Quick Entry

Quick Entry is the fastest way of capturing ideas in OmniFocus, and is available anywhere OmniFocus is available.

On iPhone and iPad, Quick Entry is available while OmniFocus is open, by double-tapping the Smart Add and Quick Entry button . It is also available by using Share to OmniFocus from other apps.

On Apple Vision Pro, Quick Entry is available while OmniFocus is open, by tapping the Quick Entry button . It is also available by using Share to OmniFocus from other apps.

On Mac, Quick Entry is available while OmniFocus is open, by clicking the Quick Entry button in the Toolbar, or using the Show/Hide Quick Entry command. It is also available by using Share to OmniFocus from other apps. You can also use the Quick Entry Shortcut from anywhere on Mac, as long as OmniFocus is running.

Quick Entry acts like a mini Inbox and can be used to add one or more new items, filling in as much information as you desire. When Quick Entry first opens, there will be a new action row available for editing. Enter a title for your new action, then click or tap into each desired field (or use Bare Key Editing with an external keyboard).

Once you have finished adding your new action, you can click or tap Save, or tap the Smart Add button in the bottom right (on iPhone, iPad, and Apple Vision Pro) to add another action. If you click or tap Cancel, your newly entered actions will be discarded.

Quick Entry on Mac

You can use Quick Entry from anywhere on your Mac, using a Quick Entry Shortcut that you choose, as long as OmniFocus is running in the background.

While the Quick Entry window is open, you can use Tab and Shift-Tab to navigate between fields. This is often faster than using Bare Key Editing, which requires ending editing between every change, and may result in closing the window too quickly.

Quick Entry keyboard shortcuts also work a little differently, depending on which Outlining Mode you have selected.

When in Modern Mode:

When in Classic Mode:

Share to OmniFocus

When you are using another app, and there is something that you would like to add to OmniFocus, you can Share to OmniFocus. You may want to capture a webpage in Safari, a picture in Photos (iPhone, iPad, or Apple Vision Pro only) or a file; if the other app supports sharing something, OmniFocus will do its best to either capture it, or link to it.

Depending on the app, you may need to select something first, or a selection may be optional; Safari will send slightly different information depending on whether you have selected anything on a webpage.

Click or tap the Share button in the app’s toolbar, or choose Share from the Shortcut menu of the selected item, then choose OmniFocus from the list of apps that appear. If you are on Mac, select File > Share > OmniFocus (if the app has included support).

You will see the standard Quick Entry form for Mac, iPhone, iPad, or Apple Vision Pro.

The form may be pre-filled with information relevant to the information you’re sending to OmniFocus (website URLs in the note field and a title already entered, for example). Edit these if you like, add any other properties, and then click or tap Save when you’re ready to send it to your Inbox.

If OmniFocus doesn’t appear in the list of apps, read these Apple User Guide articles to learn how to add OmniFocus to your sharing options:

Clippings on Mac

OmniFocus on Mac combines Quick Entry and Share to OmniFocus into a Clippings service that can be used from other Mac apps.

To clip content from another application:

• Select text or images in any application that supports macOS Services (most native Mac apps).
• Press your chosen Clippings shortcut, or choose OmniFocus > Services > OmniFocus 4: Send to Inbox.
• A new action row is created in Quick Entry, ready for editing and saving, with a text-only version of your selection as the title, and the highlighted content (rich text and embedded images) included in the note.

Setting a Clippings Shortcut

You need to visit System Settings to set a keyboard shortcut for the Clippings service.

OmniFocus provides a button to take you to the right area of settings, but due to Apple security restrictions, we can only get you part of the way there. Use these instructions for complete guidance on configuring your shortcut:

1. Choose Settings… from the OmniFocus menu.

2. Click on the Set Shortcut… button , which will open the Keyboard Shortcuts pane in Keyboard settings.

3. Click Services in the sidebar.

   

4. Click the disclosure arrow to reveal the Text section (if not already open).

   

5. Scroll down to find the OmniFocus 4: Send to Inbox item.

   

6. Make sure the service is enabled.

7. Double-click on “none” to set a keyboard shortcut.

Mail Drop

Mail Drop is a feature of the Omni Sync Server, which lets you send emails directly to your Inbox.

In addition to using Mail Drop for your own email, you can create multiple private addresses to give access to third parties, and delete those addresses at any time.

In order to use Mail Drop, you’ll need to have a free Omni Account, and OmniFocus must be actively syncing with that Omni Account.

If you are already using Omni Sync Server, you can log in to the Omni Sync Server site and create your first Mail Drop address by clicking or tapping on Add an Address.

An email address will be automatically generated, combining your Omni Account name with a random string of characters. You can start using that address to send or forward emails.

When you send an email message to a Mail Drop address, the subject line of that message becomes the name of the new Inbox item. The body of the message, which can contain text and simple HTML, becomes the note. Email attachments (such as images) are also added as OmniFocus attachments.

Read the OmniFocus Mail Drop support article for more details about this feature.

Plain Text

If you have a list of actions in another file, OmniFocus can turn those into a set of actions, using line breaks to determine where one item ends and the next begins.

Select the text you would like to add to OmniFocus, and Copy it. In OmniFocus, select an item row (without editing any fields), then Paste to add the copied text as a list of items below the one you have selected.

The items will be pasted at the same level as the row you selected. If you would like to paste text as a list of actions in a project, select an existing action inside the project before pasting (selecting the project results in a pasted list of projects, instead of actions).

OmniOutliner

OmniFocus integrates with OmniOutliner, so you can outline a project or agenda in OmniOutliner, then easily bring it to OmniFocus, to take action.

There are three ways to bring your OmniOutliner data into OmniFocus. One is only available on Mac, and the others are also available on iPhone, iPad, and Apple Vision Pro:

• On Mac, use the Import OmniOutliner Document command. You will be prompted to choose an OmniOutliner document, which will be imported into OmniFocus. The OmniOutliner rows become OmniFocus items, and its columns become fields for those items (you can choose which column imports to each field, as part of the import process).
• Drag a selection of rows from an OmniOutliner document, and drop them into the Inbox, or inside a project or group. The rows will become actions or groups, with hierarchy preserved. (On Mac, you can choose which column imports to each field).
• Select any number of rows in an OmniOutliner document and Copy. Paste them into the Inbox, or inside a project or group. The rows will become actions or groups, with hierarchy preserved. (On Mac, you can choose which column imports to each field).

OmniFocus for the Web

When you aren’t able to use OmniFocus on your Mac, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, or Apple Vision Pro, you might want to consider OmniFocus for the Web.

OmniFocus for the Web is our browser-based companion app, that works alongside OmniFocus on all your Apple devices and platforms. Using a Windows device at work? Have your iPhone with you, but want a bigger screen? OmniFocus for the Web can be very handy!

Unlike our native apps, which are available as either traditional licenses or subscriptions, OmniFocus for the Web is only available as a subscription. It is included as part of an OmniFocus subscription, or can be added on to your existing OmniFocus license, on a recurring basis.