Search Functionality

The search field in the TODOseq Task List provides a powerful search system that allows you to quickly find and filter tasks across your entire vault. This guide covers all aspects of the search functionality, from basic filtering to advanced query syntax.

Basic Search

Search Field Overview

The search field is located in the Task List toolbar and provides live filtering as you type. Basic search matches the entered text against task text, file path, and filename

Search Shortcuts

Focus Search Field:

• Press / to focus the search field (unless already typing in another input)

Clear Search:

• Press Escape to clear the current search and remove focus

Toggle Case Sensitivity:

• Click the "A/a" button in the toolbar to toggle case-sensitive matching

Advanced Search Syntax

TODOseq supports sophisticated search queries with boolean logic and grouping.

Exact Phrase Search

Use double quotes to search for exact phrases:

"write documentation"

This will only match tasks containing the exact sequence "write documentation".

OR Logic

Use OR to match either term:

meeting OR call

This will match tasks containing "meeting" OR "call".

AND Logic (Implicit)

Multiple terms without operators use implicit AND:

meeting work

This will match tasks containing BOTH "meeting" AND "work".

Exclusion (NOT Logic)

Use - to exclude terms:

meeting -personal

This will match tasks containing "meeting" but NOT "personal".

Grouping with Parentheses

Use parentheses for complex expressions:

(meeting OR call) -personal

This will match tasks containing "meeting" OR "call" but NOT "personal".

Multiple Exclusions

You can exclude multiple terms:

project -personal -home

This will match tasks containing "project" but excluding both "personal" and "home".

Advanced Search Examples

"send email" (projectX OR projectY) -external

Find "send email" tasks that mentions either "projectX" or "projectY" but excludes "external".

(meeting OR call) project -weekend

Find project-related meetings or calls that don't mention "weekend".

work (home OR office) -phone

Find work tasks related to home or office, excluding phone related ones.

Prefix Filters

TODOseq supports filters keywords similar to Obsidians general vault search for targeted searching.

Available Prefix Filters

Prefix	Description	Example
path:	Find tasks in specific file paths	path:Journal
file:	Find tasks in files with matching names	file:meeting.md
tag:	Find tasks containing specific tags	tag:urgent
state:	Find tasks with specific states	state:DOING
priority:	Find tasks with specific priorities	priority:high
content:	Find tasks with specific content	content:project
scheduled:	Find tasks with scheduled dates	scheduled:due
deadline:	Find tasks with deadline dates	deadline:"this week"

Using Search filters

Search filters can be used alone or combined with other search terms:

path:projects

Find all tasks in the "projects" folder.

file:meeting content:project

Find tasks in with "project" in the task detailns only in files containing "meeting" in the file name.

state:TODO priority:high

Find high priority tasks that are in TODO state.

Combining Multiple Prefixes

path:work tag:urgent state:TODO

Find #urgent tagged TODO tasks in the work folder.

file:report scheduled:"this week" priority:high

Find high priority tasks scheduled for this week in files with "report" in the file name.

Date Filter Expressions

TODOseq provides powerful date-based filtering expressions.

Basic Date Expressions

Expression	Description
overdue	Tasks that are past their deadline
due	Tasks due today or overdue
today	Tasks due today
tomorrow	Tasks due tomorrow
this week	Tasks due this week*
next week	Tasks due next week*
this month	Tasks due this month
next month	Tasks due next month

*Weeks start on Monday by default, this can be changed in the settings.

Date Expression Examples

scheduled:today

Find tasks scheduled for today.

deadline:overdue

Find tasks with overdue deadlines.

scheduled:"this week"

Find tasks scheduled for the current week.

deadline:"next month"

Find tasks with deadlines in the next month.

Next N Days Expression

scheduled:"next 7 days"

Find tasks scheduled in the next 7 days.

deadline:"next 14 days"

Find tasks with deadlines in the next 14 days.

Date Range Syntax

Use .. to specify date ranges in YYYY-MM-DD format.

Date Range Examples

scheduled:2026-01-01..2026-01-31

Find tasks scheduled in January 2026.

deadline:2026-06-01..2026-06-30

Find tasks with deadlines in June 2026.

scheduled:2026-01-01..2026-03-31

Find tasks scheduled in Q1 2026.

Combining Date Ranges with Other Filters

scheduled:2026-01-01..2026-01-31 priority:high

Find high priority tasks scheduled in January 2026.

deadline:2026-06-01..2026-06-30 state:TODO

Find TODO tasks with deadlines in June 2026.

Priority Filter Values

TODOseq supports multiple ways to filter by priority.

Value	Description
high	High priority tasks ([#A])
med	Medium priority tasks ([#B])
low	Low priority tasks ([#C])
A	Short form for high priority
B	Short form for medium priority
C	Short form for low priority
none	Tasks without priority

Priority Filter Examples

priority:high

Find high priority tasks.

priority:med -state:DOING

Find medium priority tasks excluding those in DOING state.

priority:a OR priority:b

Find high or medium priority tasks.

priority:none

Find tasks without priority assignments.

Combining Search Techniques

TODOseq allows combining all search features for powerful, targeted filtering.

Complex Query Examples

path:projects tag:urgent priority:high scheduled:"this week"

Find urgent, high priority tasks scheduled for this week in the projects folder.

(file:meeting OR file:notes) content:project state:TODO -tag:blocked

Find TODO project tasks in meeting or notes files, excluding task with the #blocked tag.

"code review" (state:TODO OR state:DOING) deadline:"next 7 days"

Find code review tasks that are TODO or DOING with deadlines in the next 7 days.

path:work/ scheduled:2026-01-01..2026-01-31 priority:A OR priority:B

Find high or medium priority tasks scheduled in January 2026 in the work folder.

Search Logic and Behavior

Search Matching Rules

1. Case Sensitivity: Off by default, toggle with A/a button
2. Whitespace: Multiple spaces are treated as single space
3. Punctuation: Most punctuation is treated as literal characters
4. Order: Search terms can appear in any order in results
5. Proximity: Terms don't need to be adjacent unless using quotes