Best appsPublished November 10, 2026Updated November 10, 20269 min read

Best clipboard manager for Android

Android lets only your keyboard or the app on screen read the clipboard, and that one rule decides which clipboard apps actually work. Here are seven options, from the keyboard you already have to apps that share the clipboard with a computer.

Short answer

For most people it is the clipboard in your keyboard: Gboard and Samsung Keyboard both have a Clipboard button in their toolbar, and Microsoft SwiftKey adds a one-hour sync of your last copy to Windows. For a longer history kept entirely offline, HeliBoard is a free, open-source keyboard. Since Android 10, only the active keyboard or the app on screen can read the clipboard, which is why keyboards capture most reliably. For the same history on a computer, use KDE Connect for single text items on your network, or Clypy for a synced, searchable history (its Android keyboard and sync are Pro).

How this guide was checked

Each app's platforms, price, licence and capture method were checked on its own site, Play Store listing, repository or support pages in November 2026, and Android's clipboard rules were checked against Google's developer documentation. The apps were not benchmarked against each other. Clypy's behavior was checked against its source code.

Reviewed by the Clypy product team

On this page

Android clipboard managers compared
The short list
Why the keyboard decides what gets saved on Android
When the keyboard you have is enough
Keeping your keyboard: apps that capture another way
Sharing the clipboard with a computer
Clypy: the same history on Android and your computers
How this list was put together
Common questions
Official sources

Android clipboard managers compared

App	How it captures	History	Reaches a computer	Price
Gboard	As your keyboard	Recent; pinned items stay	Not documented	Free
Samsung Keyboard	As your keyboard	Recent items	Windows via Phone Link	Free, built in
Microsoft SwiftKey	As your keyboard	1 hour unless pinned	Last copy to Windows, 1 hour	Free
HeliBoard	As your keyboard	Retention you set	No, works offline	Free, open source
Clipboard+	Open app, bubble, selection menu, optional accessibility	Text and images	Windows app (Pro)	Free with ads, Pro
KDE Connect	Tap Send clipboard, or an adb grant	None	Windows, Mac, Linux on your network	Free, open source
Clypy	Its keyboard (Pro), or open, share, Save to Clypy	No item limit; 90 days by default, forever if you choose	Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone (Pro)	Free, Pro $29.99 once

The short list

Best if Gboard is already your keyboard
Gboard
Runs on:
Android
Price:
Free
Tap the Clipboard button at the top of the keyboard, then tap a recent copy to paste it. Touch and hold a clip and tap Pin to keep it until you remove it. If Gboard is already your keyboard, there is nothing to install.
Where it stops: Google says unpinned history clears shortly after you last use it, so it is a short-term buffer, not an archive.
Gboard
Best built-in option on Samsung Galaxy phones
Samsung Keyboard
Runs on:
Samsung Galaxy phones and tablets
Price:
Free, built in
Clipboard sits in the keyboard toolbar; tap the three-dot Expand toolbar button if you do not see it. A keyboard setting can save your screenshots to the clipboard too, and Galaxy phones and tablets on One UI 3.1 or later share text, images and links through Continue apps on other devices.
Where it stops: Samsung documents clipboard sharing between Galaxy phones and tablets; reaching a Windows PC takes Phone Link. Toolbar options vary by device and carrier.
Samsung Keyboard
Best free keyboard for sending copies to Windows
Microsoft SwiftKey
Runs on:
Android, iPhone
Price:
Free
SwiftKey keeps copied text and images in its Clipboard panel, and pinned clips do not expire. Its Cloud Clipboard sends your latest copied text to Windows clipboard history and back through a personal Microsoft account, so it works on phones Phone Link does not support.
Where it stops: Unpinned clips expire after an hour, and Cloud Clipboard keeps only your last copy, for an hour. Work and school accounts, Macs and Linux are not supported.
Microsoft SwiftKey
Best free and open-source option
HeliBoard
Runs on:
Android 5.0 or later
Price:
Free, open source (GPL-3.0)
An open-source keyboard with a clipboard history you switch on in its settings, a retention time you choose, and pinned items kept on top. It does not request the internet permission, so nothing you copy leaves the phone through it. Version 4.2 came out in October 2026.
Where it stops: It is not on Google Play; you install it from F-Droid, IzzyOnDroid or GitHub. Because it never goes online, it cannot share clips with a computer.
HeliBoard
Best if you want to keep your current keyboard
Clipboard+
Runs on:
Android, with a Windows companion app
Price:
Free with ads; Pro by subscription or one-time purchase
A standalone app that works alongside any keyboard. It saves when you open it, tap its floating bubble, widget or notification, or pick it from the text selection menu, and an optional Auto-save uses an accessibility service to notice copies elsewhere. It keeps text and images, and Pro syncs with its Windows app through a folder in your own Google Drive.
Where it stops: With Auto-save off, it only has what you send it. Windows sync and removing ads need Pro, and there is no Mac or iPhone version.
Clipboard+
Best free way to share the clipboard with a computer
KDE Connect
Runs on:
Android, Windows, macOS, Linux, iPhone
Price:
Free, open source
KDE Connect links your phone to a computer on the same network and shares clipboard text both ways, along with files and notifications. Text copied on the computer is ready to paste on the phone; to send a phone copy, tap Send clipboard in its notification, or its Quick Settings tile on Android 14 and later.
Where it stops: It moves the current text only, with no history and no images, and both devices must be on the same local network.
KDE Connect Clypy vs KDE Connect
Best for one synced history across Android and your computersOur app
Clypy
Runs on:
Android, iPhone, iPad, Windows, macOS, Linux
Price:
Free; Pro is $29.99 once
Clypy keeps an unlimited, searchable history on the phone, with search by meaning and text recognition in screenshots, free and with no account. With Pro, its keyboard saves every copy while it is the selected keyboard, even when hidden, and end-to-end encrypted sync puts the same history on your Windows PC, Mac, Linux machine or iPhone.
Where it stops: The Android keyboard and sync are Pro. Without the Clypy keyboard selected, it saves only when you open it, share something to it or choose Save to Clypy.
Download Clypy

