How to Use Clipboard History on Windows (Win+V)

To use Windows clipboard history, press Win+V (the Windows logo key plus V). The first time, a panel appears with a Turn on button. Select it, and from then on Win+V shows the text and images you've recently copied. Click any item to paste it where your cursor is.

You can also switch it on in Settings under System > Clipboard. The steps are the same on Windows 11 and Windows 10. Below: pinning, clearing, syncing between PCs, what the built-in list can't do, and when a separate clipboard manager is worth installing.

Turn on Windows clipboard history

Clipboard history is off by default. There are two ways to switch it on.

From the keyboard:

1. Press Win+V.
2. Select Turn on.

From Settings:

1. Open Settings (Win+I).
2. Go to System > Clipboard, or type "clipboard" into the Settings search box.
3. Switch on Clipboard history.

Windows starts recording from that point. Anything you copied before you turned it on won't appear in the list.

Paste an older item with Win+V

1. Click where you want to paste, such as a document, a chat box or a browser field.
2. Press Win+V. The clipboard panel opens on top of the app you're using.
3. Click the item you want, or move to it with the arrow keys and press Enter.

The newest item is at the top. On Windows 11 the Win+V panel also holds emoji, GIFs and symbols, with clipboard history on its own tab.

Clipboard history stores text and images. Microsoft says an item can be up to 4 MB, so larger copies aren't kept.

Pin, delete and clear items

Pinning is the only way to keep something in the built-in history for long, because Windows clears clipboard history every time you restart the PC. Pinned items are the exception: they survive restarts and Clear all.

Pin an item you reuse (an address, a signature, a code snippet):

1. Press Win+V.
2. Select the ... button on the item.
3. Select the pin icon.

To unpin it, repeat the steps.

Delete one item: press Win+V, select ... on the item, then select the delete (trash) icon.

Clear everything except pinned items:

• In the Win+V panel, select Clear all, or
• Open Settings > System > Clipboard and select Clear next to Clear clipboard data.

For other ways to wipe it, see how to clear clipboard history on Windows.

Sync clipboard history across your PCs

Windows can share clipboard history between PCs signed in with the same Microsoft account or work account.

1. On each PC, open Settings > System > Clipboard.
2. Make sure Clipboard history is on.
3. Turn on the option to share clipboard history across your devices, and sign in if Windows asks.

Before you turn sync on, know that the text you copy travels through Microsoft's cloud. Leave it off on shared or work machines if you copy passwords, client data or anything else sensitive.

What Windows clipboard history can't do

Win+V is good for "paste the thing I copied five minutes ago." It's weaker for anything older:

• Short memory. Microsoft's how-to page doesn't give a number, but an answer on Microsoft Q&A puts the cap at 25 entries. Older items fall off as you copy new ones.
• Gone after a restart. Only pinned items survive a reboot, including update restarts.
• No search. You scroll to find things. That's fine for a short list, less so when you're hunting for a link you copied yesterday.
• 4 MB per item. Large images aren't kept.
• Anyone at your desk can open it. If your PC is unlocked, Win+V shows your recent copies to whoever presses it. Lock the screen (Win+L) when you step away.

If you only reuse things within the same session, the built-in history is enough and you don't need another app. If you keep losing items to restarts or the short list, a clipboard manager that stores history on disk fixes both.

When a clipboard manager helps

A clipboard manager keeps history on disk, so it survives restarts, and lets you search it. Two options suit Windows users. We make Gubb, so weigh our view accordingly; we've tried to be fair to both.

Ditto: free, with a global hotkey

Ditto is a free clipboard manager for Windows, with its source code on GitHub. It saves everything that lands on the clipboard (text, images, HTML and custom formats) in a database, so your history is still there after a restart. You open it from the tray icon or a global hotkey, search, and paste. It can also keep the clipboards of several computers in sync, with the data encrypted when it's sent over the network.

Ditto does the clipboard and nothing else. If you want a bigger, searchable Win+V and nothing more, try it first; it costs nothing. More options are in our list of the best clipboard managers for Windows 11.

Gubb: searchable history inside a notes app

Gubb is a small notes app with clipboard history built in, next to to-do lists, timers, break reminders and voice-to-text. It fits if you want to collect copied text into notes, not only paste it back.

What its clipboard panel does:

• Stores up to 1,000 unpinned text items in a local database on your PC, with no account and no cloud copy. Pinned items are never removed automatically. The panel lists the newest 100 items, pinned first.
• Search clipboard... filters by text inside an item. A filter menu narrows the list to Text, Links or Code, and a Favorites tab shows pinned items.
• Each item has Copy to clipboard (puts it back on the clipboard so you can paste with Ctrl+V in any app), Edit content, Pin/Favorite item, Paste to note and Delete item.
• Clear History asks for confirmation and has a Keep favorites switch, on by default.

To open it, move the pointer to the right edge of the Gubb window and select Clipboard History. The clipboard section of our help center has the details.

What it doesn't do, so you can judge the fit:

• Text only. Images, files and formatting aren't captured. Keep Win+V on for images.
• No hotkey or quick-paste popup. You switch to Gubb, copy the item back, then paste in your app.
• Capture starts when you first open the panel after launching Gubb, and only runs while Gubb is running. Anything copied before that isn't recorded.
• No password filtering or app exclusions. Once capture is running, text you copy from a password manager is stored in plain text. Delete those items, or skip Gubb's history on a machine where that matters.

Gubb and Ditto each keep their own list, so you can leave the built-in history on alongside either one.

If clipboard history doesn't work

Win+V shows "Turn on", or nothing is listed. Clipboard history is off. Open Settings > System > Clipboard and switch on Clipboard history.

The list is empty after a restart. Windows clears unpinned items on every restart, so this is expected. Pin anything you'll need again, or use a clipboard manager that stores history on disk.

An image you copied isn't there. Items over 4 MB aren't stored. Save large images to a file instead.

The toggle is greyed out. On a work or school PC, IT can turn clipboard history off. Ask them whether it's allowed.

Items don't appear on your other PC. Check that clipboard history and the share-across-devices option are on for both PCs, and that both are signed in to the same Microsoft or work account.

Win+V does nothing at all. Check that the Windows key works with other shortcuts, such as Win+E for File Explorer. Some keyboards have a lock that disables the Windows key. For more fixes, see Windows clipboard history not working.

FAQ

How many items does Windows clipboard history keep?

Microsoft's how-to page doesn't state a limit. A Microsoft Q&A answer says 25 entries, with older ones dropping off as you copy more. Pinned items stay until you unpin or delete them.

Does clipboard history survive a restart?

Only pinned items do. Everything else is cleared when Windows restarts.

How do I use clipboard history on Windows 11 vs Windows 10?

Both use Win+V and the System > Clipboard settings page. On Windows 11 the Win+V panel also includes emoji, GIFs and symbols.

Can I search Windows clipboard history?

Not in the built-in panel; you scroll through the list. Ditto and Gubb both add search and keep history across restarts.