Navigate down/up
<Up> / <Down>	Navigate down/up
<Enter>	Select item
<Escape> / <C-c>	Close picker
<C-x>	Open in horizontal split
<C-v>	Open in vertical split
<C-t>	Open in new tab
<C-d> / <C-u>	Scroll preview down/up

Hard-wrap operators

Reformat paragraphs with Markdown-aware line wrapping.

Keybinding	Description
gqq / gwq	Reformat current line at textwidth (default 80)
gqj / gwj	Reformat current and next line
gqip / gwip	Reformat paragraph
Visual gq / gw	Reformat selected lines

Undo tree navigation

Key	Action
g-	Navigate to chronologically older undo state
g+	Navigate to chronologically newer undo state
:earlier N	Go back N changes
:later N	Go forward N changes
:earlier Ns/Nm/Nh/Nd	Go back by time
:earlier Nf	Go to Nth previous save point
:undolist	Show undo tree modal
:UndoTreeToggle	Toggle undo tree sidebar
:UndoTreeShow	Open undo tree sidebar
:UndoTreeHide	Close undo tree sidebar

Replace-with-register operator

Replace text covered by a motion with the contents of a register, discarding
the replaced text (not written back to any register). The register supplying the
replacement is preserved, so you can paste the same text repeatedly without
re-yanking.

Blockwise visual selections (<C-V>) are supported.

Keybinding	Description
gr{motion}	Replace {motion} text with unnamed register (")
grr	Replace current line with unnamed register (linewise)
"a gr{motion}	Replace {motion} text with register a
Visual gr	Replace selection with unnamed register

Example usage:

yiw        " yank inner word
griw       " replace next inner word (register preserved — repeat!)
grr        " replace current line
grap       " replace a paragraph
"agr$      " replace to end of line using register a

Info

gr{motion} is not a Neovim built-in — it originates from the
vim-ReplaceWithRegister plugin. In Neovim 0.10+, the gr prefix is used
for LSP actions (grn rename, grr references, gra code action). Since
Obsidian has no LSP, this plugin repurposes gr for replace-with-register
and exposes the former grn/grr/gra workspace actions as leader
bindings (<leader>rn, <leader>rb, <leader>ra) and ex commands
(:renamenote, :showbacklinks, :contextactions).

Flash motions

Enhanced character search — when multiple matches are visible, labels appear for direct jumping.

Keybinding	Description
f{char}	Find {char} forward — autojump on single match, labels on 2+
F{char}	Find {char} backward
t{char}	Till before {char} forward
T{char}	Till after {char} backward

Flash works with operators (df, cf, yf) and visual mode (vf). Repeat with ; and ,.

Flash jump mode

Bidirectional character search (disabled by default, enable with set flashjump).

Keybinding	Description
s{char}	Search {char} bidirectionally — labels on all matches

The trigger key is configurable via set flashjumpkey=<key>.

Flash search labels

After committing a / or ? search, labels appear on all visible matches for direct jumping.

EasyMotion find motions

Jump to specific characters forward, backward, or in both directions.

Keybinding	Description
<leader><leader>f{char}	Find {char} forward
<leader><leader>F{char}	Find {char} backward
<leader><leader>s{char}	Find {char} in both directions
<leader><leader>t{char}	Till before {char} forward
<leader><leader>T{char}	Till after {char} backward

EasyMotion word motions

Jump to word starts or ends across the visible editor.

Keybinding	Description
<leader><leader>w	Word start forward
<leader><leader>b	Word start backward
<leader><leader>e	End of word forward
<leader><leader>ge	End of word backward
<leader><leader>W	WORD start forward
<leader><leader>B	WORD start backward
<leader><leader>E	End of WORD forward
<leader><leader>gE	End of WORD backward

EasyMotion line motions

Jump directly to lines above or below the cursor.

Keybinding	Description
<leader><leader>j	Line down
<leader><leader>k	Line up

EasyMotion search motions

Jump to search matches forward or backward.

Keybinding	Description
<leader><leader>n	Next search match forward
<leader><leader>N	Next search match backward

Surround

Add, change, or delete surrounding delimiters like brackets, quotes, and tags.

