To collect related notes on your Mac, add the same tag to each note, then create a Smart Folder whose rule matches that tag. Notes will show references to every matching note together while the originals stay in their existing folders. This workflow suits a reader who wants one changing view of notes for a task—such as receipts to review or research to revisit—without moving those notes into a new folder.

Decide what the tag should mean

Choose a short, reusable label for the group you want to collect. For example, use #trip-planning for notes you want to review while planning a trip, or #follow-up for notes that need another look. These are examples, not special built-in tags: Notes recognizes a tag when you type # followed by its name in a note. A tag can appear anywhere in the note, and Apple documents that tag names are one word, with hyphens or underscores allowed. Use tags in Notes on Mac

Each tag should name a category you expect to reuse, rather than a detail that changes from note to note. A Smart Folder built around #follow-up, for instance, can gather matching notes across folders; a tag containing a full sentence or a unique description for one note is harder to reuse. This is a practical naming approach, not a Notes requirement.

Add the tag to notes on your Mac

  1. Open Notes and select a note, or create one with the New Note button.
  2. Click in the note where the tag should appear. Type # and the tag name, such as #follow-up. If Notes offers an existing tag in its suggestions, you can select that instead.
  3. Repeat for each note you want to collect. Use the same spelling each time; #follow-up and #followup are different labels.
  4. Check the Tags section at the bottom of the sidebar. Your tag should appear there after you add it. If the sidebar is hidden, use the View menu to show it; Apple’s current guide labels this View > Show Sidebar.

You can put a tag at the end of a note as a simple convention, but Apple says it may appear anywhere. A tag can include hyphens or underscores, while spaces are not part of a single-word tag. For example, use #meeting-notes rather than #meeting notes. Apple’s Mac guide to tags

Create a Smart Folder for that tag

  1. In Notes, choose File > New Smart Folder.
  2. Give the folder a descriptive name, such as Follow-up notes. Choose a name that explains the collection’s purpose; the tag itself is the filter.
  3. In the rule controls, choose Tags as the criterion, then choose the tag you applied to your notes. The available menus depend on the selected rule.
  4. Click OK. The Smart Folder appears in the sidebar and lists notes that match the filter.

Apple documents another route: choose File > New Folder, then select Make into Smart Folder in the dialog. Either way, set a tag rule so the folder collects the notes you intend. Apple describes Smart Folders as references to notes stored in other folders. They do not contain a separate copy of each note, so collecting notes in this view does not require moving them out of their original folders. Use Smart Folders in Notes on Mac

Choose one tag rule or combine filters

A single tag rule is usually the clearest setup when the goal is simply to collect every note carrying one label. If a collection needs more conditions, add rules using the Add button in the Smart Folder criteria. Apple’s controls let you choose whether a note must meet all criteria or any criteria when there is more than one rule.

For example, a Smart Folder with a tag rule and a date rule can narrow the view to notes carrying that tag that also meet the date condition. Choose all when every condition should apply to each result; choose any when a note that matches one of the criteria is enough. The exact available choices depend on the rule type. Read the rule labels in the dialog before saving, and check the results to confirm the collection matches the task. Apple’s Smart Folder instructions

Use the folder and keep it current

Open the Smart Folder whenever you want to see the collection. When you add the matching tag to another note, that note meets the folder’s criteria and appears in the collection. Remove the tag from a note when it no longer belongs; keep the note in its original folder if you still need it there. This gives you a repeatable routine: tag notes as you create or review them, then use the Smart Folder as the task-specific view.

You can also test the tag before making a Smart Folder: click it in the Tags section of the sidebar to search for notes with that tag. If you select multiple tags, Apple provides an All Selected or Any Selected choice for that tag search. The Tag Browser is useful for a quick check; the Smart Folder makes a named view that stays in the sidebar. Use tags in Notes on Mac

Fix a collection that looks wrong

If a note is missing, open it and check that the tag is present with the exact spelling used by the Smart Folder. Then edit the folder’s rule: Control-click the Smart Folder in the sidebar and choose Edit Smart Folder, or point to it and use its More button. Confirm the tag criterion, and check whether multiple rules are set to all when you expected any, or the reverse. Apple says a Smart Folder must have at least one filter.

To change a tag name everywhere, Control-click that tag in the sidebar and choose Rename Tag. Apple says renaming updates notes and Smart Folders that use it. Deleting a tag removes it from notes and Smart Folders using it; if a Smart Folder contains only that tag, Notes may ask whether to delete the folder. Review the impact before choosing Delete. Use tags in Notes on Mac

Know what a Smart Folder does not do

A Smart Folder is a saved filtered view, not a new storage location. Apple says deleting a Smart Folder does not delete the notes it references. Smart Folders also cannot be locked, made into subfolders, or shared, though they can reference shared notes. If you need a shared collection or a locked location, this feature does not supply that directly. Use Smart Folders in Notes on Mac

Avoid converting an existing folder just to get a Smart Folder view unless you intend to change how those notes are organized. Apple says conversion moves the folder’s notes to the Notes folder and tags them with the former folder name; the conversion cannot be undone. Instead, create a new Smart Folder using File > New Smart Folder and define its tag rule. Use Smart Folders in Notes on Mac

For work that also involves gathering already-open Mac windows and next steps by goal, Wallo may be relevant alongside Notes. Its workflow is to organize open windows and to-dos locally, with keyboard focusing; it does not create this Notes tag collection. Use Notes for the tagged-note view and Wallo only if organizing the active windows and tasks around the same goal would help. Wallo

Sources