The paste app for Mac that keeps every copy
The Mac clipboard holds one item. Copy something new and the last thing is gone. This page is for developers, designers, writers, and Mac power users who paste all day and are tired of re-copying what they already had. It covers what a paste app for Mac does, how Spud handles clipboard history, how it compares to other clipboard managers, and what it costs.
Key takeaways
- A paste app for Mac is a menu-bar clipboard manager that saves everything you copy so you can search and reuse past copies from a keyboard shortcut, instead of losing the last item the moment you copy the next.
- Spud keeps a searchable clipboard history you open with ⌃ Space, so pasting something you copied an hour ago takes one shortcut and a few keystrokes (eatspud.com).
- Spud stores your clipboard history locally on your Mac and ships signed and notarized as a direct download from eatspud.com, not the Mac App Store.
- Spud is $4.99 a month for Pro, with a free tier that lasts forever and a 10-day trial that needs no card and no sign-up (eatspud.com).
Download for Mac · See pricing
What is a paste app for Mac?
A paste app for Mac is a menu-bar clipboard manager that records everything you copy and lets you search and reuse it later from a keyboard shortcut. The built-in macOS clipboard only remembers your most recent copy, so anything you copied before that is overwritten. Spud keeps your copies and makes them searchable from one shortcut, so a link or snippet from earlier is still there when you need it (eatspud.com).
Trusted, signed, and yours to keep
Spud is signed and notarized by Blastoise, LLC, and you download it directly from eatspud.com rather than the Mac App Store. There is no card and no sign-up to start the 10-day trial, and nothing you make in the trial is ever taken away (eatspud.com). Your clipboard history lives on your Mac, not on a server we control.
Key benefits
Spud gives you four things the default Mac clipboard can't: nothing you copy is lost, your whole history is searchable from one shortcut, old copies stay available, and your data stays local.
Never lose a copied thought
Everything you copy is kept and stays searchable, so copying a second item no longer wipes out the first (eatspud.com).
Search your whole history
Open the panel, type a word, and Spud filters your clipboard history down to the copy you want (eatspud.com).
Paste from an hour ago
A copy from earlier in the day is still in your history, so pasting something old stops being an archaeology project (eatspud.com).
Your clipboard stays on your Mac
Spud stores your clipboard history locally on your machine, so your copied text and links stay with you (eatspud.com).
How it works
You work the whole thing from the keyboard, so your hands never leave home row. Here is the flow:
- Press ⌃ Space to open the Spud panel (eatspud.com).
- Type a few characters to search your clipboard history.
- Press Return to copy the item you picked, then paste it wherever you are with ⌘ V.
More than a clipboard
Spud is a clipboard manager, and it does more once you're inside. It also saves and restores whole workspaces, snapping every app and window back to its exact position, size, and stacking order, and reopening the browser tabs you had closed (eatspud.com).
Beyond that you get snippets for the text you type every day, a searchable screenshot history, and Talk, which reads copied text aloud with ⌃ T (eatspud.com).
If you came for the clipboard, treat the rest as a bonus. You never have to touch the workspace features to get the clipboard payoff.
Spud vs. other Mac clipboard apps
Here is an honest look at Spud next to real clipboard managers. Each of these does its core job well, so the right pick depends on what you need beyond copy history.
| App | Does well | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Spud | Searchable clipboard history plus saved workspaces that restore apps, windows, and tabs (eatspud.com) | Free tier; $4.99/mo Pro |
| Maccy | Lean, fast, open-source clipboard history under the MIT license (maccy.app) | Free |
| Paste | Clipboard history that syncs across your Mac, iPhone, and iPad through private iCloud (pasteapp.io) | Paid subscription |
| Flycut | Free, open-source clipboard history aimed at developers (Flycut on GitHub) | Free |
| CopyClip | Simple free clipboard history from the Mac App Store (CopyClip on the App Store) | Free |
If clipboard history is all you need, Maccy and Flycut are excellent and free. If you want your history on your iPhone and iPad, Paste is built for that. Spud is the pick when you also want to save and restore your whole desktop, not just your copies.
Who it's for
Spud fits Mac users who juggle several work contexts and paste all day. A few concrete cases:
- Developers: copy a stack trace, then a snippet, then a command, and paste each one without losing the first.
- Designers: keep hex codes, asset links, and copy handy across files instead of hunting for them again.
- Writers: pull back a paragraph you cut an hour ago instead of rewriting it.
- Mac power users: switch between deep work, calls, and design and keep every copy in reach with ⌃ Space (eatspud.com).
Privacy and permissions
Your clipboard history stays on your Mac, and Spud downloads directly from eatspud.com signed and notarized. On first launch, macOS asks for Accessibility permission, which Spud needs to read and move other apps' windows; that permission is the entire product, so it does not work without it (eatspud.com). Because you install it directly rather than through the App Store sandbox, there are no sandbox limits on managing your windows.
Pricing
Spud is free to start and $4.99 a month if you go Pro. The free tier lasts forever and includes up to 2 saved workspaces, your last 10 clipboard items, and 5 saved snippets (eatspud.com). Spud Pro is $4.99/month for unlimited workspaces, your full clipboard history, and unlimited snippets (eatspud.com).
Every install begins with a 10-day Pro trial that needs no card and no sign-up, and nothing you make during the trial is taken away (eatspud.com). You download first and upgrade inside the app whenever you're ready.
Frequently asked questions
Is Spud a free paste app for Mac?
Yes, Spud has a free tier that lasts forever. It includes up to 2 saved workspaces, your last 10 clipboard items, and 5 saved snippets, and every install starts with a 10-day Pro trial that needs no card and no sign-up (eatspud.com). Spud Pro is $4.99 a month for unlimited use.
Where does Spud store my clipboard history?
Spud stores your clipboard history locally on your Mac. It is not kept on a server we control, and the app itself is signed and notarized as a direct download from eatspud.com. Your copied text and links stay on your machine.
Is Spud on the Mac App Store?
No, Spud is not on the Mac App Store. You download it directly from eatspud.com, signed and notarized by Blastoise, LLC. Installing directly means there are no App Store sandbox limits on managing your windows.
Does Spud work with multiple displays?
Yes, Spud is built for multi-display setups. When you restore a workspace, it re-places your windows proportionally onto whatever displays you have plugged in, so unplugging an external display or docking again puts everything back in the right spot (eatspud.com).
What macOS version does Spud need?
Spud requires macOS 26 Tahoe and runs on both Apple silicon and Intel Macs (eatspud.com). You can install it and save your first workspace in about a minute.
Ready to get every copy back
Stop re-copying what you already had. Spud keeps every copy searchable and gets you set up in about a minute. Requires macOS 26 Tahoe, runs on Apple silicon and Intel, with a free 10-day trial and no card (eatspud.com).