Icon Frontmatter Mirror writes your Iconize icons to a property in each note

Name: Icon Frontmatter Mirror
Author: theluckystrike

Pick an icon with Iconize and the note gets the same icon in its properties.

MIT · no telemetry · core features free

A note in Live Preview with the icon LiBookOpen and its color in the properties. — Open larger

version: 1.0.0
released: 2026-10-26
downloads: 1
review: Passed
health: Excellent
license: MIT
listed for: Desktop, Mobile
obsidian: 1.13.4 or later

Tests ran on Obsidian 1.13.4 and the latest version on desktop. They used the Iconize 2.14.7 data file format and no real Iconize install, and no mobile test exists.

Directory facts fetched 2026-10-26 04:16 UTC from community.obsidian.md/users/theluckystrike.

About Icon Frontmatter Mirror

You use Iconize and want the icon in the note itself, for sync, copy and paste, search or a file over app vault.

Iconize keeps the icon of each note in its own data file. When you use Change icon, the icon does not go into the note. Icon Frontmatter Mirror copies it to the icon property of the note, and the color to iconColor.

The plugin reads the Iconize data file and never writes it. It checks the file every 2 seconds and keeps the properties current.

Play demo

Free features

Icons become note properties

Set an icon with the Iconize icon picker. The plugin writes the same text that Iconize stores to the icon property, for example LiBookOpen or an emoji. A color goes to iconColor.

Follows each change

A change shows in the note 2 to 4 seconds after Iconize saves. A removed icon removes the property only when the property still has the value that the plugin wrote. The command Mirror icons now reads the file at once.

Never overwrites your own value

If a note has another value in the property, the plugin keeps it and adds the note to a conflict list. Run Show icon conflicts to compare each value with the Iconize value. Then replace the note values or keep them.

The conflict list shows Garden.md with the note value and the Iconize value. — Open larger

A brake on mass removal

If one check would remove values from over 10 notes, the plugin removes nothing and shows a notice. Run Apply held icon removals to confirm. This helps after you reinstall Iconize.

Status, folders and large vaults

The settings tab shows the number of mirrored notes, skipped folder icons, the last run and the conflicts. Folders have no properties, so the free version skips folder icons. The plugin writes a note only when a value must change.

The settings tab with the status line, the commands and the property settings. — Open larger

The free version writes one icon property and one color property, and it skips folder icons.

Pro features

Pro costs $5 a month or $15 one time through GitHub Sponsors. One sponsorship turns on Pro in every plugin that has it.

Extra properties and folder notes Pro

Pro writes the icon to one or two more properties. Each has a format, such as LiHouse, House or house. Pro also writes a folder icon to the property folderIcon of the folder note, which must exist.

The Pro options in the settings tab. — Open larger

See how Pro works

Set up Icon Frontmatter Mirror

needs

Obsidian 1.13.4 or later
Iconize

steps

Install and turn on Iconize and this plugin.
Right-click a note in the file explorer, select Change icon and pick an icon.
After 2 to 4 seconds, open the note. The properties show icon with the name of the icon.
To update all notes at once, run the command Icon Frontmatter Mirror, Mirror icons now.
If some notes already had an icon property, run Show icon conflicts.

If the app can't find a new plugin yet, try again later. Obsidian says a plugin that passes the review shows in the app within 24 hours.

Why this exists

Iconize issue 380 asks for a separate option to write the icon to frontmatter. It has been open since February 2024 with 28 plus one reactions and 9 comments, and a duplicate issue 590 has 6.

Iconize issue 380, set the icon data in the frontmatteropened 2024-02-19

Questions about Icon Frontmatter Mirror

Does it change the Iconize data?

No. The plugin only reads the Iconize data file. It writes only to your notes, through the frontmatter API of Obsidian.

What happens when I remove an icon in Iconize?

The plugin removes the property if it still has the value that the plugin wrote. If you changed the value, the plugin keeps your value.

Does Iconize read the property back?

Yes, when Use icon in frontmatter is on in Iconize. The value is the exact text that Iconize stores, so Iconize finds the same icon and changes nothing. The plugin then always writes the color too.

What if my sync tool writes the Iconize file slowly?

The plugin reads the file only after it stays the same for one check. If the file is not complete or not valid JSON, the plugin keeps the last good copy and writes nothing.

Network use

Until you select Sign in with GitHub, Icon Frontmatter Mirror makes no network requests. Sign in and the sponsorship check contact github.com and api.github.com with the scope read:user, and a successful check is reused for 7 days. The plugin sends no note content, file names or other vault data.

Read the full network disclosure