Why the keyboard decides what gets saved on Android

Android's clipboard holds one item, and each new copy replaces the last. Since Android 10, an app can read it only if it is the default keyboard or the app currently on screen. So every Android clipboard manager works in one of a few ways: it is your keyboard and sees each copy, it reads the clipboard when you open it, you send it text from the share sheet or text selection menu, or it uses a workaround such as an accessibility service or a permission granted over adb. Keyboards capture the most reliably.

Check how an app says it captures before you install it. If it is not a keyboard and mentions no accessibility service or adb step, it can only save what is on the clipboard while it is open.

When the keyboard you have is enough

If all you need is the thing you copied ten minutes ago, use the Clipboard button in Gboard or Samsung Keyboard and pin anything you want to keep; our guide to clipboard history on Android has the steps. If your keyboard forgets too quickly, switch keyboards, since the keyboard is the one app Android lets see every copy: SwiftKey for pinning and Windows sync, HeliBoard for an offline history. FlorisBoard, another open-source option, describes itself as still in beta, and Play Store keyboards built around a clipboard, such as Clipr and Clipo, say they save copies only while their keyboard is selected.

A new keyboard also means new typing, autocorrect and languages every day. Type with it for a day before you judge its clipboard.

Keeping your keyboard: apps that capture another way

If you like your keyboard, a standalone app can still keep a history, as long as you accept its capture method. Clipboard+ and Pasteboard, both updated in November 2026, offer an optional accessibility service that notices copies in other apps; without it, they save what you open, tap or share. Clypy without its keyboard saves when you open it, share to it, or choose Save to Clypy.

Accessibility access is broad. Clipboard+ says its Auto-save is off by default and uses it only to notice copies; turn it on only for an app you trust.

Clypy: the same history on Android and your computers

Clypy is our app, and it fits when you want the history itself on more than one device. Free keeps unlimited local history with collections, templates, search by meaning and text recognition in images, with no account. Pro, a one-time $29.99 covering unlimited devices, adds the Android keyboard and end-to-end encrypted sync of text, links and images with Windows, macOS, Linux and iPhone: directly over Wi-Fi on the same network, and through a relay that cannot read the clips otherwise.

Clips from your other devices arrive while Clypy is open and during Android's periodic background syncs.

How this list was put together

Clypy makes this guide and is one of the apps on the list. Each app's platforms, price, licence and capture method were checked in November 2026 on its own site, Play Store listing, repository or support pages, and every app apart from Samsung's built-in keyboard had an update in the last two months. Android's clipboard rules come from Google's developer documentation. The apps were not benchmarked against each other or ranked by ratings. Apps last updated years ago, such as Clip Stack (2019 on Google Play), were left out.

Common questions

What is the best clipboard manager for Android?

For recent copies, the clipboard in Gboard or Samsung Keyboard is enough. For a longer history kept offline, HeliBoard is free and open source; for a history shared with a computer, use KDE Connect for single text items or Clypy for a synced, searchable history.

Does Android have a built-in clipboard manager?

Android itself holds only one copied item at a time. The history you see comes from your keyboard: Gboard and Samsung Keyboard each have a Clipboard button in their toolbar.

Why can't a clipboard app save everything I copy on Android?

Since Android 10, only the default keyboard or the app on screen can read the clipboard. Clipboard apps therefore capture through their own keyboard, when you open or share to them, or through an accessibility service or adb permission.

Is there an open-source clipboard manager for Android?

Yes. HeliBoard (GPL-3.0) and FlorisBoard (Apache-2.0, still in beta) are open-source keyboards with clipboard history, installed from F-Droid or GitHub. KDE Connect is open source too and shares clipboard text with a computer.

Where is the clipboard manager on a Samsung phone?

In Samsung Keyboard: tap a text field, then tap Clipboard in the keyboard toolbar, or tap the three-dot Expand toolbar button to find it. If you use Gboard on your Galaxy, use Gboard's clipboard instead.