Last year, the Mac gained a built-in clipboard manager, which intends macOS tin yet retrieve everything you've copied. This characteristic is abnormal by default, but it's easy to alteration to support way of the text, photos, and different files successful your clipboard. The drawback is that you request to beryllium running macOS 26 Tahoe to usage the built-in clipboard manager, which isn't an action for those pinch older Macs. What's more, Apple's implementation of the clipboard head is basic. While it useful good for most, if you request much features, you're going to person to usage third-party alternatives. Luckily, location are plentifulness of fantabulous choices.
Spotlight search: The champion clipboard head for astir people
Not everyone needs an precocious clipboard manager. For astir people, an app that does the basics is bully enough, and it's moreover amended if that app ships pinch your Mac. As agelong arsenic your Mac is moving macOS 26 Tahoe, you tin usage the built-in clipboard manager. I wrote astir using Spotlight arsenic your clipboard manager, and it's been ace convenient. You request to alteration it by going to System Settings > Spotlight > Results from Clipboard, but aft that, you're each set. Spotlight will log everything you copy, isolated from delicate accusation such arsenic passwords. You tin past entree each of your clipboard entries by pressing Command-Space (or clicking that magnifying solid successful your Mac's paper bar) and past Command-4.
This characteristic is bully capable to get started pinch clipboard management, but it doesn't sync clipboard history crossed devices aliases support features for illustration categorizing copied items by type. If you request precocious features to velocity up your workflow, you'll person to trust connected third-party apps. It's besides worthy noting that if you use Spotlight alternatives specified arsenic Alfred aliases Raycast, those apps vessel pinch clipboard managers, too. You don't person to move backmost to Spotlight conscionable for this feature.
Maccy: A simple, free clipboard head for older Macs
If you can't instal macOS Tahoe connected your Mac, aliases if you usage an older Mac that isn't supported immoderate longer, you tin download Maccy to get a fast, free, and open-source clipboard head that's conscionable arsenic bully arsenic Apple's built-in feature. Maccy is simply a lightweight paper barroom app that displays clipboard history erstwhile you click its icon. It besides lets you quickly hunt done your clipboard entries and functions reliably without getting successful the measurement of your work. Plus, you tin group up a database of applications to ignore, which intends that you tin extremity it from storing information erstwhile you transcript from delicate apps specified arsenic Slack aliases Microsoft Teams, among others.
Download: Maccy (free via GitHub, besides disposable for $10 connected the Mac App Store, aliases for $5 via Gumroad).
PastePal: A awesome paid clipboard manager
I bought PastePal a twelvemonth ago, and it has served maine good ever since. This app is disposable arsenic a one-time acquisition astatine a reasonable price, and it has beautiful overmuch each characteristic you could inquire for. In summation to basal clipboard management, it lets you automatically region search URLs from links, aliases toggle shape matter betwixt uppercase and lowercase. I besides emotion that it lets you edit items you've copied, which makes life a batch easier erstwhile you've accidentally copied a fewer other characters pinch your text.
PastePal besides supports sequential paste, which intends that you tin transcript a bunch of items and paste them one-by-one. This is awesome for speeding up repetitive tasks specified arsenic copying from 1 model and pasting successful another. My only title pinch this app is that its interface is not ace intuitive. If you for illustration your apps to beryllium pretty, you will beryllium disappointed here. While PastePal has each the features you need, you'll person to walk immoderate clip digging done settings to make the astir of them. That's an acceptable discuss for me, but it whitethorn not beryllium for others. You person the action of buying PastePal nonstop from the developer aliases from the Mac App Store. The App Store acquisition besides unlocks the app connected iPhone and iPad, successful summation to Mac.
Download: PastePal ($15 via Mac App Store aliases a direct purchase)
Pastebot 3: Best for transforming text, applying smart filters
The developers of Tweetbot (RIP) launched a caller type of their clipboard head app for Mac—Pastebot 3—in July 2026. This app gets each the basics of clipboard guidance right, and adds a furniture of smart filters connected top. This intends that Pastebot tin do things for illustration automatically person copied matter to title case, uppercase, and different matter transformations. It tin moreover extract links from copied matter and put those for you successful a format of your choice, specified arsenic 1 nexus per line. These filters vessel pinch the app: You tin delegate civilization keyboard shortcuts to trigger them, and you're free to create civilization filters that activity champion for your workflow.
Pastebot besides lets you create "Smart Pastebins," which are for illustration having smart folders successful your clipboard manager. The elemental type of this automatically identifies links aliases images successful the clipboard and groups them. You tin heighten that by creating your ain Pastebin by choosing a root app to trigger it, and defining the conditions that adhd items to that folder. For instance, I've group up a Smart Pastebin for matter copied from Ulysses, which is my favourite penning app connected the Mac. This allows maine to benignant and find work-related clipboard entries quickly.
My only awesome title pinch Pastebot is its deficiency of an iPhone app. The developers propose utilizing Apple's cosmopolitan clipboard to move items betwixt an iPhone and a Mac. That's good erstwhile the characteristic works, but it's frustrating erstwhile cosmopolitan clipboard occasionally fails. Pastebot for Mac has a two-week free trial, and aft that you tin either bargain it straight from the developers for a one-time fee, aliases motion up for a subscription via the Mac App Store.
Download: Pastebot ($3/month aliases $25/year via Mac App Store; one-time acquisition interest is $39)
Paste: Pricey, but the champion clipboard head overall
I deliberation Paste is the champion clipboard head for Apple devices overall. It's feature-filled and has the champion interface that you could inquire for successful this benignant of app. It reliably handles your clipboard history, lets you take which apps to exclude from its tracking, allows you to shape and pin items, and supports precocious features specified arsenic extracting matter from images and sequential pasting.
It besides uses a alternatively elemental and intuitive keyboard shortcut (Command-Shift-V) to unfastened aliases adjacent the clipboard history panel. Plus, location are other touches, specified arsenic letting you position a preview of a webpage erstwhile you've copied a nexus to it. This makes it easy to cheque if a nexus is moving earlier you paste it into an app. It's an wide neat and thoughtful app that's good worthy recommending. Its only awesome drawback is the deficiency of matter translator and automation rules, and I dream that the developers adhd that successful early updates.
Paste is disposable connected the Mac App Store, but its premium tier requires a subscription fee. This unlocks the app connected each devices and lets you sync your clipboard history. I deliberation it's a spot pricey, but it is the champion third-party clipboard head for astir people. That said, its one-time acquisition interest is measurement excessively precocious erstwhile compared pinch the competition.
Download: Paste ($4/month aliases $30/year; one-time acquisition interest is $90)
Pranay Parab is an independent tech journalist based successful Mumbai, India. He covers tech for Lifehacker, and specializes successful tutorials and in-depth features.
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