To copy and paste on an iPhone, touch and hold a word until it’s highlighted, drag the blue grab points to cover the text you want, and tap Copy in the menu that appears. Then tap inside the place you want the text to go, such as a message or note, tap the cursor once more, and tap Paste.
The same idea works for links, photos and even text inside pictures. Your iPhone’s clipboard holds one item at a time, so each new copy replaces the last. If you also use a Mac or iPad, what you copy on the iPhone can be pasted there too.
How to copy and paste text
- Touch and hold a word in the text you want to copy. The word is highlighted and a small menu appears. (Double-tapping a word also selects it.)
- Drag the grab points at each end of the highlight to include more or less text. To take everything in a note or text box, tap Select All instead.
- Tap Copy. If you don’t see it, tap the arrow at the end of the menu to show more options.
- Open the app and spot where you want the text, for example a Messages conversation.
- Tap in the text field to place the cursor, then tap the cursor again (or touch and hold the spot).
- Tap Paste. The text appears at the cursor.
To move text instead of duplicating it, tap Cut in step 3. The text disappears from its original spot and waits on the clipboard until you paste it.
Note: Some web pages and apps, such as banking apps, block text selection. If touching and holding does nothing, the app is stopping it. A full-page screenshot is often a practical way to save what’s on screen.
Faster ways to select text
| To select | Do this |
|---|---|
| One word | Double-tap the word |
| A sentence | Triple-tap in the sentence (in many apps) |
| A paragraph | Tap four times, or double-tap with two fingers |
| Everything in a field | Touch and hold, then tap Select All |
| A range of text | Double-tap the first word, then drag the grab point to the last word |
Selection shortcuts can behave slightly differently from app to app. Touch and hold with drag always works when the others don’t.
Copy and paste with three-finger gestures
Once text is selected, you can skip the menu entirely:
- Copy: pinch closed with three fingers.
- Cut: pinch closed with three fingers twice.
- Paste: pinch open with three fingers.
- Undo: swipe left with three fingers, or double-tap with three fingers.
- Redo: swipe right with three fingers.
A small banner at the top of the screen confirms each action. Shaking the iPhone also offers Undo, which rescues a paste that landed in the wrong place.
How to copy a link
- Touch and hold the link in Safari, Mail, Messages or another app until a preview appears.
- Tap Copy Link. In Safari, you can also copy the address of the page you’re on: touch and hold the address bar and tap Copy.
- Paste it wherever you like.
When you paste a link into Safari’s address bar, the menu may offer Paste and Go, which opens the page in one tap.
How to copy and paste a photo
- Open Photos and find the picture.
- Touch and hold the photo until a menu appears.
- Tap Copy.
- Go to a conversation, note or email, tap in the text area, tap again and tap Paste.
With a photo open in full screen, you can also tap the Share button and choose Copy Photo. To copy several photos, tap Select, tap each picture, then tap Share > Copy Photos.
Copy just the subject of a photo
On iOS 16 and later, touch and hold the main subject of a photo, such as a person or pet, until a glowing outline appears. Tap Copy and paste the cut-out subject, with no background, into a message or note. The same cut-outs can become stickers; see how to paste a sticker on a photo.
Copy text from a photo or sign
Live Text lets you copy words that appear inside a picture, such as a phone number on a flyer. Open the photo, touch and hold a word in it, adjust the grab points and tap Copy. In the Camera app, point at the text and tap the Live Text button in the corner of the viewfinder to do the same thing without taking a photo.
Why does my iPhone ask “Allow Paste”?
Since iOS 16, an app has to ask before it reads something you copied in a different app on its own, for example to spot a copied link or tracking number. When that happens you see a message like “Notes” would like to paste from “Safari”.
Tap Allow Paste to go ahead. To stop the question for apps you trust, go to Settings > Apps > [the app] > Paste from Other Apps and choose Allow. Choose Deny to block that app from reading your clipboard, or leave it on Ask. When you paste yourself by tapping Paste in the menu, you normally won’t be asked.
How to copy on iPhone and paste on a Mac or iPad
Apple calls this Universal Clipboard. Copy on your iPhone, then paste on the other device the usual way. According to Apple’s Universal Clipboard guide, it works when:
- The devices are near each other.
- They’re signed in with the same Apple Account.
- Bluetooth and Wi-Fi are on for each device.
- Handoff is on. On iPhone, go to Settings > General > AirPlay & Continuity (or AirPlay & Handoff) and turn on Handoff. It’s on by default.
Copied content stays available only briefly on the other device, so paste it soon. If your Mac and iPhone aren’t set up to work together yet, see how to connect your iPhone to a MacBook.
When Paste doesn’t appear or pastes the wrong thing
- No Paste option: the clipboard is empty, or you tapped somewhere that doesn’t accept text, such as a web page rather than a text box. Copy the item again and tap inside an editable field.
- It pasted something old: the new copy didn’t go through. Watch for the menu to close after you tap Copy, then try again.
- A photo pastes as a link or not at all: the field only accepts text. Try pasting into Messages or Notes, which accept images.
- Text keeps its old fonts and colors: in Notes, Mail and some other apps, look for Paste and Match Style in the menu to paste plain text.
Common questions
Where is the clipboard on iPhone?
There’s no clipboard app or history. The iPhone holds only the last thing you copied, and you see it by pasting it somewhere, such as a new note.
How do I clear what I copied?
Copy something harmless, like a single space. That replaces anything sensitive, such as a password, that was on the clipboard.
Why did my copied password disappear?
Some password managers clear the clipboard automatically after a short time for safety. Copy it again just before you paste.
Matthew Roberts is the founder and editor of ARS Digitech. He started the site to answer the iPhone questions his friends and family kept asking him, and it has grown into a library of iPhone and iOS how-to guides. Matthew writes and maintains every tutorial on the site, checking steps and menu names against Apple’s official support documentation and updating guides when an iOS release moves a setting.