Task Sorting & Tools Plugin

NOTE: The functions in this plugin were previously part of the "Task Automations" plugin. @eduardme suggested we break out the sorting functions and move them here.

Latest Updates

See CHANGELOG for latest updates/changes to this plugin.

Major Sorting functions

Sorting tasks (by various task fields or simply bringing tasks to the top of the note)

Other Task Tools

Marking a task (or multiple) done and creating a follow-up/related task with a link to the done one
Marking all tasks complete (or incomplete)
Copying tags/mentions from previous lines when doing multiple task entry

Understanding Task Type Grouping (Interleaving)

When sorting tasks, the plugin can handle task types in two ways:

Combined Mode (Recommended - Default)

Groups related task types together and sorts them as one unit:

Open Tasks: * open tasks + + checklist items (sorted together by priority)
Scheduled Tasks: * [>] scheduled + + [>] scheduled checklist items
Completed Tasks: * [x] done + + [x] completed checklist items
Cancelled Tasks: * [-] cancelled + + [-] cancelled checklist items

Result: 4 logical groups that make more sense for daily use

Example output:

### Open Tasks:
* !!! high priority open task
+ !! medium priority checklist item
* ! low priority open task
+ another checklist item

### Completed Tasks:
* [x] completed task @done(2025-11-06)
+ [x] completed checklist @done(2025-11-06)

Separated Mode (Traditional)

Keeps all 8 task types completely separate:

Open tasks (*)
Checklist items (+)
Scheduled tasks (* [>])
Scheduled checklists (+ [>])
Done tasks (* [x])
Done checklists (+ [x])
Cancelled tasks (* [-])
Cancelled checklists (+ [-])

Result: 8 separate sections (can be verbose for notes with mixed task types)

How to Control Task Grouping

Interactive (/ts): Will prompt you to choose each time
Quick Commands (/tsd, /tsm, /tst, /tsc): Set in Plugin Preferences → "Combine Related Task Types?"
Via x-callback URL (command Sort tasks on the page only): use arg4 — true to combine related task types, false for eight separate groups (see X-callback URL examples)
Default: Combined mode (interleaving enabled)

Customization Options

Localize or Rename Task Type Headings

You can customize the text used for each task type heading in Plugin Preferences:

Headings used when COMBINING task types (recommended mode):

Open Tasks → includes both * tasks and + checklist items (e.g., "Tareas Abiertas" in Spanish)
Scheduled Tasks → includes both * [>] and + [>] items (e.g., "Tâches Planifiées" in French)
Completed Tasks → includes both * [x] and + [x] items (e.g., "已完成" in Chinese)
Cancelled Tasks → includes both * [-] and + [-] items

Additional headings used ONLY in traditional mode (8 separate sections):

Checklist Items → for + items only (e.g., "Lista de Verificación")
Scheduled Checklist Items → for + [>] items only
Completed Checklist Items → for + [x] items only
Cancelled Checklist Items → for + [-] items only

To customize:

Open Plugin Preferences for Task Sorting
Scroll to "Task Type Heading Customization" section
Change any heading text as desired
Leave blank to use default English headings

Control Empty Category Headings

Set "Show Empty Task Category Headings?" in Plugin Preferences:

Unchecked (recommended): Only show headings for categories that have tasks
Checked: Show all category headings even when empty

Sorting Tasks

/ts - Tasks Sort (Interactively choose sort order and headings style)

This plugin will sort your tasks in the open note in the Editor interactively so you can choose how you want it to work and output

When you run /ts, it will sort the tasks into task types (open|scheduled|completed|cancelled), and it will ask you how you want to sort within those categories and whether you want the output to have the category type headings or not, e.g.:

X-callback URL parameters (Sort tasks on the page)

NotePlan passes these in order as arg0, arg1, … in the URL:

arg0: true = show the usual questions in NotePlan; false = skip prompts and use the other args you supply
arg1: Sort order, comma-separated, e.g. -priority,content
arg2: true = add type headings (e.g. “Open Tasks”); false = do not add those headings
arg3: true = add subheadings when sorting by tag or mention; false = no subheadings
arg4: true = combine related types (open tasks and checklists together, etc.); false = eight separate groups
arg5: true = sort within each heading on its own; false = treat the whole note as one block (tasks can move to the top of the note)

X-callback links only use arg0–arg5. There is no URL form for passing a note object; see Templates and plugins below if you need that.