Keybinding	Description
ds{target}	Delete surrounding (ds" on "hello" → hello)
dst	Delete surrounding tag
cs{target}{replacement}	Change surrounding (cs"' → 'hello')
cst{replacement}	Change surrounding tag
ys{motion}{replacement}	Add surround (ysiw) on hello → (hello))
ys{motion}<tag>	Surround with HTML tag (ysiw<em> → <em>hello</em>)
ysiwf + name + Enter	Surround with function call (print(hello))
ysiwF + name + Enter	Surround with spaced function call (print( hello ))
dsf	Delete surrounding function call (print(hello) → hello)
csf + name + Enter	Change surrounding function name (foo(bar) → baz(bar))
yss{replacement}	Surround entire line (yss" → "line content")
cS / yS / ySS	Newline surround variants (delimiters on separate lines)
S{replacement}	Surround visual selection (visual mode)
S<tag>	Surround selection with tag (visual mode)
gS	Newline surround selection (visual mode)
2ds), 2cs)	Count: delete/change 2nd-level surrounding bracket
2ysiw*	Count: repeat delimiter (**hello** for Markdown bold)
2ds*	Count: delete repeated delimiter (unbold **hello**)
<C-G>s{char}	Insert mode: inserts both delimiters, type inside them

Workspace navigation

Navigate Obsidian panes, tabs, and history following Neovim conventions.

Keybinding	Description	Global
<C-w>h/j/k/l	Focus pane left/down/up/right	Yes
<C-w>v	Split vertical	Yes
<C-w>s	Split horizontal	Yes
<C-w>c / <C-w>q	Close current tab	Yes
<C-w>o	Close all other tabs	Yes
gt / gT	Next/previous tab	Yes
Ngt	Go to Nth tab (e.g., 3gt goes to tab 3)	Yes
g<C-t>	Go to tab by number (e.g., 3g<C-t> goes to tab 3)	—
H / L	Previous/next tab (non-editor views only)	Yes
<C-w>w	Cycle to next pane	Yes
<C-w>W	Cycle to previous pane	Yes
<C-w>p	Focus previously accessed pane	Yes
Ctrl-o / Ctrl-i	Jump backward / forward through jump history (supports count)	Yes
<C-^> / <C-6>	Switch to alternate (previously edited) file	Yes
<C-]>	Follow link under cursor (alias for gd)	—
<C-t>	Pop from link follow (jump list backward)	—
gd	Go to definition — open the link under the cursor	—
gD	Open link under cursor in a new tab	—
<C-w>gd	Open link under cursor in a horizontal split	—
<C-w>gD	Open link under cursor in a vertical split	—
gx	Open URL under cursor in browser	—
gf	Open file switcher (quick open)	—
gO	Open document outline (searchable heading list)	—
g<C-g>	Show document statistics (words, lines, characters)	—
gp / gP	Paste and move cursor past pasted text	—
ga	Show character info under cursor (codepoint, hex)	—
gm	Go to middle of screen line	—
go	Go to character offset (byte N in buffer, with count)	—
g8	Show UTF-8 byte sequence for character under cursor	—
gF	Go to file with optional line number (file.md:42)	—
<C-g>	Show file info (name, lines, position, percentage)	—
<leader>rn	Rename current note	—
<leader>rb	Show backlinks to current note	—
<leader>ra	Show context actions for current note	—

Fold commands

Keybinding	Description
zo	Open fold at cursor
zO	Open fold at cursor recursively
zc	Close fold at cursor
zC	Close fold at cursor recursively
za	Toggle fold at cursor
zA	Toggle fold at cursor recursively
zd	Delete fold at cursor
zD	Delete fold at cursor recursively
zf{motion}	Create fold for {motion} text
zF	Create fold for [count] lines
zE	Eliminate all folds
zm	Fold more (increment fold level)
zM	Close all folds
zr	Fold less (decrement fold level)
zR	Open all folds
zn	Fold none — disable folding, open all folds
zN	Fold normal — re-enable folding
zi	Toggle fold enable
zv	Open enough folds to view cursor line
zx	Reapply fold level and reveal cursor
zX	Reapply fold level
zj	Move to start of next fold
zk	Move to end of previous fold
[z	Move to start of current fold
]z	Move to end of current fold

Horizontal scroll

Keybinding	Description
zs	Scroll text so cursor column is at the left edge
ze	Scroll text so cursor column is at the right edge
zH	Scroll half a screen width to the left
zL	Scroll half a screen width to the right

Select mode

Keybinding	Description
gh	Enter select mode (charwise)
gH	Enter select mode (linewise)
g<C-h>	Enter select mode (blockwise)
<C-g>	Toggle between visual and select mode (in visual/select)
gV	Prevent select mode reselection after mapping

Virtual replace mode

Keybinding	Description
gR	Enter virtual replace mode (replace by screen column)

Non-editor view bindings

Navigate and interact with non-editor views like PDFs, graphs, and canvases.

