Account & privacy
Privacy, offline storage and auto-expiring clips
Where your clipboard history is stored
Everything you copy is saved in a local SQLite database on your own disk. Pastily has no account system, no cloud sync and no server that receives your clips. Your history is on your computer and nowhere else.
What Pastily does send over the network
Pastily connects to the internet for two things only, and neither includes your clipboard contents:
- Licence activation: when you activate, check or deactivate your licence key.
- Update checks: from version 2.1.0, Pastily checks whether a newer version is available.
Clipboard history, search, Spaces and the paste queue all work with no internet connection. The full details are in the privacy policy.
Make a sensitive clip delete itself
Passwords, one-time codes and API keys should not sit in your history for weeks. Give them a timer:
- Open the clip's card in Pastily.
- Open the auto-expire timer.
- Pick a preset (5m, 30m, 1h, 6h or 24h) or turn the dial to a custom time, up to 24 hours.
- Save. The card shows the time remaining.
When the timer runs out, Pastily deletes the clip from your history. Choose Off to remove a timer.
Remove clips yourself
- One clip: use Delete on its card.
- Everything: use Clear history in the dashboard, or Control → Clear Clipboard History from the menu bar or tray icon.
Tips for shared computers
- Set a timer on anything sensitive as soon as you copy it.
- Clear your history before handing the computer to someone else.
- Lock your computer when you step away: anyone using your unlocked account can open Pastily.
More on this in How to safeguard your clipboard history on shared office desktops.
Common questions
Does Pastily upload my clipboard history?
No. Your clipboard history is stored in a local database on your own computer. There is no account and no cloud sync. Pastily only goes online to activate your licence and to check for updates.
Does Pastily work without an internet connection?
Yes. Clipboard history, search, Spaces and the paste queue all work offline. You need a connection only to activate your licence and to download updates.
How do I stop passwords staying in my clipboard history?
Set an auto-expire timer on the clip. Pick a preset from 5 minutes to 24 hours, or a custom time, and Pastily deletes the clip when the timer ends.
Related guides
Organise clipboard history with Spaces, pins and saved clips
Pastily sorts everything you copy into Spaces such as Text, Links, Code, Images and Colors automatically. Pin a clip to keep it at the top of your history, save it to find it under Saved, and create your own Spaces for things like code templates or support replies.
Activate, move or refund your Pastily licence
Open Settings → General → License in Pastily, paste your licence key and activate it. To move Pastily to a new computer, deactivate it on the old one first, then activate the same key on the new one. Refunds are available for 7 days, no questions asked.
Getting started with Pastily
Install Pastily, activate your licence key in Settings, then press Cmd+Shift+B on Mac or Ctrl+Shift+B on Windows and Linux to open your clipboard history. Everything you copy from then on is saved on your own computer and can be searched and copied again.
