Frequently Asked Questions

TextStow is a lightweight clipboard management tool running in the macOS menu bar. It automatically records every copy (text, images, files) and provides a bookmark feature to categorize and save frequently used content. It also includes 30+ text processing tools including JSON formatting, PDF text repair, and Base64 encoding/decoding.

TextStow is free to download and use. You can use the core local clipboard workflow, including clipboard history, content bookmarks, and text processing tools.

TextStow supports macOS 13.0 (Ventura) or higher, including Apple Silicon (M1/M2/M3) and Intel processors.

No. All TextStow data — clipboard history, bookmarks, images, files — is stored in a local SQLite database with zero network transfer. Works offline. Your data belongs only to you. We do not collect or upload any data.

Supports Simplified Chinese, English, German, Spanish, French, Japanese, and Korean.

No. Bookmarks are permanently saved, independent of the clipboard history cleanup policy. Unless you actively delete them, bookmarks will always be there.

Default retention is 1 week. You can adjust it in settings to 1 day, 1 week, 1 month, 1 year, or permanent. Pinned content is never automatically cleaned.

TextStow includes 30+ text processing tools: whitespace cleaning (remove extra spaces, blank lines, merge line breaks), JSON formatting/compression, Base64/URL encoding/decoding, string escape/unescape, PDF text repair (fix broken lines), case conversion (uppercase/lowercase/title case), line operations (deduplicate, sort, convert to CSV), line break handling, Chinese-English mixed formatting, and more. TextStow also smartly recommends the most suitable tool based on content.

macOS system clipboard only keeps the most recent copy — new content overwrites old. TextStow automatically records every copy's history, supports full-text search, filtering by type/time/source app, and bookmark management. Simply put: system clipboard = remembers only the last copy; TextStow = remembers every copy.

No. TextStow is a menu bar resident app with minimal resource usage. It runs silently in the background, barely noticeable, only waking when you need it. Even with thousands of clipboard history entries, search response time stays in milliseconds.

Yes. TextStow supports bookmarking three content types: text, images, and files. Images and files are displayed as thumbnails or file info, with original file copies preserved.

The default shortcut is double-tap Option (⌥). You can also customize the shortcut in settings. After opening the panel, type to instantly search, use arrow keys to browse, Enter to copy, Command+Enter to paste directly.

Yes. All shortcuts can be customized in settings, including the panel open shortcut and the add-to-bookmark shortcut.

Yes. You can export bookmarks as backup files in settings, and import from backups to restore. Convenient for migrating bookmarks between Macs. Clipboard history is stored in a local SQLite database and can also be manually backed up.

The "paste to target app" feature requires macOS Accessibility permissions to simulate keyboard paste. If you only use "copy to clipboard" mode, this permission is not needed.

Check these settings: 1) Confirm clipboard history is enabled; 2) Check if the current app is in the "ignored apps" list (e.g., password managers, banking apps); 3) Confirm "ignore sensitive content" isn't causing false positives.

TextStow is for all Mac users who copy text frequently: developers (code snippet management), designers (design notes, color parameter bookmarks), customer support/sales (reply template management), writers (material collection), students (note organization), and anyone who wants to improve work efficiency.

TextStow's core advantages: 1) Not just clipboard history, but powerful bookmark feature supporting text/image/file categorization; 2) 30+ built-in text processing tools, no extra installs needed; 3) Completely free right now, will never adopt subscription pricing; 4) 100% local storage, privacy secure; 5) Blazing fast search, millisecond response; 6) Mouse-friendly operation, no need to memorize many shortcuts.