Export Apple Notes to Obsidian
Turn your Apple Notes into a clean Obsidian vault — wikilinks, frontmatter, and organized attachments included. Free, local, no cleanup afterward.
What carries over
A faithful export — not a flat dump. Everything below transfers automatically.
Vault structure
Folders map directly to vault folders, so your organization carries over untouched.
Wikilinks
note:// links between notes become [[wikilinks]] that work natively in Obsidian.
YAML frontmatter
Creation dates and tags land in frontmatter so Dataview and search work day one.
Attachments
Each note’s images and files are organized cleanly — per-note folders or the _attachments convention, your choice.
Obsidian’s built-in Apple Notes importer treats the job as a one-off and leaves you with flattened folders, broken links, and attachments dumped in one place. Carry produces a proper vault: your folder structure preserved, internal links converted to wikilinks, tags in YAML frontmatter, and each note’s attachments in their own place.
The export is free with no library-size limit and runs entirely on your Mac. Source notes are never modified — output goes to a folder you choose.
How to export Apple Notes to Obsidian
- 1
Pick Obsidian as your destination
Open Carry and choose Obsidian. Output is shaped as a ready-to-open vault.
- 2
Scan your library
Carry counts notes, folders, attachments, and locked notes, and estimates time.
- 3
Export the vault
Carry writes Markdown with wikilinks, YAML frontmatter, and organized attachments.
- 4
Open in Obsidian
In Obsidian, choose “Open folder as vault” and point it at the exported folder. Done.
A real vault, not a dump
Carry writes wikilinks, puts creation dates and tags in YAML frontmatter, and lets you choose between per-note attachment folders or Obsidian’s conventional _attachments/ layout. The result works with Dataview, graph view, and backlinks immediately — no manual cleanup.
Know exactly what transferred
Every migration ends with a verification report: notes processed, attachments by type, locked notes handled, and any lossy conversions flagged — no silent failures.
Frequently asked questions
How do I export Apple Notes to Obsidian?+
Open Carry, choose Obsidian as the destination, scan your library, and export. You get a folder you open in Obsidian via “Open folder as vault.” Links become wikilinks and dates land in frontmatter automatically.
Is Carry better than Obsidian’s built-in Apple Notes importer?+
For most libraries, yes. The built-in importer flattens structure and dumps attachments; Carry preserves your folder hierarchy, converts links to wikilinks, organizes attachments per note, and gives you a verification report of exactly what transferred.
Do internal links between notes still work?+
Yes. Apple Notes note:// links are rewritten as Obsidian [[wikilinks]], so backlinks and graph view work right away.
Is it free?+
The full export is free with no cap on library size. Optional AI enrichment (auto-titles, tag taxonomy cleanup, duplicate detection) is a one-time $19 unlock.
Will it change my original Apple Notes?+
No. Carry only reads your notes. The export is written to a folder you choose; your Apple Notes are never modified.
Be first to migrate Apple Notes → Obsidian
Carry is launching soon. Drop your email and we’ll send you the app the moment this migration is ready.