How to clear the clipboard and clipboard history on a Mac
To clear the clipboard on a Mac, copy something harmless, such as a single letter, so it replaces what was there. If your Mac keeps Spotlight clipboard history, open System Settings, click Spotlight, then click Clear Clipboard History and click Clear. Apple’s Spotlight guide for macOS 27 documents the second step, checked on 4 November 2026.
Clear the current clipboard
The Mac clipboard holds what you copied last. Apple’s Universal Clipboard article says copied content stays “until you replace it by copying something else”. The simplest way to wipe a password or a private message from it is to copy something else:
- Select a harmless word or letter in any app.
- Press
Command-C.
Your old copy is replaced. If Universal Clipboard is on, Apple says the item is also replaced when you copy something on either device, so copy the harmless item on the Mac where the secret was copied.
Clear Spotlight’s clipboard history
This applies to macOS 27 only, as far as Apple’s pages show:
- Open System Settings.
- Click Spotlight in the sidebar. You may need to scroll down.
- Under the clipboard section, click Clear Clipboard History.
- Click Clear to confirm.
Apple says this removes your clipboard history from Spotlight results on that device. To stop it from being kept, turn off Results from Clipboard in the same place. Read how long Mac clipboard history lasts for the choices of 30 minutes, 8 hours or 7 days.
Other macOS versions
Apple’s Mac User Guide for macOS 15 Sequoia does not mention clipboard history in Spotlight. The macOS 26 Tahoe page mentions a Clipboard Search setting but does not describe a clear button for it. So on those versions the page gives no clear control. Copying something else is the method you can rely on.
Third party clipboard apps
An app that keeps its own history has its own clear command. Look in that app.
NotchStar’s Clipboard keeps the 50 most recent copies in memory, so you can click an earlier one to copy it again. Anything it keeps lives only in memory, and it clears when you quit NotchStar. See why clipboard history clears on quit. To check what your Mac keeps, see how to see clipboard history on a Mac.