Keybinding	Description
f	Show hint labels, activate target (click/focus/navigate)
F	Show hint labels, open target in new pane
yf	Show hint labels, yank target URL or text to clipboard
df	Show hint labels, close target tab or pane
gf	Show hint labels, open context menu on target
Nf	Activate N targets sequentially (e.g., 3f activates 3)
j / k	Scroll down/up one line
Nj / Nk	Scroll N lines (e.g., 5j scrolls 5 lines down)
gg	Scroll to top
G	Scroll to bottom
Ctrl-d / Ctrl-u	Scroll half page down/up
Ctrl-f / Ctrl-b	Scroll full page down/up

All non-editor bindings can be customized via gmap, gnoremap, and gunmap in your .obsidian.vimrc. Use :gmap to list all active global bindings. See vimrc > Global key mappings for syntax.

Ex commands

Execute commands via the : command line, grouped by function.

File and buffer

Command	Description
:w / :write	Save current file
:update / :up	Save current file (alias for :w)
:q / :quit	Close current tab
:wq	Save and close
:x / :xit	Write if modified and close
:xa / :xall	Write if modified all and close all
:e {file} / :edit {file}	Open file by name in vault
:e! / :edit!	Revert current file to saved version
:enew	Create new untitled note
:saveas {file}	Save current buffer as new file
:find {file} / :fin	Find and open file by partial name match
:read {file} / :r	Insert file contents at cursor position
:bn / :bp	Next / previous tab
:b {name} / :buffer {name}	Switch to tab matching name
:bf / :bfirst	Go to first tab
:bl / :blast	Go to last tab
:bd / :bc	Close current tab
:bw / :bwipeout	Close current tab
:only	Close all other tabs
:qa	Close all tabs
:wa / :wall	Save all open files

Editing

Command	Description
:[range]m {addr} / :move	Move lines in range to target address
:[range]t {addr} / :copy / :co	Copy lines in range to target address
:[range]norm {keys} / :normal	Execute normal-mode keys from ex line
:[range]normal! {keys}	Execute normal-mode keys without remaps

Window and tab

Command	Description
:sp / :split	Horizontal split
:vs / :vsplit	Vertical split
:new	Horizontal split with new note
:vnew	Vertical split with new note
:tabnew / :tabedit	Open new tab (optionally with file)
:tabclose / :tabc	Close current tab
:tabonly / :tabo	Close all other tabs
:tabfirst / :tabrewind	Go to first tab
:tablast / :tabl	Go to last tab
:tabmove	No-op (Obsidian has no tab reorder)

Table

Command	Description
:tableinsert	Insert table
:tablerowafter / :tablerowbefore	Add row below / above
:tablerowup / :tablerowdown	Move row up / down
:tablerowdelete	Delete row
:tablecolafter / :tablecolbefore	Add column right / left
:tablecolleft / :tablecolright	Move column left / right
:tablecoldelete	Delete column
:tablealignleft / :tablealigncenter / :tablealignright	Set column alignment
:tablerealign	Realign table columns to uniform widths

Navigation and search

Command	Short	Description
:explorer		Reveal active file in file explorer
:files		Find files by name
:buffers	:buf	Switch between open buffers
:ls		Alias for :buffers
:headings		Search all headings across vault
:outline		Jump to heading in current file
:backlinks	:backl	Show files linking to current file
:tags		Browse vault tags (opens sub-picker)
:recent		Recently opened files
:marks		Jump to vim marks (grouped by buffer/global)
:grep {query}	:gre	Search vault content (pre-computed results)
:livegrep	:liveg	Real-time vault content search
:resume	:res	Reopen last picker with same query
:jumps		Display the jump list
:Picker	:Pick	Open meta-picker listing all sources
:snippets		Search and insert snippets
:snippet name	:snip	Insert a snippet by name
:Picker {src}		Open a named picker source directly
:back		Navigate back in history
:forward		Navigate forward in history
:changes		Show change list in modal

