Most Private Clipboard Managers for Windows, Compared

A privacy-focused clipboard manager keeps your history on your PC, skips copies that password managers mark as secret, lets you ignore apps or pause recording, and sends nothing over the network unless you ask it to. CopyQ meets that bar most completely out of the box. Ditto and Edge Drop are also local-only by default, each with gaps covered below, and Windows' own Win+V history is fine with sync turned off.

Edge Drop is made by the team behind this site. It's assessed on the same criteria as the others.

Privacy compared

Facts come from each tool's documentation or source code, checked in October 2026. CopyQ and Ditto are open source under GPL-3.0 and Edge Drop under Apache 2.0, so their claims can be checked in the code; Win+V is part of Windows.

What makes a clipboard manager private

Judge any tool on these points, in this order:

1. Where copies can go. Look for cloud sync, accounts, AI features that call an online model, and telemetry. Local-only is the safest default; local-first software is the middle ground when you do need sync.
2. Password-manager copies. Apps can tag a copy so history tools skip it. A good manager honours those tags without you doing anything.
3. Copies with no tag. A password you select and copy yourself is plain text. You need a way to ignore the source app or pause recording.
4. What sits on disk. Is history encrypted, and does that cover images and long text, or only part of it?
5. How long it keeps things. Auto-delete, clear-on-restart and easy bulk clearing limit the damage of a slip.

How the "secret" markers work

Windows lets an app mark clipboard data with registered formats. Microsoft documents three: ExcludeClipboardContentFromMonitorProcessing (keep it out of history and cloud sync), CanIncludeInClipboardHistory set to 0, and CanUploadToCloudClipboard set to 0. Many tools also recognise an older marker, Clipboard Viewer Ignore.

The password manager has to add the marker when it copies. KeePass, for example, keeps its copies out of Windows clipboard history and adds Clipboard Viewer Ignore by default. With other password managers, test it: copy a dummy password with the app's copy button and see whether your clipboard manager saves it. What sensitive formats should monitors ignore? lists the markers in detail.

CopyQ: the most complete privacy controls

CopyQ's security documentation is explicit:

• It "does not send anything over network" and collects no other data.
• By default it ignores content marked secret, including all four Windows markers above. Such copies aren't stored, shown or passed to automatic commands.
• You can skip copies from windows whose titles match a pattern, such as your password manager.
• Stored data is unencrypted unless you turn on encryption, which the docs recommend for sensitive items.

The cost is setup time. If you'll turn on encryption and add a window filter, CopyQ is the strongest choice here.

Ditto: local-first, with exclusions you set

Ditto stores history in a local database, and the project lists no login, no cloud and no telemetry. Its optional sync between your own computers encrypts the network traffic. Its source code skips copies marked Clipboard Viewer Ignore, and you can exclude programs by name, such as KeePass.exe, so their copies are never saved.

Ditto's documentation doesn't mention encrypting the database on disk, so treat its history as readable by anyone with access to your Windows account and files.

Edge Drop: local-only, with partial encryption

Edge Drop has no sync, no account and no telemetry. The GitHub build checks GitHub for updates unless you set Automatic updates to Off; the Microsoft Store build makes no update requests. The only other network request happens if you drag an image from a web page onto the shelf and the browser supplies just its URL.

It skips copies carrying the standard Windows exclusion flags, Clipboard Viewer Ignore, and formats that known password managers use to mark concealed content. For unmarked copies:

• Incognito mode (Settings > Behaviour, or Incognito (pause capture) in the tray menu) pauses recording. Anything copied while it's on isn't added later.
• Auto-delete timer removes unpinned items after 1 hour, 6 hours, 24 hours or 7 days.
• Clear unpinned on restart wipes unpinned history each time the app starts.

Its history index is encrypted with Windows DPAPI, tied to your user account. Captured images, the full text of long clips and the settings file are stored as plain files, and there's no per-app ignore list. Where Edge Drop stores data on disk lists every file, and what Edge Drop does with password manager copies covers the skip rules.

Win+V: private enough with sync off

Windows clipboard history honours Microsoft's exclusion formats, keeps only 25 items, and clears unpinned items on every restart, which limits how long a slip lasts. To keep it private:

1. Open Settings > System > Clipboard.
2. Set Clipboard history across your devices to Off unless you need it. When on, text you copy can sync through your Microsoft or work account.
3. Don't pin anything sensitive: pins survive restarts and Clear all.

It has no way to ignore an app, so anything you copy by hand is saved. Is Windows clipboard history safe? covers the rest.

Features that reduce privacy

• Cloud sync and accounts. ClipboardFusion Pro's sync and online pinned items, for example, store clips with the vendor's online service. That can be fine, but decide deliberately.
• AI actions. PowerToys Advanced Paste's AI features are off by default; when you use them, your clipboard text goes to the provider you configured, unless that provider is a local model.
• Running several clipboard histories. Each one is another copy of everything. Pick one.

On work PCs, your IT team may already control clipboard history and sync through policy; see how IT admins control clipboard history with Group Policy.

FAQ

Which clipboard manager is the most secure?

CopyQ, with encryption turned on and a window filter for your password manager. It sends nothing over the network and skips marked secrets by default.

Do clipboard managers save passwords?

Most save any text you copy. Good ones skip copies that password managers mark as secret, but a password you copy by hand has no marker. How to stop clipboard managers from saving secrets shows the settings for each tool.

Is encryption at rest enough?

It helps against someone reading files from another account or a stolen drive, but anything running as you can usually read your history anyway. Short retention and skipping secrets matter more. Does a local clipboard app need encryption at rest? goes deeper.

Related reading

• How to Stop Clipboard Managers From Saving Secrets
• Local-Only Clipboard Managers for Windows 11 (No Sync)
• Does a Local Clipboard App Need Encryption at Rest?
• Is Windows Clipboard History Safe?

Sources

• CopyQ security (Read the Docs) — no network use, secret formats ignored by default, window filters, unencrypted storage unless enabled.
• Ditto website and Ditto (GitHub) — local storage, no login, no cloud, no telemetry, licence.
• Ditto project page (SourceForge) — sync between computers with encrypted network traffic.
• Ditto ClipboardViewer.cpp (GitHub) — skipping Clipboard Viewer Ignore.
• KeePass additional FAQ and KeePass 2.44 release notes — excluding KeePass in Ditto; Clipboard Viewer Ignore and clipboard-history exclusion on by default.
• Clipboard Formats (Microsoft Learn) — the Windows exclusion formats.
• Using the clipboard (Microsoft Support) — Win+V limits, pins, sync settings.
• ClipboardFusion Free vs Pro — Pro sync and online pinned items.
• Advanced Paste (Microsoft Learn) — AI providers and what they receive.

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