ClipStash

🗒️ Lightweight, privacy-first clipboard history manager for macOS

App Store • Website • Documentation • Direct Download

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Why ClipStash?

ClipStash is an open-source clipboard manager for macOS that prioritizes privacy and performance. Unlike alternatives that require internet access or heavy frameworks, ClipStash runs completely offline with zero telemetry.

✨ Key Features

Feature	Description
🔒 Zero Network Access	Sandbox enforced — literally cannot connect to internet
⚡ Lightning Search	SQLite FTS5 full-text search across thousands of items
📤 NotebookLM Export	Auto-split Markdown files for AI notebooks (unique!)
🔐 Password-Aware	Auto-skips 1Password, Bitwarden, and other managers
🪶 Ultralight	<60MB RAM, <0.5% CPU idle, native SwiftUI
📌 Pin & Organize	Pin frequently used clips, filter by source app
🖼️ Image Support	Capture and preview images in clipboard history

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Comparison with Alternatives

Feature	ClipStash	Maccy	CopyQ	PasteBar	Ditto
Platform	macOS	macOS	Cross	Mac/Win	Windows
Open Source	✅ AGPL	✅ MIT	✅ GPL	✅ Apache	✅ GPL
Zero Network	✅ Sandboxed	✅	❌	✅	✅
FTS5 Search	✅	✅	❌	❌	Regex
NotebookLM Export	✅ Unique	❌	❌	❌	❌
Password Detection	✅ Both flags	✅	Script	❌	❌
App Filter Export	✅	❌	❌	Partial	❌
Native UI	✅ SwiftUI	✅ AppKit	Qt	Tauri	Win32
RAM Usage	~50MB	~40MB	~100MB	~150MB	~30MB
Price	Free	Free	Free	Free	Free

Bottom line: ClipStash is the only clipboard manager with NotebookLM-optimized export and verifiable zero-network privacy (sandbox enforced, open source).

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Installation

App Store (Recommended)

Direct Download

⬇️ Download ClipStash.app.zip

1. Download and unzip
2. Run in Terminal: xattr -cr ~/Downloads/ClipStash.app
3. Move ClipStash.app to /Applications and launch

Why xattr? macOS blocks apps not signed with Apple Developer ID. This command removes the quarantine flag. ClipStash is open-source — verify the code.

Build from Source

git clone https://github.com/kiku-jw/ClipStash.git
cd ClipStash
open ClipStash.xcodeproj
# Build with ⌘B, Run with ⌘R

Launch at Login

1. Move ClipStash.app to /Applications
2. Open Settings → Enable "Launch at Login"

Note: Launch at login requires the app to be in /Applications (macOS restriction).

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Usage

Keyboard Shortcuts

Action	Shortcut
Open history	Click menu bar icon
Navigate	↑ / ↓
Copy to clipboard	Enter
Focus search	⌘F
Delete item	⌘⌫
Pin/unpin	⌘P
View full content	Double-click

Export to NotebookLM

1. Click Export... in popover
2. Select scope: Last 50/100/200/500, Today, Pinned, or by App
3. Choose format: Markdown (recommended)
4. Click Export Now

Large exports auto-split at ~400K words (within NotebookLM's 500K word limit).

Settings

Setting	Default	Description
History Limit	500	Max items to keep (100-50000)
Text Max Size	500 KB	Skip text larger than this
Image Max Size	10 MB	Skip images larger than this
Save Images	On	Also capture images
Deduplication	On	Skip duplicate content
Byte Preserve	Off	Keep exact whitespace

Ignore List

Add app bundle IDs to exclude from capture (e.g., com.1password.1password).

Privacy

• No Network: App never makes network requests (sandbox enforced)
• No Telemetry: Zero analytics or tracking
• Local Storage: All data in ~/Library/Application Support/ClipStash
• Sensitive Content: Automatically skips concealed/transient clipboard items
• Optional Encryption: Pin items and encrypt with AES-GCM

Sensitive Content Detection

ClipStash respects macOS clipboard indicators:

• org.nspasteboard.ConcealedType — password managers
• org.nspasteboard.TransientType — temporary data

Architecture

ClipStash/
├── App/           # Entry point, AppDelegate
├── Core/          # Business logic
│   ├── ClipboardMonitor.swift
│   ├── StorageManager.swift
│   └── ExportService.swift
├── UI/            # SwiftUI views
└── Utils/         # Helpers

Why Polling?

macOS doesn't provide clipboard change notifications. We poll NSPasteboard.changeCount every 300ms with debounce — same approach used by established clipboard managers. This uses negligible CPU.

FAQ

Q: Why not use NSPasteboard notifications? A: macOS doesn't provide them. Polling is the only reliable method.

Q: How do I exclude an app? A: Settings → Ignore List → Add bundle ID (e.g., com.apple.keychainaccess).

Q: Where is data stored? A: ~/Library/Application Support/ClipStash/clipstash.db

Q: How to fully uninstall? A: Delete app + rm -rf ~/Library/Application\ Support/ClipStash

Documentation

• Getting Started — Installation & first steps
• Configuration — All settings explained
• Privacy & Security — How data stays private
• FAQ — Common questions
• Troubleshooting — Fix common issues
• Comparison — vs Maccy, CopyQ, PasteBar

Contributing

See CONTRIBUTING.md.

License

AGPL-3.0. Copyright (c) 2025 KikuAI Lab