How to build a kanban board for your Obsidian tasks.
A kanban board is just your tasks sorted into columns you can drag between. In Obsidian those tasks are lines of markdown, so the board and the file are the same data. Here is what the columns really are, and how to set one up.
Get Free - iOS & Mac 
Get Free - Android What a kanban board is, in Obsidian terms
A kanban board shows tasks as cards in columns, usually something like To Do, In Progress, and Done, and you move a card from one column to the next as work proceeds. The point is to see the state of everything at a glance instead of reading a flat list.
In Obsidian, every task is already a line of markdown with a status. A board stores nothing new. It is a different view of the same lines, where each column is a value of one field, and dragging a card changes that field in the file.
Your options for a board
There are a few ways to get a kanban view over Obsidian tasks. They differ mostly in where the board lives and whether it follows you onto a phone.
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The Kanban community plugin
A popular plugin stores a board as its own markdown file, with columns as headings and cards as list items. It is good on the desktop. The cards are separate from your task lines, so a board is its own document rather than a view of your existing tasks.
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A query plugin like Dataview
You can approximate a board with grouped queries that sort tasks into sections by status or tag. It reads your real tasks, but it is read-only: you cannot drag a card to change its status, and it is awkward on mobile.
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A native app like TaskForge
TaskForge turns any saved task list into a board, with the columns mapped to a field in your existing task lines. Drag a card and it rewrites that field in the markdown. The same board works on a phone, which the plugins cannot match.
What changes in the file when you drag a card
This is the part worth understanding. When a board groups by status and you drag a task from To Do to In Progress, the task's status in the markdown changes to match. Group the board by priority instead and the columns become priority levels from highest to lowest; drop a card in the High column and the priority emoji on that line updates. Group by tag, project, or due date and the same rule holds: the column is a field, and the drop writes that field. Nothing is stored in a separate board file, so your tasks stay portable and your other tools still read them.
Setting up a board, step by step
In TaskForge, a board starts from a list. Make a saved list of the tasks you want to track, for one project or one area, then tap the kanban icon in the toolbar to switch that list from rows to columns.
Choose what the columns represent from the grouping menu: status, priority, project, context, tag, or due date. Status gives you the classic To Do, In Progress, Done flow. Drag cards between columns, reorder or collapse columns, and add a task straight into a column with its plus button, which presets that column's value.
It runs on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Android. On iPad you see several columns side by side; on a phone you swipe between them. Large boards load in batches, so a column with hundreds of tasks still scrolls smoothly.
A task before you drag it
- [ ] design the landing page 🔼 #website
Keeping a board useful
A board only helps if it stays readable. A few habits keep it from turning into a second mess.
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Group by one thing
Pick status for workflow, priority for triage, or project for an overview. Switching the grouping reshapes the same board, so you do not need three boards to see three angles.
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Limit work in progress
Keep the In Progress column short. A board's value is showing you are doing too much at once. Collapse the columns you are not using to stay focused.
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One board per project
A saved list per project becomes its own board with its own column layout, remembered separately. That beats one giant board for everything.
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Let it sync itself
Because the board is a view of your files, the same vault on another device shows the same board. No board file to copy, no export.
Who a board helps
Worth setting up if
- You run projects with clear stages and want to see what is in progress at a glance.
- You already keep tasks in your vault and want to manage them on a phone, not only a desktop.
- You want the board to change your real tasks, not live in a separate document.
Skip it if
- Your work is a single flat to-do list with no stages. A sorted list is simpler.
- You only ever work on the desktop and a plugin board is enough for you.
- You are on Windows only. TaskForge runs on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Android.
What it costs
The Kanban and Dataview plugins are free. In TaskForge the kanban board is a premium feature, part of a one-time $39.99 purchase or $1.99 a month, with a one-week free trial on every install. The rest of the task list, and reading your vault, is free.
Questions people ask
How do I make a kanban board in Obsidian?
Two routes: install the Kanban community plugin, which keeps a board as its own markdown file on desktop, or use a native app like TaskForge that turns an existing task list into a board whose columns map to a field in your real task lines. The app route works on mobile and edits your tasks directly.
Does an Obsidian kanban board change my notes?
With TaskForge, yes, in the right way: dragging a card updates the matching field, like status or priority, on the task line in your markdown. With the Kanban plugin, the board is a separate file, so it does not change your existing task lines.
What do the columns on the board represent?
Whatever field you group by. Group by status and the columns are To Do, In Progress, and Done. Group by priority and they become highest through lowest. Project, tag, context, and due date all work the same way: each column is one value of the chosen field.
Can I use a kanban board on my phone?
The desktop plugins are clumsy on mobile. TaskForge is built for it: swipe between columns on a phone, see several at once on an iPad, and drag cards with a press and hold. The board reads the same vault as your desktop.
Do I need a plugin for a kanban board?
Not if you use a native app. TaskForge reads your existing tasks and presents them as a board without any plugin installed. If you prefer to stay inside Obsidian on the desktop, the Kanban community plugin is the common choice.
Is the TaskForge kanban board free?
Reading your vault and the core task list are free. The kanban board is a premium feature, available through a one-time $39.99 purchase or $1.99 a month, with a one-week trial on first install.
Turn your task list into a board you can drag.
Your Obsidian tasks are already lines of markdown with a status. TaskForge shows them as a kanban board on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Android, and writes every move back to your files. Free to download, with kanban in the premium tier.