Omnivore and Logseq: A Complete Guide
Our complete guide to using Omnivore and Logseq together.
There is a lot of knowledge out there on the internet. It takes time and effort to sift through it, retrieve the information that is useful to you, and keep it organized. A web clipper tool like Omnivore streamlines that process — and allows you to pull that knowledge into your digital garden.
Using Omnivore and Logseq together is the most efficient, frictionless way to organize your reading and integrate your saved articles, highlights, and notes into your second brain.
Here’s some background info on both tools — and pro tips for using them together effectively.
What is Omnivore?
Originally developed as a read-it-later app, Omnivore has evolved into a comprehensive open-source reading platform with apps for iOS and Android and extensions for all major web browsers.
Web clipper tool lets you save articles, newsletter subscriptions, and PDFs to read later
Reader view removes ads and clutter for focused and distraction free reading
Highlight and add notes while you read
What is Logseq?
If you’re reading this, you probably have a pretty solid understanding of this popular knowledge management system. But just in case, here’s a quick rundown.
Designed for managing and collaborating around your personal knowledge base
Write, organize and share your thoughts; keep to-do lists; and build your own digital garden
Works on top of local plain-text Markdown and Org-mode files
For more information about Logseq, check out their site.
How do Omnivore and Logseq work together?
Read and annotate articles in Omnivore, then use the plug-in to pull your data into Logseq. That way you can integrate and manage all your knowledge in one place.
Save articles, PDFs, and newsletters to your Omnivore library using mobile apps and browser extensions
Add highlights and notes while you read
Use the plug-in to sync your reading list, highlights, and notes into Logseq
Because they are organized by date, they appear in your Logseq journal as a handy diary of the day’s most important new knowledge
How Dario da Silva uses Omnivore
You might recognize Dario from Logseq’s site (ok, his hair might look a little different these days). Not only is Dario an authority on Logseq, he’s also an Omnivore user.
In this video, Dario explains how he uses Omnivore and Logseq to read articles.
Setting up the Omnivore plug-in in Logseq
Installing and configuring the Omnivore plug-in takes just a few minutes.
Search for Omnivore in the Logseq plug-in marketplace
Tap Install to get the plug-in
Add the API key
On the Omnivore website or app, tap your photo, initial, or avatar in the top right corner to access the profile menu and select API Key
Tap Create and enter a name for the new key (such as “Logseq API”)
Set expiration to “Never” and tap Generate
Tap Copy
Return to Logseq and open the settings for the Omnivore plug-in
Paste the API key to complete setup
Syncing between Omnivore and Logseq
How you use the two tools together is up to you. You can sync your entire Omnivore library, just the articles that you have annotated with highlights, or articles tagged with a specific keyword.
In Logseq, go to the settings for the Omnivore plug-in
Under Select an Omnivore search filter type, select “import all my articles” or “import just highlights”
You can also select “custom” and then enter a search term; only articles that match that search will be synced
Controlling which articles are synced with Logseq
The Omnivore plug-in pulls data from Omnivore into Logseq. If you’d like more control of which articles are included in that data, you can create a custom label to emulate pushing from Omnivore to Logseq.
Create a custom label in Omnivore
Tap the Menu icon next to any link and select Set Labels
Tap Edit Labels to create a new label (i.e. “Sent to Logseq”)
Add that label to any articles in your library that you want to sync
Use the custom label as a search filter in Logseq
In Logseq, go to the settings for the Omnivore plug-in
Under Select an Omnivore search filter type, select “custom”
Type “label:Sent to Logseq” in the blank field
Going forward, Logseq will only import articles you tag with this label
Customizing the layout of imported articles
If you want to customize the way imported articles appear in Logseq, you can define and edit templates using the Mustache programming language.
The following variables are available to library item templates:
title (required): The saved title of the library item (note that you can edit the titles in Omnivore if the saved version is not descriptive enough)
omnivoreUrl (required): A link directly to the library item in Omnivore
siteName: The name of the site the item was published on, if a site name is not found in the metadata this will fallback to a domain name.
author: If found in the article metadata, the author of the library item.
labels: A list of labels (aka tags) that were attached to this item.
dateSaved: The date/time that item was saved into your Omnivore library.
The following variables are available to highlight item templates:
text (required): The highlighted text from the library item.
highlightUrl (required): A deep link to the highlight in Omnivore’s reader view
labels: A list of labels (aka tags) that were attached to this highlight
dateHighlighted: The date/time the highlight was created.
Note that both templates have some required attributes. These attributes are required as they are used for detected changes and preventing duplicates when changes occur to existing items (for example, if you add a new label to a highlight in Omnivore).
Learning More and Getting Involved
If you’d like to learn more about Omnivore you can checkout https://docs.omnivore.app if something isn’t addressed in this guide or you just want to reach out and say hi, please feel free to join our community on Discord.
Please feel free to add issues to the Logseq Omnivore plugin repo and while you are there maybe star the repo to help our marketplace ranking.