Hashtags became a useful way to follow tweets about topics many years ago on Twitter. They have spread to other social networks and in the organization of applications. Apple brought hashtags (as old “tags”) to Notes and Reminders with iOS 15, iPadOS 15, and macOS 12 Monterey.
You can use tags as ad hoc categorization. Instead of creating a set of hierarchical categories or having to first create a group of tags that you then apply, you can simply type the pound or hash symbol (#)
followed by text without spaces. Typing this creates an effortless tag that Notes and Reminders can display in a list of tags in Reminders, and that you can use to create Smart Folders in Notes and Smart Lists in Reminders.
For example, you can mark any personal note that involves medical care with #health
or any reminder related to work on your home with #homerepair
:
- In Notes, there is no special place to add a tag. just type
#
and tag name, like#health
. Notes automatically suggest entries you can select from based on tags that have already been added to any other note. You can edit a note’s tags using Search > Search in Note List in macOS and typing the tag, or swiping down in Notes on iOS/iPadOS, tapping the search field and typing the full tag starting with the#
. - In Reminders, you can add tags anywhere in the text, but there’s also a dedicated tags field. In macOS, creating a note or clicking to edit reveals an Add Tags box. You can enter tags, like
#electronics
or type#
and get suggestions. In any version of Reminders, tap or click the i information icon, then you can tap Key words or click Add tags to add tags. You can also modify the tags in these areas.
Once you start filling out notes and reminders with tags, it can be helpful to create leaderboards using the “smart” features of either app.
- In Notes, tap the New folder in the lower left corner of the main screen and tap New smart folder in iOS/iPadOS, or choose File > New Smart Folder in macOS. Name the folder. You can select from all tags in iOS/iPadOS or enter tags in macOS. Faucet Do or click OKAY.
- In Reminders on iOS/iPadOS, tap Add list in the bottom left corner, name the folder, tap Convert to smart listselect tags and other filters, then tap Do. On macOS, choose File > New Listname the list, tick Convert to smart list, and add tags in the Tags field. Click on OKAY.
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