Microsoft takes copy and paste to the next level with Clipboard history on Windows 11. You can use Clipboard history on Windows 10, but in this guide, we will walk you through how to do it on Windows 11. It’s not a complicated process, here’s what you need to do.
Enable Clipboard history on Windows 11
Here’s what you need to do to enable Clipboard history on Windows 11.
1. Open Settings.
2. Go to System > Clipboard.
3. Turn the Clipboard history toggle to the On position (turn it to the Off position to turn the feature off).
Once you follow these steps, Clipboard history will be enabled on your PC.
View and use Clipboard history
At this point, it’s important to note that the content in your Clipboard only supports copying images from select apps like Edge or the Snipping Tool.
You can still right-click your mouse and choose either copy or paste from the context menu or use the reliable keyboard shortcuts to copy and paste (Ctrl + C and Ctrl + V) text and images one at a time.
But when Clipboard history is enabled, you can pick from other items you have previously copied. Use the Windows key + V keyboard shortcut to see what content has already been copied.
Here’s an example of how to use Clipboard history on Windows 11.
1. Launch the app, website, or document to paste the copied text. In this example, I copied and pasted elements from Xbox to launch brand new Home UI in 2023 into a WordPad document.
2. Use the Windows key + V keyboard shortcut to open Clipboard history. The most recent items you have copied will appear at the top of the list.
3. Click on any item in the Clipboard history list to paste it into the open application.
4. If you want to remove items from the Clipboard history, click on the three-dot menu and select the garbage can icon to delete the item.
5. You can also pin an item on the Clipboard history. By pinning the item, it will stay on the list even if you reboot the computer or click Clear all. Click the thumbtack icon to pin an item. To unpin an item, click the thumbtack icon again to unpin an item.
6. Clipboard history on Windows 11 also has the ability to paste an item as text if needed. So if you have something you copied and you want to paste it as plain text, click the three-dot menu and click the notepad icon to paste an item as plain text (without formatting).
7. If you want to clear your Clipboard history list, just click the Clear all button to clear everything.
Keep in mind, pinned items will remain unless you unpin them or turn off Clipboard history in Windows 11 Settings.
Turn off Clipboard History
If you don’t want to use Clipboard history on Windows 11 anymore, you can shut it off. Here’s what you need to do.
1. Open Settings.
2. Go to System > Clipboard.
3. Toggle Clipboard history to the Off position. When you turn it off, your copied content gets automatically deleted.
If you want to delete everything from your Clipboard history to start from scratch, but keep the feature enabled, you can click the Clear button next to “Clear clipboard data.”
