Use Template
templates.useApply templates in your Obsidian vault using filesystem substitution or Templater plugin. Create new notes, insert into the active document, or render previews. Works on the current vault.
Instructions
Render or apply a template using one of two engines. The engine field selects the engine and the action field selects the operation:
engine:'filesystem'— kObsidian's built-in{{variable}}substitution; no Obsidian plugin required. Actions:render(return the expanded text) orcreate-note(write a new note from the template).engine:'templater'— delegate to the Templater Obsidian plugin via the Local REST API. Requires OBSIDIAN_API_URL and OBSIDIAN_REST_API_KEY. Actions:render(execute the template and return output),create-note(execute and write totargetFile), orinsert-active(insert into the currently active note in Obsidian).
The filesystem engine is pure text substitution — it does NOT evaluate Templater's <% … %> scripts. Use engine:'templater' when you need dynamic evaluation.
Operates on the session-active vault (see vault.current — selectable via vault.select) unless an explicit vaultPath argument is passed, which always wins.
Examples:
Example 1 — Render a filesystem template to text (no file written):
{
"engine": "filesystem",
"action": "render",
"templatePath": "Templates/daily.md",
"variables": {
"date": "2026-04-24",
"topic": "kObsidian release planning"
}
}Example 2 — Create a new note from a filesystem template:
{
"engine": "filesystem",
"action": "create-note",
"templatePath": "Templates/daily.md",
"targetPath": "Journal/2026-04-24.md",
"variables": {
"date": "2026-04-24"
}
}Example 3 — Use Templater to create a note via the Obsidian plugin:
{
"engine": "templater",
"action": "create-note",
"templateFile": "Templates/meeting.md",
"targetFile": "Meetings/Kickoff.md",
"openFile": true
}Input Schema
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
No arguments | |||
Output Schema
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
No arguments | |||