Examples:

# Sort by priority without headings, treating entire note as one unit (moves all open tasks to top)
noteplan://x-callback-url/runPlugin?pluginID=dwertheimer.TaskSorting&command=Sort%20tasks%20on%20the%20page&arg0=false&arg1=-priority,content&arg2=false&arg3=false&arg4=true&arg5=false

# Sort within each heading separately (default behavior)
noteplan://x-callback-url/runPlugin?pluginID=dwertheimer.TaskSorting&command=Sort%20tasks%20on%20the%20page&arg0=false&arg1=-priority,content&arg2=false&arg3=false&arg4=true&arg5=true

New Feature: Task Type Interleaving (Default Behavior)

By default, tasks are interleaved: compatible task types are combined and sorted together by priority
Within each priority level, open tasks appear before checklists
This allows tasks to be sorted by priority first, then by type (open before checklist)

Sorting behavior (same ideas as arg5 and arg4 above):

arg5 true (typical): Sort within each heading. Tasks stay under the heading they were under, but order changes inside that section.
arg5 false: One sort for the whole note; open tasks can move to the very top of the note.
Traditional eight-way grouping: set arg4 false (separate open vs checklist sections, etc.).

#### Open Tasks
  - [ ] Open Task
#### Scheduled Tasks
  - [>] Forwarded/Scheduled Task >2030-01-01
#### Completed Tasks
  - [x] Completed Task
#### Cancelled Tasks
  - [-] Cancelled task

/tst - Tasks Sort by Tag

Sort the Tasks in the open note by (the first) #Tag and display with subheadings for each unique tag [If you want more granular control over whether there are or aren't headings, use /ts]

/tsc - Tasks Sort by Due Date

Sort the Tasks by Due Date and then Priority [If you want more granular control over whether there are or aren't headings, use /ts]

/tstm - Tasks Sort by Tag/Mention

Sort the Tasks in the open note by (the first) #tag (and then by @Mention) [If you want more granular control over whether there are or aren't headings, use /ts]

/tsm - Tasks Sort by Mention/Person

Sort the Tasks in the open note by (the first) @Mention and display with subheadings for each unique @mention [If you want more granular control over whether there are or aren't headings, use /ts]

/tsd - Task Sort By Default

Sort tasks in note by user setting primary/secondary sort fields Set the primary and secondary sort order for this default search in plugin preferences

/tt - Tasks to Top

This command brings all the tasks inside of the currently open note to the top of the note. You can choose whether you want headings (e.g. "Open Tasks", "Sheduled Tasks" etc.) or whether you want just the sorted tasks brought to the top. Note: brings only task lines (not indented underneath)

/tsh - Tasks Sort under Heading (choose)

This command will sort the tasks under a heading that you choose. You can pass the heading as a parameter, or you can choose it interactively. You can also pass the sort order as a parameter, e.g. (["-priority", "content"]), or you can choose it interactively. For example, this command will sort all the tasks under the heading "Open Tasks" by priority and then alphabetically by content.

noteplan://x-callback-url/runPlugin?pluginID=dwertheimer.TaskSorting&command=Sort%20tasks%20under%20heading%20%28choose%29&arg0=Open%20Tasks&arg1=%5B%22-priority%22%2C%22content%22%5D

X-callback URL examples

Important: Sort tasks on the page and Sort tasks under heading (choose) use different arg0, arg1, … meanings. Use the parameter list that matches the command in your URL.

Sort tasks on the page

Use the full parameter list under /ts above (arg0 through arg5).

