Learn How To Access Clipboard On Android (And Erase It)

In android devices, copy and paste functionality is rudimentary. You won’t encounter any issues when you want to cut and paste individual items.

Access clipboard on android, But when you cut or copy something else, it will overwrite the text already available on the clipboard. 

Some people are satisfied with this option as they haven’t used it often. But others want more, right? That is what you will learn from this article.

Do you know you can use the clipboard to quickly access the items you copied and pasted in emails, notes, and texts? 

Wondering how to use this cool feature? You are on the right page. We have provided the steps to access the clipboard. 

Where is Clipboard on Android?

We don’t have any inbuilt way for accessing and viewing the clipboard. To view what is available on the clipboard, you must long-press in the text field and select paste. The clipboard data is stored in RAM. 

RAM will store the data in a specific file, but you can’t access them without rooting your android device.

But you can access and manage clipboards with the help of the default keyboard app. 

Accessing Clipboard on Android

1. Steps to Turn on the Clipboard

  • The clipboard function is usually turned off.
  • To turn it on, click on the glider icon at the right and tap turn on the clipboard. 
  • Once you do this, it will show some default items on the clipboard. 
  • It is nothing but instructions on how to use the Gboard keyboard app android version

2. Steps to Copy With Clipboard

  • Type some text. 
  • Hold and drag the text from start to end.
copy with clipboard
  • Click on Copy or Cut, depending on your case.

3. Steps to Paste With Clipboard

  • Once the text is copied, check your clipboard to find the copied snippet. It will be available under the recent items tab.
  • Tap on the item for pasting the text in any text editor. 

Managing Clipboard

1. Using Gboard

Gboard is a google keyboard app for android. It provides access to clipboard managers.

With the help of this app, you can see all the things you have copied with the recent and previous data. You can download the Gboard app from Google Play Store.

access clipboard on android

Nowadays, many android smartphones come with a pre-installed Gboard app. Before proceeding, make sure you have set the Gboard app as the default keyboard app on your android device.

Launch any note-taking app on your phone. If your phone has any pre-installed notes app, leave this step. 

  • Click on the text field. It will bring the Gboard app.
text field
  • If the clipboard icon has not appeared, tap on the 3 dots above the letters on the keyboard screen to open the more option.
keyboard screen
  • Click on Clipboard.
  • If the clipboard has not been turned on, click on the turn on the clipboard button.
clipboard
  • Tap on the clipboard content. It will paste the text into the current text area.
  • For performing more action on the clipboard, tap and hold the content. Different menu options like paste, pin, and delete will appear.
  • When you click the paste option, it will paste the selected content on the clipboard.
  • When you click on the pin option, it will pin the content for a long time on the clipboard.
  • The delete option will clear the content from the clipboard.
add a new clip

2. On Samsung and Other Devices

If you are using android devices from different brands like Samsung phones and are not interested in using Gboard, you can use similar manufacturer customization apps.

A clipboard bubble will appear when you long-press on a snippet of text on a Samsung device.

When you tap on the three-dot menu on the bubble, it will display more options.

The last few items on the clipboard can be accessed by tapping on the clipboard. For those who use the Samsung keyboard, extra functions can be accessed by tapping the 3 dots or arrow as it depends on your version on the right side of the keyboard. 

Accessing Clipboard Using Clipper

Another app to access the android clipboard is Clipper. You can download the Clipboard manager app from Google Play Store.

This app is free to use and has a good rating so that you can copy everything to a single location. 

They have also assured its users that the data saved in the clipboard manager will remain private and not be shared with anyone.

If you want an ad-free experience, you can upgrade to a clipper plus plan. 

  • Open the Google Play Store app and install the clipboard manager app.
clipboard manager
  • Once the app is downloaded, open the app.
  • You must set up the clipper app if you are a first-time user. It will also give a short introductory section about their access guide. If you are not interested, you can skip them.
clipper app
  • Next, it will take you to the ads set up page. Here, you can select the type of ads you would like to visit. 

They have two types of ads. 

advertising choices

Show personalized ads: You can choose this option if you want the clipper manager app to access your personalized data to show relevant ads.

Show non-personalized ads: You can choose this option if you want random ads. 

Upgrade to clipper plus: When you upgrade to clipper plus, you can access it ad-free.

  • Once you complete the setup, you can start using the clipboard manager.
  • On the top right corner, three dots will be available.
  • Click on that to access the menu option. Using this, you can access settings for customizing the clipboard interface. 
upgrade to clipper plus
clipboard tab
  • When you open the clipboard tab, you can see all your clippings are saved. Your copied items are stored in a default place called the snippets tab. 
  • When you tap on the three dots next to the clipping text, you will get more options like view, delete, move, edit, pin, etc. 
view,delete,move,edit,pin clipping text
  • When you click on the move option, it will move your new clipboard content from the clipboard tab to the snippets tab. 
clipboard tab to snippets tab

Steps to Clear the Clipboard History on Android

Method 1

  • Open the clipboard app.
  • Tap and hold on to the item and click on the delete option. 
clear the clipboard history
  • You have to do this for each item you want to delete. 
  • This will clear clipboard history

Method 2

  • Open the clipboard app.
  • On the right-hand side, a pencil icon will be available. 
  • Click on that and select all the items. 
select all the items
  • Click on the trash icon.

Steps to Pin an Item to the Clipboard

Remember, the copied item in Gboard will disappear within an hour. If you want to stop this from happening, the best way is to pin them.

Follow the steps below to pin an item to the Gboard app.

  • Open the clipboard app.
  • Tap and hold the text snippet. 
steps to pin an item to clipboard
  • Click Pin.
  • For pinning a group of snippets, click on the pencil icon.
click on pin
  • Select the items that you want to pin and click on Pin.

Important Tips For Android Clipboard

  • While reading an article, you might encounter many links.
  • If you want to copy that link, long press in the URL bar and copy the URL. 
  • You can not only copy text and links, but it also allows you to copy images as well.
  • When you long-press an image, it will show a menu where you can find the copy image option. 
important tips for android clipboard

Conclusion

I hope the above article has given you an idea about clipboards, how to access and manage them, and the steps to use them.

Gboard is one of the most popular used Clipboard apps as it is a google product. Clipper is also a good app for accessing texts.

Choose the one that fits your android device. 

FAQs

How Do I Completely Clear My Clipboard?

You have two methods to clear items on the clipboard. You can hold an item and click on delete. But you have to perform this every time to delete an item. Follow method 2 provided in clearing clipboard history in this article to clear all items in one go on the clipboard. 

Can I Retrieve Something From My Clipboard?

Yes, you can retrieve the clipboard items using other apps like clipboard manager. This app will record everything that you copy from the clipboard. But if you use clipboard manager, you can retrieve them with the help of a clipper plus plan. 

Can You Access Clipboard On Android?

Yes, you can access the clipboard on your android device using Gboard and the Clipboard manager app. Both of them are effective and have many options for them. There are other apps available, but these two have many features. 

What Does The Clipboard Icon Look Like?

If you are using a Gboard app, it will have a keyboard with a google icon. 
If you are using a clipboard manager app, it will have an exam pad image.