Q&A: What's the difference between tags and other properties?

From r/ObsidianMD 📅 • 📊 43 upvotes • ⭐ 8/10 • 🚀 high
*Analysis generated: Dec 29, 2025*
🔗 Source: View on Reddit
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Summary

This post explains that tags are a special, default type of property in Obsidian. Key differences include that the ‘tags’ property name and type cannot be modified, it has a unique icon, it is inherently a list type, and it has exclusive features like the dedicated Tags View and specific search syntax (`tag:`). It also clarifies that ‘note tags’ are a combination of the ‘tags’ property and inline tags (#tags), and notes that tags are not case-sensitive and do not support spaces.

Key Insights

1. Tags are a default, non-modifiable property type (like ‘aliases’ and ‘cssclasses’).
2. Complete note tags consist of both the ‘tags’ property and inline `#tags`.
3. Tags have exclusive features, such as dedicated search filtering (`tag:`) and the Tags View.

Enhancement Suggestions

No enhancement suggestions available

Analysis

Excellent foundational explanation clarifying the technical role of the ‘tags’ property versus custom metadata fields, which is often a source of confusion for intermediate users.
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*Curated by AI for Paul’s Vault Members*