The research shortlist
Page updated
MaccyTop pick
Native, keyboard-first clipboard history for macOS
Metadata checked Aug 18, 2026
Best overall direct Mac replacement: mature, actively released, native, permissively licensed, and low-friction. It is intentionally narrower than Paste and does not provide Paste-style iCloud sync or board organization.
A lightweight native menu-bar clipboard manager that keeps searchable local copy history and makes previous clips quick to reuse.
- 01Searchable clipboard history with keyboard navigation
- 02Pinned items and paste-as-plain-text support
- 03Native macOS UI with configurable shortcuts
- 04Local storage and rules for ignoring sensitive or transient copies
- Requires macOS Sonoma 14 or later.
- Focused on local clipboard history rather than cross-device sync or rich pinboards.
- Download only from the official site, Homebrew, or the linked GitHub repository; the project warns about impersonating sites.
Evidence sources (13)
- Maccy official GitHub repositorySource available ·
- Maccy MIT licenseLicense ·
- Maccy latest release 2.7.1Release ·
- Maccy official homepageWebsite ↗ ·
- Maccy official logoScreenshots ·
- Maccy official product imageScreenshots ·
- GitHub REST repository APISource available ·
- GitHub license metadataLicense ·
- Latest GitHub releaseRelease ·
- Latest macOS release assetFree at review time ·
- Maccy recent commit historySource available ·
- Maccy LICENSE fileLicense ·
- Maccy current release appcastRelease ·
CopyQ
Feature-rich clipboard history with tabs, editing, and scripting
Metadata checked Aug 18, 2026
Best power-user alternative: exceptionally mature and actively maintained, with richer organization and automation than Maccy and a documented macOS 13+ installation path. It gives up some native-Mac simplicity for breadth and configurability.
Full review — capabilities, 3 caveats, evidence
A mature cross-platform clipboard manager that organizes rich formats in tabs and adds editing, tagging, shortcuts, command-line access, and scripting.
- 01Stores text, HTML, images, and custom clipboard formats
- 02Search, filter, sort, edit, tag, and annotate history
- 03Tabs, drag-and-drop, and customizable global shortcuts
- 04Command-line interface and scripting support
- Requires macOS 13 or later.
- The cross-platform interface and scripting model are more complex than Paste's focused Mac workflow.
- Official macOS documentation notes that some installations may need quarantine or ad-hoc codesigning remediation.
Evidence sources (12)
- CopyQ official GitHub repositorySource available ·
- CopyQ GPL-3.0 licenseLicense ·
- CopyQ latest release 16.0.0Release ·
- CopyQ official homepageWebsite ↗ ·
- CopyQ official installation documentation for macOSDocumented macOS path ·
- CopyQ official logoScreenshots ·
- CopyQ official application screenshotScreenshots ·
- CopyQ official items screenshotScreenshots ·
- GitHub REST repository APISource available ·
- GitHub license metadataLicense ·
- Latest GitHub releaseRelease ·
- Latest macOS release assetFree at review time ·
PasteShelf
Privacy-first Paste-style clipboard history with search and sync
Metadata checked Aug 18, 2026
Closest feature match to Paste among newer projects: it combines rich local history, search, collections, automation, and optional sync on macOS. It passes the license, free-use, and release checks but ranks below the mature projects because its public community is still very small.
Full review — capabilities, 3 caveats, evidence
A native macOS clipboard manager focused on local rich-content history, fuzzy and OCR search, collections, automation, and optional encrypted sync.
- 01Unlimited history for text, images, files, URLs, and code
- 02Fuzzy search, smart categories, collections, and OCR search
- 03Global hotkey, keyboard paste, and app exclusions
- 04Shortcuts, AppleScript, webhooks, plugins, and optional iCloud sync
- Requires macOS Sonoma 14 or later and Accessibility permission for direct paste.
- The Mac App Store build is sandboxed and omits plugins and self-hosted sync; the direct download provides the full feature set.
- The repository is young and has limited visible community activity, so long-term trust is less established than Maccy's or CopyQ's.
Evidence sources (10)
- PasteShelf official GitHub repositorySource available ·
- PasteShelf AGPL-3.0 licenseLicense ·
- PasteShelf latest release 1.0.23Release ·
- PasteShelf official homepageWebsite ↗ ·
- PasteShelf official iconScreenshots ·
- GitHub repository metadataSource available ·
- GitHub REST repository APISource available ·
- GitHub license metadataLicense ·
- Latest GitHub releaseRelease ·
- Latest macOS release assetFree at review time ·
Specifications, side by side
| Attribute | 1 · Maccy | 2 · CopyQ | 3 · PasteShelf |
|---|---|---|---|
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0-only | AGPL-3.0-only |
| Platforms | macOS | macOS, Windows, Linux | macOS |
| Status | Checked | Checked | Checked |
| Version | v2.7.1 | v16.0.0 | v1.0.23 |
| Stars | 21.2k | 12.1k | 2 |
| Last push | |||
| Caveats | 3 | 3 | 3 |
About Paste
Paste — Extend your clipboard history on Mac and paste from anywhere, anytime. Ideal for quick extended copy-paste.
Setapp listing: Never lose anything you copy
