What do you want to clear?

  • The clipboard itself

    pbcopy < /dev/null

    Run it in Terminal, or copy a single space. See how

  • Spotlight’s history, macOS 26+

    More (…) → Clear History

    In Spotlight’s clipboard view, or in System Settings → Spotlight. See how

  • Clipboard History app

    Settings → Storage → Clear all history

    Or delete one clip with its trash button. See how

Clear the current clipboard

Whatever you copied last stays on the clipboard until you copy something else or restart your Mac. To empty it now, replace it with nothing.

With Terminal

  1. Open Terminal. It’s in Applications → Utilities, or press and type “Terminal”.
  2. Run this command. Type or paste it, then press Return.pbcopy < /dev/null
  3. Done. pbcopy puts whatever it reads on the clipboard, and /dev/null is empty, so nothing is left to paste (Setapp).

Without Terminal

Select a single space between two words in any document and press . The space replaces what was on the clipboard. Restarting your Mac also clears it (Setapp).

To check what’s on the clipboard at any time, choose Finder → Edit → Show Clipboard.

Your clipboard history isn’t affected. Emptying the clipboard doesn’t remove copies that a clipboard history already saved. With Clipboard History running, the Terminal method adds nothing (empty copies are skipped), while a copied space is saved as a blank clip you can delete.

Universal Clipboard also shares copies with your other Apple devices. With Handoff on, something you copy on this Mac can be pasted on your iPhone or iPad nearby for a short while (Apple). To stop that, turn off Allow Handoff between this Mac and your iCloud devices in System Settings → General → AirDrop & Continuity (AirDrop & Handoff in earlier versions).

Clear Spotlight’s clipboard history (macOS 26 or later)

macOS 26 Tahoe added a clipboard history to Spotlight. Apple warns that sensitive information may appear there (Apple).

  1. Open the clipboard in Spotlight. Press , then .
  2. Open the More menu. Click the More button (…) to the right of the search field.
  3. Choose Clear History.

On macOS 26.1 or later, System Settings → Spotlight has the same control and two more (MacRumors, Cult of Mac):

  • Clear Clipboard History erases it without touching the rest of your Spotlight history.
  • How long to keep copies: 30 minutes, 8 hours or 7 days. The shortest setting keeps the least around.
  • Results from Clipboard turns the history off altogether.

To remove a single item rather than everything, Control-click it in Spotlight’s clipboard view and choose Delete (MacMost).

Clear Clipboard History (the app)

Clipboard History, the app this site is for, keeps your newest 1,000 clips on your Mac by default and removes older ones automatically. Favorites and grouped clips stay until you delete them.

Delete everything

  1. Open Settings. Click the Clipboard History icon in the menu bar, then choose Settings…
  2. Go to Storage. Select Storage in the sidebar.
  3. Clear it. Click Clear all history, then Clear All to confirm.

This deletes every clip, favorites included, and can’t be undone. Your group names stay, as empty tabs.

Words can remain on disk. Clearing removes every clip from the app, but words from deleted clips can stay in the database’s search index, and the database isn’t encrypted. Turn on FileVault to protect your disk. To remove the app and everything it saved, follow the uninstall guide.

Delete one clip

Press , point at the clip and click its trash button, or right-click it and choose Delete. It’s removed at once, with no undo.

Keep less history

In Settings → Storage → History size, choose anything from 100 to 10,000 clips. The oldest clips beyond the limit are removed, except favorites and clips in a group. There’s no setting that deletes clips after a set time.

Keep sensitive copies out of your history

Deleting after the fact works, but it’s easier when a secret is never saved.

  • Pause recording. From the Clipboard History menu bar icon, choose Pause Recording, or Pause For 5 minutes, 30 minutes, 1 hour or 8 hours. Nothing copied while paused is ever saved, even after recording resumes.
  • Password managers are skipped. Nothing is saved while 1Password, Bitwarden, Dashlane, Keychain Access, Apple Passwords, LastPass or KeePassXC is the frontmost app.
  • Exclude your own apps. Add any app in Settings → Privacy → Excluded apps.
  • Marked copies are skipped. Copies that an app marks as concealed or transient are never saved, whichever app is in front.
Clipboard History Settings, Privacy tab: the Excluded apps list with 1Password, Bitwarden, Dashlane, Keychain Access, Passwords and LastPass, and buttons to add or remove apps Clipboard History Settings, Privacy tab: the Excluded apps list with 1Password, Bitwarden, Dashlane, Keychain Access, Passwords and LastPass, and buttons to add or remove apps
Settings → Privacy → Excluded apps. Click + to add an app.

Know the limits. Clipboard History can’t tell that ordinary-looking text is a password when you copy it from an app that isn’t excluded, and a password manager’s browser extension is covered only if it marks its copies as concealed. Pause first, or delete the clip afterwards. In Spotlight, the 30-minute setting keeps the least around.

Sources