The best clipboard manager for Mac

The best clipboard manager for Mac depends on what you need: Maccy if you want free and fast, Raycast or Alfred if you already use a launcher, and Paste for a visual history on Mac, iPhone and iPad. PasteNotch, our own app, fits if you want your history in the MacBook notch, with copied images searchable by their text, for $4.99 once.

Which clipboard managers for Mac are worth a look?

Here are eight options side by side. Prices are in US dollars unless the maker only lists another currency.

What is the best free clipboard manager for Mac?

Maccy

• Who it's for: anyone who wants a light, fast history and works from the keyboard.
• Price: free and open source under the MIT license. The Mac App Store version costs $9.99. It needs macOS Sonoma 14 or later.
• Standout: press ⇧⌘C, type to search, press Return. Pin an item with ⌥P and it stays at the top.
• Limitation: history is stored locally on one Mac. Its site lists no sync to other devices.

Clipy

• Who it's for: people who want history and a set of saved text snippets in one free app.
• Price: free, open source under the MIT license. It needs macOS 13 or later.
• Standout: snippets. Save text you type often and paste it from a menu with ⇧⌘B. History opens with ⌃⌘V.
• Limitation: its site and README don't mention search or sync.

Spotlight clipboard history (built into macOS)

• Who it's for: people on macOS Tahoe 26 or later who want to recover something they copied earlier today, with nothing to install.
• Price: free, part of macOS.
• Standout: press ⌘Space, then ⌘4, and search what you copied.
• Limitation: you can keep items for 30 minutes, 8 hours or 7 days, and no longer. Our clipboard history guide covers how to turn it on.

Which one is best if you already use a launcher?

Raycast

• Who it's for: Raycast users who want clipboard history in the same search box as everything else.
• Price: free. Pro costs $10 a month or $96 a year.
• Standout: it keeps text, images, colors and links, lets you pin entries, and encrypts the history on your disk. Passwords from password managers are skipped by default.
• Limitation: the free plan keeps history for 3 months. Unlimited history needs Pro.

Alfred

• Who it's for: Alfred users who already own, or want, the Powerpack.
• Price: Alfred's core is free. Clipboard history is part of the Powerpack: £34 for a single license, or £59 for Mega Supporter with free lifetime upgrades.
• Standout: keeps text, images and file links, and fits into Alfred's workflows and hotkeys.
• Limitation: clipboard history is off by default, and the longest you can keep it is 3 months.

Which is best for a visual history across your Apple devices?

Paste

• Who it's for: people who want the same history on Mac, iPhone and iPad.
• Price: $29.99 a year, with monthly and lifetime plans also offered. One plan covers Mac, iPhone and iPad. It's also part of Setapp.
• Standout: unlimited history shown as cards, Pinboards for things you reuse, and sync across your devices.
• Limitation: the free trial is 7 days, and most plans are subscriptions.

Comparing the two directly? See our Paste alternative page.

Which is best for power users who transform text?

Pastebot

• Who it's for: people who clean up or reformat text as they paste.
• Price: $39 from Tapbots with one year of updates, or a $24.99 yearly (or monthly) subscription on the Mac App Store. Both have a 14-day trial.
• Standout: stackable filters, Smart Pastebins with rules, and stacks you paste one item at a time with ⌃⌘V. iCloud sync keeps clippings and filters the same between Macs.
• Limitation: it needs macOS 26 Tahoe or later.

Which one lives in the MacBook notch?

PasteNotch (our app)

• Who it's for: people who want their history one move away at the top of the screen, and who copy a lot of screenshots and images.
• Price: free for 14 days after a free sign-in with Google or email, then $4.99 once. No subscription. An optional PasteNotch Cloud plan is $4.99 a month with 25 GB and includes the app. It needs macOS 14 or later and works on Macs with or without a notch.
• Standout: open it from the notch or with ⇧⌘V. Copied images are read on your Mac, so you can search them by the text inside. Group clips into Pages, pin favorites, and sync through your own iCloud. Your library stays local unless you choose Cloud.
• Limitation: the iPhone app is still in internal testing and not on the App Store. Screenshots, recording and share links need the Cloud plan. It's made by one developer.

How do you choose?

• You only need something you copied a few hours ago: try Spotlight's clipboard history first.
• You want free and fast: Maccy. Coming from Maccy and want more? See our Maccy alternative page.
• You already live in Raycast or Alfred: use the clipboard history you already have.
• You want one history across Mac, iPhone and iPad today: Paste.
• You reformat text all day: Pastebot.
• You want a visual history in the notch, text search in images, and one small payment: PasteNotch.