CopyClip is a lightweight, open-source clipboard manager for Linux, inspired by the Windows 10 clipboard. It provides fast access to your clipboard history, pinning, search, customizable hotkeys and a clean desktop-friendly UI.
🖥️ Display Server Support:
- X11 — Full support with automatic global hotkeys
- Wayland — Functional with manual hotkey setup (GNOME, KDE Plasma tested)
Note: Wayland requires manual keyboard shortcut configuration due to security restrictions. See installation instructions below.
dark mode with text
light mode with text
- 🗂️ Clipboard History — Automatic history in reverse chronological order
- 📌 Pin Items — Keep important clips always visible
- 🎛️ Custom Hotkeys — Choose your preferred key binding on first launch
- 🔍 Instant Search — Filter items with a built-in search bar
- 🖥️ Multi-Display Server — Works on both X11 and Wayland
- 🌗 Themes — Dark, light, or system theme
- ⚙️ Configurable — Adjust timings, delays, and behavior via settings.json
- 📋 Auto-paste — Optional auto-paste after selecting items (X11: xdotool, Wayland: wtype/ydotool)
- 🔄 Smart Cleanup — Auto-clear on reboot while preserving pinned items
- 🖼️ Clean UI — GNOME-inspired, keyboard-friendly interface
Using the automatic installer? Skip this section - dependencies are installed automatically.
For manual installation, install these based on your display server:
# Required for all systems
sudo apt install xsel python3-xlib python3-pyqt6
# For X11 only
sudo apt install xdotool
# For Wayland only (choose one or both)
sudo apt install wtype # Recommended
sudo apt install ydotool # Alternative# Required for all systems
sudo dnf install xsel python3-xlib python3-pyqt6
# For X11 only
sudo dnf install xdotool
# For Wayland only
sudo dnf install wtype ydotool# Required for all systems
sudo pacman -S xsel python-xlib python-pyqt6
# For X11 only
sudo pacman -S xdotool
# For Wayland only
sudo pacman -S wtype ydotoolNote:
xsel→ clipboard operations (required)python3-xlib→ global hotkeys on X11 (required for X11)PyQt6→ GUI (required)xdotool→ auto-paste for X11 (optional)wtype→ auto-paste for Wayland (optional, recommended)ydotool→ auto-paste for Wayland (optional, alternative)
Install CopyClip with a single command. The script will:
- Detect your system and install dependencies
- Clone the repository to
~/.local/share/copyclip - Set up executables in
~/.local/bin - Configure everything automatically
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Walkercito/CopyClip/main/install.sh | bashAfter installation, start CopyClip with:
copyclipgit clone https://github.com/Walkercito/CopyClip.git
cd CopyClip
# Install uv if needed
curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh
uv run main.pygit clone https://github.com/Walkercito/CopyClip.git
cd CopyClip
pip install PyQt6 python-xlib
python3 main.pyGlobal hotkeys work automatically.
Global hotkeys require manual configuration on Wayland. Auto-paste works with wtype or ydotool.
GNOME
- Settings → Keyboard → Custom Shortcuts
- Add new:
- Name: CopyClip
- Command:
copyclip-show-ui(if using automatic installer) or full path tobin/copyclip-show-ui - Shortcut: your choice (e.g., Ctrl+Alt+V)
KDE Plasma
- System Settings → Shortcuts → Custom Shortcuts
- Right-click → New → Global Shortcut → Command/URL
- Set trigger and command:
copyclip-show-ui
Launch UI manually:
# If installed with automatic installer
copyclip-show-ui
# If running from source
uv run bin/show_ui.pyNote: Wayland support is functional but requires manual hotkey setup. GNOME 48+ will support global shortcuts portal for automatic hotkeys.
On first launch, choose your preferred hotkey:
Super + V(default, Windows-like)Ctrl + Alt + VSuper + CCtrl + Shift + V
You can change this later in Settings.
- Copy text normally with
Ctrl + C - Open CopyClip with your configured hotkey
- Click any item to copy it to clipboard
- Ctrl + Click to pin/unpin items
- Use the search bar to filter items
- Access Settings via the Settings button to configure:
- Theme (dark/light/system)
- Auto-hide behavior
- Auto-paste (experimental)
- Your Hotkey → Open CopyClip window
- Esc → Hide window
- Ctrl + Esc → Quit application
- Ctrl + Left Click → Pin/Unpin items
-
Settings:
~/.local/share/clipboard-manager/settings.json -
Clipboard history:
~/.local/share/clipboard-manager/clipboard_history.json
Example settings:
{
"theme": "dark",
"hotkey": "super_v",
"first_run_completed": false,
"auto_hide_on_copy": true,
"auto_paste_on_copy": false,
"clipboard_check_interval": 1000,
"clipboard_auto_hide_delay": 800,
"auto_paste_delay": 200,
"max_chars_display": 100,
"window_manager": null,
"paste_tool": null
}Configurable settings:
theme: "dark", "light", or "system"hotkey: Hotkey preset nameclipboard_check_interval: Check clipboard every N milliseconds (default: 1000)clipboard_auto_hide_delay: Auto-hide delay after copy in ms (default: 800)auto_paste_delay: Delay before auto-paste in ms (default: 200)max_chars_display: Max characters before truncation (default: 100)window_manager,paste_tool: Auto-detected and cached on first run
CopyClip/
├── copyclip/
│ ├── core/ # Clipboard, history, settings
│ ├── hotkeys/ # X11/Wayland backends + manager
│ ├── ui/ # Widgets, dialogs, styles, main window
│ └── utils/ # Constants and environment helpers
├── bin/ # CLI utilities and launchers
├── assets/ # Icons and screenshots
├── scripts/ # Hotkey installers and icon tools
└── main.py # Entry point
Contributions are welcome!
git checkout -b feature-branch
git commit -m "Add feature"
git push origin feature-branch- uv — dependency management
- Zed — as IDE
- ruff — linting & formatting
- pre-commit — code quality hooks
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This project is under the MIT License.
See the LICENSE file.
CopyClip is still evolving. X11 works great. Wayland testers are highly welcome! 🔥