How to Use Your Clipboard on Android: A Step-by-Step Guide

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Copy and paste with ease using your Android's clipboard

Written by Hannah Dillon

Last Updated: January 5, 2026 Fact Checked

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Using Gboard

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Using the Visual Clipboard

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Using a Third-Party Clipboard Manager

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Video

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Q&A

If you use an Android device, there are several ways to access your clipboard. The best way is to use Gboard, which is the default keyboard on certain Android devices. Alternatively, you can install it from the Google Play Store. You can also use the visual clipboard or a different third-party clipboard manager. In this wikiHow article, we'll teach you how to access your Android clipboard three different ways. Read on to learn more.

Accessing the Android Clipboard

The best way to access the clipboard on your Android device is to use Gboard, which is the default keyboard for many Android devices. You can also use the visual clipboard, but this only stores your most recently copied text. There are also third-party clipboard managers that you can use, as well.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Using Gboard

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1
Install Gboard from the Play Store if you're not already using it
. In addition to being a great keyboard app, Gboard also acts as a clipboard manager, allowing you to see all of the things you've copied in the last hour instead of just the most recent string. Gboard is the default keyboard app on most Android devices, but you can also install it from the Play Store on other models.
- Ensure that Gboard is set as your default keyboard so you can use the clipboard manager.
- Since the default clipboard only allows you to copy and paste without seeing your copy and paste history, this is the best option for a clipboard manager aside from installing a third-party app.
This can be a note-taking app, a messaging app, Google Docs, or a similar app.

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This will open the Gboard keyboard.
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Tap the clipboard icon. It should be in the row just above the letters on the keyboard. The contents of your clipboard will expand at the bottom in place of the keyboard.^{[1]
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- If you don't see the clipboard, tap the three dots near the top-right corner of the keyboard and tap the clipboard icon.
- If the clipboard isn't turned on, you'll be prompted to tap the switch to turn it on now.
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Tap a clipboard option to paste it into the current typing area. You can tap as many of the options on the clipboard as you'd like.^{[2]
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- If you want to keep a particular string of text copied to the clipboard for longer than an hour, tap-and-hold it, and then tap the pin.^{[3]
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- To delete a clipboard entry, tap and hold it, and then tap the trash bin icon.

Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Using the Visual Clipboard

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If you're using Android 13 or later, you can use the visual clipboard to see all copied or cut text. Find any article, message, or note that you would like to copy a portion of, and press and hold to copy your text.
Once you copy a piece of text in Android 13, a visual clipboard will appear at the bottom of your screen. Tap to open it.^{[4]
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Edit clipboard text. The visual clipboard notes where you copied the text from ("From Twitter" or "From WhatsApp") and allows you to edit the text as you please. Your changes will automatically be saved to your clipboard for pasting.
- You may also tap the "Share" icon next to the visual clipboard pop-up to immediately share the copied text elsewhere.
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Tap Done. When you are happy with your edits in the clipboard, tap Done in the top-left corner of your screen.
- Note that the visual clipboard will only display your most recently copied text. To view older copied text, you must use Gboard or a different clipboard manager.

Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Using a Third-Party Clipboard Manager

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1
Install Clipboard Manager from the Play Store
. Clipboard Manager is a completely free clipboard manager that saves all copied content to a single location. You can upgrade to the paid version if you want to store an unlimited amount of data, but the free app is perfect for most users.
- There are multiple clipboard manager apps in the Google Play Store. If you don't want to use Clipboard Manager, you can always download another one. They should all work similarly, but the steps below are specifically for Clipboard Manager.
It's the blue-and-white clipboard app on your home screen or in the app drawer.
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Set up Clipboard Manager for the first time. The first time you use Clipboard Manager, you'll need to complete a brief introductory lesson that teaches you how to use the app. After that, you'll be taken to the "Advertising" page, where you can choose the types of ads you want to see. To set up your preferences:
- Select Show personalized ads if you don't mind Clipboard Manager using your personal data to show you relevant ads, or Show non-personal ads to see a random ad assortment. Alternatively, you could tap Upgrade to Clipper Plus if you're okay with paying for an ad-free version.
- On the next screen, choose whether to send crash reports to the developer. Once selected, you'll be ready to start using Clipboard Manager.
- Tap the three dots at the top-right corner to control your Clipboard Manager settings. This is where you can turn Clipper on or off and customize the user interface.
You can tap the blue-and-white clipboard icon in your app list, or swipe down from the top of the screen and select Clipboard Manager from the notification panel.
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Organize your copied items. The Snippets tab is the default location where your copied items are stored. You may have to tap the menu at the top-left if you don't already see this tab. Each copied item will display the time it was copied.
- If you want to organize copied items, you can tap the plus on the menu to create a new tab. To add a clip from Snippets to the new location, tap the three dots on the clip, select Move, and tap the new tab's name.
- Tap the three dots to the right of a copied item to access other menu options such as the option to Pin, Delete, Edit, and Share.

Community Q&A

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Question

How do I retrieve a message saved to the clipboard?

Tim Newman

Community Answer

Long-press on a text field and the option to paste should come up. Press this and whatever was in your clipboard should be typed. Alternatively, SwiftKey keyboard should have a list of text you have saved to your device.

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Question

How do I clear data off my clipboard?

Community Answer

Long press the phone. In call option, you will find two options: clipboard and paste. Press on clipboard, then delete it .

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Question

I recently "copied to clipboard" an important item to o my pixel6a. How can I find it to view it?

Devman2023

Community Answer

Hold on to a textbox and click on the clipboard. You then need to select the thing you copied.

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