Harpoon

Command	Short	Description
:HarpoonAdd	:HarpoonA	Pin current file to next slot
:HarpoonRemove	:HarpoonR	Remove current file (or :HarpoonRemove N for slot N)
:Harpoon		Open harpoon picker
:HarpoonSelect N	:HarpoonS	Jump to pin slot N
:HarpoonNext	:HarpoonN	Next pin
:HarpoonPrev	:HarpoonP	Previous pin

Input method

Command	Short	Description
:IMToggle	:IMT	Toggle input method switching on/off
:IMStatus	:IMS	Show current input method identifier

Utility

Command	Description
:ob {command-id}	Execute any Obsidian command by ID
:ob	List all available command IDs
:commands	Search and execute Obsidian commands
:sidebar left / :sidebar right	Toggle left/right sidebar
:reg / :registers	Browse vim registers (paste on select)
:delmarks {marks}	Delete specified marks
:version / :ve	Show plugin version
:violations / :viol	Show runtime invariant violations
:violations! / :viol!	Clear invariant violation log
:gmap	List all active global bindings

Snippets

Snippet keybindings are active during snippet expansion (after a snippet has been triggered).

Keybinding	Description
Tab	Move to next tabstop / expand snippet at prefix
Shift+Tab	Move to previous tabstop
Escape	Exit snippet mode
Ctrl+N	Cycle to next choice (on choice fields)
Ctrl+P	Cycle to previous choice (on choice fields)

Oil explorer

Oil keybindings are only active when an oil buffer is focused. All keybindings are user-remappable via Lua or vimrc — see oil-explorer > Remapping keybindings for details.

Keybinding	Ex command	Description
<CR>	:oilopen	Open file under cursor / navigate into directory
<C-t>	:oilopentab	Open file under cursor in new tab
<C-s>	:oilopensv	Open file under cursor in vertical split
<C-h>	:oilopensh	Open file under cursor in horizontal split
-	:oilparent	Navigate to parent directory
~	:oilroot	Navigate to vault root
q	:oilclose	Close oil buffer
<C-c>	:oilclose	Close oil buffer
<C-l>	:oilrefresh	Refresh directory listing
g.	:oiltogglehidden	Toggle hidden files (dotfiles)
gs	:oilcyclesort	Cycle sort order (name → modified time → size)
y.	:oilyankpath	Yank vault-relative file path to clipboard
gf	:oilreveal	Reveal file under cursor in Obsidian file explorer
gx	:oilopenexternal	Open file under cursor in default system app
dd		Stage file deletion (commit with :w)
o		Stage file creation — type filename, commit with :w
cw		Stage file rename — edit filename, commit with :w
:w		Commit all staged changes (create/rename/delete)
:Oil		Open oil explorer (no arg: current dir, .//: vault root, path: specific dir)

Quality of life

Enhanced Vim behavior and Obsidian-specific improvements.

Keybinding	Description
o / O	Smart list continuation (bullets, numbers, checkboxes)
Y	Yank to end of line (y$)
Q	Replay last recorded macro (@@)
@:	Repeat last ex command
&	Repeat last :s substitution on current line
ZZ	Write current file and close tab (:wq)
ZQ	Close tab without saving (:q)
g;	Older change
g,	Newer change
g-	Older undo state
g+	Newer undo state
<C-p>	Cycle paste previous register (or k if not cycling)
<C-n>	Cycle paste next register (or j if not cycling)

Insert mode

Keybinding	Description
<C-a>	Re-insert previously inserted text
<C-e>	Copy character from line below (same column)
<C-y>	Copy character from line above (same column)
<C-G>s	Insert-mode surround (inserts both delimiters, type inside)

Increment/Decrement

Key	Action	Notes
<C-a>	Increment	Enhanced: cycles hex colors, booleans, dates, CSS values, checkboxes. Requires enableDial setting
<C-x>	Decrement	Same

Remapping

All keybindings above are user-remappable. See remapping for instructions and examples covering editor, oil explorer, picker, and global workspace navigation contexts.