Workflowy Sync

Workflowy Sync

By Rodolfo Terriquez.

Workflowy Sync is an Obsidian plugin that connects your vault to Workflowy so you can quickly send content, embed live outlines, and sync mapped notes.

What it does today

• Send the current selection, or the current line when nothing is selected, to Workflowy
• Use a saved default target or choose a target on demand
• Embed a live Workflowy node or subtree inside a note with a workflowy code block
• Create sync mappings between one Workflowy item and one Obsidian note
• Sync Workflowy -> Obsidian manually or on a schedule
• Sync Obsidian -> Workflowy manually or on a schedule
• Sync into a managed block under a note heading instead of replacing the whole note

Use cases

• Capture selected text or the current line into Workflowy without leaving Obsidian
• Show a live Workflowy subtree inside a note
• Keep a Workflowy item and an Obsidian note section aligned with one-way scheduled sync
• Push structured Markdown outlines from Obsidian back into a Workflowy subtree

Setup

1. Create or copy a Workflowy API key.
2. Open Settings → Community plugins → Workflowy Sync.
3. Paste the API key and use Test connection.
4. Optionally save a default target by pasting a Workflowy node URL, node ID, or target key such as inbox.

Commands

• Sync: Send to Workflowy
• Sync: Send to Workflowy target...
• Sync: Workflowy mapping now

If text is selected, the send commands use the selection. If nothing is selected, they send the current line.

If backlinking is enabled, sent items include an obsidian:// link in the Workflowy note.

Live embeds

Use a code block like this:

```workflowy
node: https://workflowy.com/#/your-node-id
```

The block renders the target node and its subtree, shows the last refresh time, and includes a manual refresh button.

Sync mappings

Sync mappings connect one Workflowy item to one Obsidian note.

• Workflowy -> Obsidian pulls Workflowy content into a note or into a named heading block.
• Obsidian -> Workflowy keeps the mapped Workflowy root item and replaces its child content in place.

Obsidian -> Workflowy rules

• The mapped Workflowy root item keeps its existing name.
• Only note content is synced. The Obsidian note title is not pushed into Workflowy as the root item name.
• Plain non-empty lines become child bullet items when there is no explicit Markdown list syntax.
• Markdown list items become Workflowy bullets or todos.
• Item notes in Obsidian are supported, but they require extra follow-up API calls and may sync more slowly than plain lists.
• This is still a one-way push per run, not full bidirectional merge or conflict handling.

Workflowy -> Obsidian rules

• Only the Workflowy root item's content and children are synced. The root title is not inserted as a Markdown heading.
• Child Workflowy items become Markdown bullets or todos.
• Workflowy notes become blockquotes.
• If a mapping targets a note section, the plugin manages only its own sync block under that heading and leaves other content alone.

Current limitations

• Sync mappings are not full bidirectional merge sync yet.
• Conflicts are not merged automatically.
• Reverse sync works best with headings, bullets, todos, and simple item notes.

Privacy and network use

• This plugin requires a Workflowy account and API key.
• It sends selected note content, mapped note content, and requested Workflowy item identifiers to Workflowy when you use send, embed refresh, or sync features.
• Reverse sync uses Workflowy document-editing endpoints to update the mapped Workflowy subtree in place.
• The plugin stores its settings and mappings locally in Obsidian.
• The plugin does not include analytics or telemetry.

Development

npm install
npm run dev

For local Obsidian testing, the plugin folder name should eventually match the manifest ID: workflowy-sync.