How to Access and Use iPhone Clipboard

A clipboard is a useful feature that lets you copy and paste text, links, images, and other content on your device. If you’ve switched from an Android smartphone, you might ask, “Where is the clipboard on my iPhone”? Well, an iPhone doesn’t have a visible clipboard that keeps a record of the contents you’ve copied. Now, that doesn’t mean you can’t find and manage your iPhone clipboard. This article will show you how to access and use an iPhone clipboard. Also, we’ll share some tips to improve the overall functionality of the clipboard on your iPhone. So, let’s begin!

Where is Clipboard on iPhone?

Unlike Android, iOS devices don’t have a visible clipboard. Instead, iOS Clipboard is an internal function stored in a virtual memory that stores one item at a time. So, you won’t see or edit the clipboard contents by default. You can only access and paste the last item you copied, and it will be overwritten when you copy any new content. Also, the contents are wiped off when you restart your iPhone.

Find and Use iPhone Clipboard

The easiest way to access and use a clipboard on an iPhone is to paste the contents into an app’s text field. You can use any text-editing or note-taking app like Notes, Messages, and more. Here’s how to access the clipboard contents in the Notes app:

1. Open the Notes app on your iPhone.
2. Tap on the New Note icon at the bottom right to create a new note.
3. Now, tap on the screen twice or long-press on it, Then, tap on Paste to insert your clipboard contents.

If you want, you can edit the clipboard contents and make any necessary changes. You can then copy and paste the contents to the intended destination.

It’s super easy to manage your clipboard using the Notes app, and you can paste as many clips as you want and manage them separately. Just like the Notes app, you can paste the clipboard contents into the Messages app and any other app with a text field.

View and Adjust iPhone Clipboard Contents

An iPhone doesn’t offer a built-in option to adjust the clipboard on an iPhone. Interestingly, you can configure automation in the Shortcuts app so it displays the clipboard contents whenever you run it. This helps you access the clipboard content before you paste it into any app. Here’s how to find and adjust clipboard contents on iOS using the Shortcuts app:

1. Open the Shortcuts app on your iPhone.
2. Now, tap on Gallery from the bottom right corner.
3. Here, use the search bar to find the Adjust Clipboard shortcut.
4. Finally, tap on the + icon. This will add the shortcut to the Shortcuts Tab.

When you tap on the Adjust Clipboard shortcut from the My Shortcuts tab, you’ll get a pop-up menu at the top of the screen with a text field titled Change your clipboard contents. You can also ask Siri to run the Adjust Clipboard shortcut for you.  

Can You See Clipboard History on iPhone?

Unfortunately, there’s no way to view your clipboard history on iOS. The iPhone clipboard will store only one item at a time. So, you can retrieve only the last copied text. You can view its contents by pasting them into a text-editing or note-taking app. When you cut or copy the next item, it will overwrite the existing text, making it impossible to view or save clipboard history on your iPhone.

Delete your iPhone Clipboard History

There are instances when you wish to clear your clipboard for privacy reasons. Maybe you’ve copied some sensitive information like credit card details, bank account numbers, or a password. It’s worth knowing that, since iOS doesn’t offer an official way to delete the contents of your clipboard. However, there’s a simple workaround that can help you delete your clipboard history. All you have to do is to replace the clipboard data with empty text.

1. Open the Notes app on your iPhone and tap on the New Note icon from the bottom right.
2. Tap the Space key twice to add two empty spaces.
3. Now, long-press on the spaces and tap on Select.
4. Next up, select the two spaces, and tap on Cut or Copy.

This will overwrite your previous contents on the clipboard and replace it with the empty spaces you just copied. Thus, your iPhone clipboard history will now be deleted.

That’s how you can find and use an iPhone clipboard. We hope this article helped you understand how Apple clipboard works and how you do paste from a clipboard on an iPhone. In case of any doubts, you can always reach out to us in the comments below