Samsung clipboard: where it is on a Galaxy phone and how to use it

Open the clipboard from the Samsung Keyboard toolbar

Samsung documents the clipboard as a button in the Samsung Keyboard toolbar, the row of icons above the keys, and the Galaxy S26 user guide describes it as the button that adds an item from the clipboard. You reach it from any app where you can type, not from the app drawer. If your phone has Edge panels (Settings, Display, Edge panels), you can also check the panel list for a Clipboard panel, but Samsung's current support pages do not list which panels come built in, and Samsung says the Edge panel is not available on every model and software version. The keyboard is the place that always works.

1. 1Open any app with a text field, such as Messages or Samsung Notes, and tap the field so Samsung Keyboard appears.
2. 2Tap the Clipboard icon in the toolbar above the keys.
3. 3If it is not there, tap Expand toolbar (the three dots) to show more options, and tap Clipboard.
4. 4Tap a clip to paste it at the cursor.
5. 5To keep Clipboard in the main row, open the expanded toolbar, touch and hold the Clipboard icon, and drag it where you want it.

Samsung began rolling out One UI 9 in September 2026. The menu names here come from Samsung's current support pages and the Galaxy S26 user guide, and Samsung says toolbar options vary by carrier and model, so your phone may arrange them differently.

Turn the keyboard toolbar back on

If Samsung Keyboard shows no row of icons at all, the toolbar has been switched off, and the Clipboard button goes with it. The switch is in the keyboard's own settings.

1. 1Open Settings, then General management, then Samsung Keyboard settings. If you can see the gear icon on the keyboard, tapping it opens the same settings.
2. 2Tap Style and layout.
3. 3Turn on Keyboard toolbar.
4. 4Open a text field again. Clipboard is in the toolbar or behind the three-dot Expand toolbar button.

How many clips it keeps, pinning, and deleting

Samsung does not publish a limit on how many items the clipboard holds or how long it keeps them, and its support pages do not walk through the controls inside the clipboard panel. So do not treat the clipboard as storage: an old clip may not be there when you come back for it. Manage clips from the panel itself. Touch and hold a clip to see the options your version offers, and if it offers to pin or lock the clip, use that for anything you will need again. To clear the panel, look for its delete or bin control; to remove a single clip, touch and hold that clip first. Samsung Keyboard can also add screenshots to the clipboard: the switch is Save screenshots to clipboard, under Other settings in Samsung Keyboard settings.

Is there a Samsung clipboard trash?

No. Samsung documents no trash, recycle bin or undo for clipboard items, and no backup of the clipboard you could restore from, so a clip you delete, or one that drops off the list, cannot be brought back. The Recycle bin on a Galaxy phone belongs to the Gallery app: Samsung says it holds images and videos you delete for a period before removing them, so look there if what you lost was a screenshot. For text, go back to where you copied it, such as the message, web page or note. Next time, pin anything you will need again, or keep a separate clipboard history.

When the clipboard button is missing or not saving

Most cases come down to the wrong keyboard being active or the toolbar being hidden. If a clip pastes in one app but another app never sees it, check Settings, Security and privacy, Controls and alerts, which Samsung says controls access to features such as the microphone and clipboard.

1. 1Check which keyboard is in use: Settings, General management, Keyboard list and default, then Default keyboard. If Gboard or another keyboard is selected, the Clipboard button you see belongs to that keyboard.
2. 2Turn on Keyboard toolbar in Samsung Keyboard settings, Style and layout, then look behind the three-dot Expand toolbar button for Clipboard.
3. 3If screenshots never show up in the clipboard, turn on Save screenshots to clipboard in Samsung Keyboard settings, under Other settings.
4. 4Restart the phone, then check Settings, Software update for a pending update. Samsung lists both as early steps when the keyboard misbehaves.
5. 5If the keyboard still fails, Samsung's next steps are clearing Samsung Keyboard's data (Settings, Apps, show system apps, Samsung Keyboard, Force stop, Storage, Clear data) and testing in Safe mode.

Samsung warns that clearing Samsung Keyboard's data erases all your keyboard settings, including saved words. Try the other steps first.

Copy on your phone, paste on your Galaxy tablet or PC

Samsung's clipboard sharing lets you copy on one Galaxy device and paste on another signed in to the same Samsung account. Samsung says it carries text, images and links. The same switch lets you pick up a Samsung Internet page or a Samsung Notes note on the other device from Recents. To paste on a Windows PC instead, Phone Link's cross-device copy and paste works with Galaxy phones on One UI 2.1 or later for text and images; the Android and Windows guide walks through it.

1. 1Check that both devices run One UI 3.1 or later, are signed in to the same Samsung account, are on the same Wi-Fi network and have Bluetooth turned on.
2. 2On each device, open Settings, Connected devices, and turn on Continue apps on other devices. Some models and regions call it Continue on other devices or list it under Advanced features.
3. 3Copy text, an image or a link on one device.
4. 4On the other device, touch and hold a text field and tap Paste.

Keeping a longer history than Samsung Keyboard does

If you need clips from last week, or the same history on your computer, you need a clipboard manager, and Clypy is ours. Since Android 10, background apps cannot read the clipboard, so on Android Clypy saves every copy while the Clypy keyboard is your selected keyboard, even when the keyboard is hidden. That means it replaces Samsung Keyboard as the active keyboard while you use it, and Samsung's clipboard panel is not on screen during that time. Without its keyboard, Clypy saves when you open the app, share something to it, or choose Save to Clypy after selecting text. The free version keeps a history on the phone with no item limit (90 days by default, or forever if you choose in Settings), with pinned clips, collections and search by meaning. The Android keyboard and end-to-end encrypted sync with Mac, Windows, Linux and iPhone are part of Pro, a one-time payment of $29.99.