Combined task types (default style):

noteplan://x-callback-url/runPlugin?pluginID=dwertheimer.TaskSorting&command=Sort%20tasks%20on%20the%20page&arg0=false&arg1=-priority%2Ccontent&arg2=false&arg3=false&arg4=true

Eight separate task-type groups instead:

noteplan://x-callback-url/runPlugin?pluginID=dwertheimer.TaskSorting&command=Sort%20tasks%20on%20the%20page&arg0=false&arg1=-priority%2Ccontent&arg2=false&arg3=false&arg4=false

Sort tasks under heading (choose)

arg0: The heading text to sort under (URL-encoded), e.g. Open%20Tasks
arg1: How to sort — either a comma-separated list or a JSON array string like ["-priority","content"]
arg2: For normal x-callback links, use null or leave it off if your tool allows. (Some automations need this to point at a specific note — see the note below.)
arg3: true = combine related open/checklist types; false = eight separate groups

Combined task types under that heading:

noteplan://x-callback-url/runPlugin?pluginID=dwertheimer.TaskSorting&command=Sort%20tasks%20under%20heading%20%28choose%29&arg0=Open%20Tasks&arg1=%5B%22-priority%22%2C%22content%22%5D&arg2=null&arg3=true

Eight separate groups under that heading:

noteplan://x-callback-url/runPlugin?pluginID=dwertheimer.TaskSorting&command=Sort%20tasks%20under%20heading%20%28choose%29&arg0=Open%20Tasks&arg1=%5B%22-priority%22%2C%22content%22%5D&arg2=null&arg3=false

Note for templates and other plugins: If you run Sort tasks under heading from automation while the editor is open, you may need to pass the open note (or editor) as the third value so sorting applies to the same note you are editing. Otherwise a pending editor save can undo the sort.

Templates and plugins (passing `Editor` or a `Note`)

From Templating, Shortcuts, or another plugin you can pass Editor or a Note so the command sorts that object instead of relying only on whatever Editor.note happens to be at that moment (helps avoid a stale save overwriting your sort).

Sort tasks on the page — Add Editor or Note as the seventh argument after the six sort options (prompts, sort fields, headings, subheadings, combine types, sort-in-headings).
Tasks Sort by Default (/tsd), by due date (/tsc), by @mention (/tsm), by #tag (/tst), tag + mention (/tstm), Tasks to Top (/tt) — One optional argument: pass Editor or the Note to sort. If you omit it, behavior is the same as before (uses the open note in the editor).
Sort tasks under heading — Unchanged: optional third argument is still the note or Editor (see the x-callback section above).

Mark tasks (/mat) and the copy-tag tools still only use the open editor; they do not take a note override yet.

Task Sorting Notes

At this time, the plugin will ignore headings that are attached to the tasks (e.g. tasks indented under root-level #headings). I need to understand/think more about this use case and how to deal with it in sorting.
Lines are sorted line-by-line. Currently, no provision is made for indented text/content underneath tasks or tasks that are indented themselves under other content. If this is your use case and you can describe how you think it should work very clearly, please contact @dwertheimer on Discord and help me understand this usage.

Marking All Tasks

/mat - Mark All Tasks (as completed or open)

This plugin will give you a choice of whether to mark all open tasks as completed or all completed tasks as open.

Copying Tags/Mentions

/cta - Copy all #tags and @mentions from the previous line

/cth - Copy all #tags and @mentions from the heading the task sits under

/ctm - Duplicate line for each @mention but change the order so each mention shows up first on its own line (and therefore will be sorted under that @mention heading when using /ts - task sorter)

/ctt - Duplicate line for each @tag but change the order so each tag shows up first on its own line (and therefore will be sorted under that @mention heading when using /ts - task sorter)

/cnt copy all noteTags from "noteTags" in frontMatter to all task in the current note

Future Features / Todo List

Sort tasks via template call
Sort by task due date
Bring open tasks to top