How I set up cross-platform clipboard syncing on all my devices

I use several devices throughout the day, including an Android phone, a Windows PC, and a MacBook. These devices run entirely different operating systems, and cross-compatibility between them is quite limited. Moving text from Android to Windows is relatively easy with the SwiftKey app, but the same cannot be said when syncing the clipboard with a Mac. Similarly, syncing the clipboard between a Windows PC and a Mac isn’t very straightforward either.

Things get even more complicated if you want to sync the clipboard across all your devices. While there are no built-in options for this, I discovered a few third-party apps that make it possible—to some extent. Here’s how I set up cross-platform clipboard syncing on all my devices.

Use Alt-C to sync your clipboard

Alt-C is a clipboard-syncing app that works with the devices I use—Mac, Windows, and Android. The developer also plans to release an iOS app soon. Alt-C is straightforward to use. As the name suggests, you press Alt + C on Windows to copy. On Mac, you can customize this to Cmd + C with Control or Shift if needed. On Android, you copy text as usual by long-pressing and highlighting the desired text. To paste, press Alt + V on Windows or customize it to Cmd + V with Control or Shift on Mac. Here’s how to get started:

1. Download Alt-C on your phone and PC from the developer’s website.
2. Open the app on both your phone and PC. On your phone, tap the Get my code button.
3. Enter the eight-digit code displayed on your phone into the Alt-C app on your PC.
4. To send text from your PC to your phone, highlight some text on your PC and press Alt + C. To send text from your phone to your PC, select and copy text on your phone, then press Alt + V on your PC.

Alt-C is a decent app, but it doesn’t always work smoothly. If you’re just using it with two devices, like your Android phone and a Mac, it works fine. But as soon as you add a third device, things get a bit chaotic. The app crashes sometimes, and the copy-paste hotkeys don’t always work. There were plenty of times I had to open the app and copy-paste text straight from the dashboard instead.

Use Pushbullet to set up a cross-platform clipboard

Pushbullet works on almost every platform, including Android, Mac, iOS, and Windows. For Windows and Mac, you will need to install the browser extension on Chrome, Edge, or Firefox. There is a dedicated app for iOS and Android. There is also a Windows app, but the browser extension is more convenient.

With the free version of Pushbullet, you cannot copy and paste text using keyboard shortcuts. Instead, you will need to manually save the text through the app or browser extension and then copy it from there. On a PC, you can save text directly while browsing by highlighting the text or link, right-clicking, and selecting the Pushbullet option from the menu.

If you upgrade to the Pushbullet Pro subscription, you get access to the Universal Copy and Paste feature. All you need to do is enable this in the Pushbullet settings on the devices and computers you want to sync.

Once enabled, you can copy and paste like you normally would, but now between multiple devices. For example, you can copy something on your Android phone and paste it on your Mac or Windows PC. This feature works seamlessly across Android phones and tablets, as well as Windows, Mac, and Linux computers.

Copy and paste with ease

The two apps mentioned above can make copying and pasting across devices much easier, whether you are copying text from a web page or an image. To take your copying and pasting skills to the next level, check out these tips. If you are interested, you might also want to explore ways to copy and paste more efficiently on your Mac or Chromebook.

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