How to copy and paste on Mac
Copy and paste is the most-used action on any Mac, and there is more to it than ⌘ C ⌘ V. Here is every way to do it — including how to paste clean text and how to recover something you copied earlier.
Copy and paste with keyboard shortcuts
The fastest way, and worth committing to memory:
- Copy: select text or a file, then press ⌘ C.
- Paste: place your cursor and press ⌘ V.
- Cut: ⌘ X (removes and copies; in Finder, cut a file then paste to move it with ⌘ ⌥ V).
- Select all: ⌘ A before copying to grab everything.
Copy and paste from the menu or right-click
Prefer the mouse? Every app exposes the same actions:
- Edit menu: the menu bar’s Edit menu has Copy, Cut, and Paste.
- Right-click (or Control-click): select, then right-click and choose Copy or Paste.
- Drag and drop: in many apps you can drag selected text or files directly to a new location to move or copy them.
How to paste without formatting
Pasting from the web often drags fonts and colours along. To paste plain text that matches your document, try Paste and Match Style: ⌘ ⌥ ⇧ V. It works in many apps but not all — for a reliable method everywhere, see how to paste without formatting on Mac. To strip tracking links, smart quotes, and hidden characters from text you have already copied, run it through Clean Paste, our free in-browser text cleaner.
The hidden limitation: Mac remembers only your last copy
Here is what trips people up: macOS keeps only the most recent thing you copied. Copy something new and the previous item is gone — there is no built-in history (why macOS has no clipboard history). If you have ever copied something, copied a second thing, then needed the first one back — you have hit this limit.
How to get back things you copied earlier
The fix is a clipboard manager, which records every copy so you can search and reuse it. With the free, open-source Maccy: press ⌘ ⇧ C, type to find any earlier copy, and press ↵ to paste it. See how to see clipboard history on Mac.
Quick reference
| Shortcut | |
|---|---|
| Copy | ⌘ C |
| Paste | ⌘ V |
| Cut | ⌘ X |
| Paste & Match Style | ⌘ ⌥ ⇧ V |
| Open clipboard history (Maccy) | ⌘ ⇧ C |
Master the four basics, then add a clipboard manager — together they cover everything copy-and-paste on a Mac can do. New to Mac utilities? Start with Maccy for beginners.
Basic copy and paste on Mac
The fundamental macOS clipboard shortcuts:
- ⌘C — Copy selected text, image, or file
- ⌘X — Cut (copy and remove from original)
- ⌘V — Paste
- ⌘⇧V — Paste and Match Style (paste as plain text in most apps)
- ⌘Z — Undo (reverts the paste if you change your mind)
The limitation macOS doesn’t mention
The macOS clipboard stores only one item at a time. Copy something new, and the previous item is permanently gone. This has been the behaviour since the first Mac in 1984.
For users who copy multiple things during a workflow — a list of links, a set of addresses, several code snippets — this means constantly switching back to the source to re-copy items you already copied once.
Copy + paste between apps
The clipboard works across all apps:
- Copy text in Safari → paste in Notes
- Copy an image in Photos → paste in Mail (embeds the image)
- Copy a file in Finder → paste in a folder (moves the file)
- Copy code in Xcode → paste in Terminal
Format compatibility depends on what the destination app accepts. Most apps accept plain text; fewer accept rich text or images.
Universal Clipboard (copy on iPhone, paste on Mac)
If your Mac and iPhone are signed in to the same Apple ID and on the same Wi-Fi network, you can copy on one device and paste on the other within a few seconds. This is called Universal Clipboard and works automatically with no setup required.
Important: Universal Clipboard only syncs the single most recent copied item and works for a limited time window (a few minutes). For persistent cross-device clipboard history, use Maccy with iCloud sync.
Upgrade to clipboard history with Maccy
Once you have a clipboard manager installed, copy+paste becomes dramatically more powerful:
- Every copy is automatically saved in a searchable history
- Access any previous copy with a keyboard shortcut
- Pin frequently-used snippets for instant access
- Paste without formatting with one key combination
Install Maccy in two minutes — download here. See the beginner setup guide.