Obsidian Callouts

Canonical version: Obsidian Callouts.

Callouts are styled block elements in Obsidian that highlight important information using a special blockquote syntax. They replace the older Admonition plugin for Obsidian approach with a native, built-in feature.

Syntax

Callouts use a blockquote with a type identifier on the first line:

> [!info] Optional title
> Content of the callout goes here.
> Multiple lines are supported.

If no title is provided, the type name is used as the title.

Built-in Types

Obsidian includes several built-in callout types, each with its own color and icon:

• note — generic note (default gray)
• info — informational (blue)
• tip / hint / important — tips (cyan)
• warning / caution / attention — warnings (orange)
• danger / error — critical info (red)
• bug — bug reports (red)
• example — examples (purple)
• quote / cite — quotations (gray)
• success / check / done — success (green)
• question / help / faq — questions (orange)
• failure / fail / missing — failures (red)
• abstract / summary / tldr — summaries (cyan)
• todo — to-do items (blue)

Foldable Callouts

Add + or - after the type to make the callout collapsible:

> [!faq]- Collapsed by default
> This content is hidden until clicked.

> [!faq]+ Expanded by default
> This content is visible but can be collapsed.

Nested Callouts

Callouts can be nested by adding more > levels:

> [!question] Can callouts be nested?
>> [!success] Yes!
>> They can.

Custom Callouts

Custom callout types can be defined via CSS snippets. The CSS targets .callout[data-callout="custom-type"] to define colors and icons.

Callouts vs Admonitions

The Admonition plugin for Obsidian was the community solution before Obsidian added native callout support. Key differences:

• Callouts are built-in; no plugin required
• Callouts use standard blockquote syntax that degrades gracefully in other Markdown renderers
• Admonition offered additional features like custom types via plugin settings, but is now largely superseded

References

• Official documentation: https://help.obsidian.md/Editing+and+formatting/Callouts

Related

• Obsidian
• Markdown
• GitHub Flavored Markdown (GFM)
• Admonition plugin for Obsidian
• Obsidian Starter Kit
• Obsidian Flavored Markdown
• Obsidian CSS Snippets

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