How to Paste Without Formatting on Windows

Press Ctrl+Shift+V. In Microsoft Edge, Chrome and Firefox, in web apps such as Google Docs and Teams, and in Microsoft 365 Word, it pastes the text without its fonts, colours or links. Windows has no single plain-text paste for every app, but Microsoft's free PowerToys adds one: Win+Ctrl+Alt+V. In Office apps that don't support Ctrl+Shift+V, paste normally, then press Ctrl and T to choose Keep Text Only.

Plain-text paste shortcuts by app

If Ctrl+Shift+V does nothing or does something else, Ctrl+Shift+V not working goes app by app.

Paste plain text in Word

You have three ways to do it, from quickest to most compatible:

1. Ctrl+Shift+V pastes text only in current Microsoft 365 versions of Word. The text takes on the formatting of the paragraph you paste into.
2. Press Ctrl+V, then press Ctrl to open the Paste Options button and press T for Keep Text Only. This works in older versions too.
3. On the Home tab, select the arrow under Paste and choose Keep Text Only, or press Alt, H, V, T in sequence.

Keep Text Only "discards all formatting and nontext elements such as pictures or tables," according to Microsoft. Hyperlinks are removed as well.

Make plain text the default in Word

1. Select File > Options > Advanced.
2. Under Cut, copy, and paste, set Pasting from other programs to Keep Text Only.
3. Set Pasting between documents the same way if you also want plain text when copying between Word files.
4. To drop list bullets and numbers as well, clear Keep bullets and numbers when pasting text with Keep Text Only option.
5. Select OK.

Word's default for text from other programs is Keep Source Formatting, which is why web text arrives in a different font. Merge Formatting is a middle ground: it discards most direct formatting but keeps emphasis such as bold and italic. Why pasted text changes font in Word explains what's going on.

Paste plain text into any app with PowerToys

Microsoft PowerToys includes Advanced Paste, which adds a system-wide Paste as plain text shortcut.

1. Install PowerToys from the Microsoft Store or Microsoft's PowerToys page.
2. Open PowerToys Settings > Advanced Paste and turn it on.
3. Copy text anywhere, click where you want it, and press Win+Ctrl+Alt+V.

Paste as plain text runs locally and doesn't use AI. Win+Shift+V opens the full Advanced Paste window, which also offers Markdown and JSON pastes and, if you turn on Access Clipboard History in its settings, lets you pick an earlier item from your clipboard history.

Without installing anything: Notepad or the Run box

When an app has no text-only paste and you can't install PowerToys:

1. Paste into Notepad.
2. Press Ctrl+A, then Ctrl+C.
3. Paste into the destination.

Recent versions of Windows 11 Notepad support basic formatting such as bold, lists and links. If you use Notepad as a plain-text scrubber, turn that formatting support off in Notepad's settings.

For a single line such as a name or a link, the Run box is quicker: press Win+R, then Ctrl+V, Ctrl+A, Ctrl+C and Esc. Microsoft's Raymond Chen describes this trick on The Old New Thing.

What plain-text paste doesn't remove

Plain text drops fonts, colours, links and tables, but it keeps every character, including some you can't see:

• Hidden characters such as soft hyphens, zero-width spaces and non-breaking spaces. How to remove hidden characters from copied text shows how to find them.
• Smart quotes and em dashes, which break code and commands. See smart quotes and em dashes.
• Line breaks from PDFs and narrow columns. See how to copy from a PDF without broken line breaks.
• Tracking parameters in links you've copied as text.

Does clipboard history paste plain text?

No. Selecting an item in Win+V pastes it the way it was copied, so a web paragraph brings its formatting with it. Pick the item, then undo and paste again with the destination's plain-text command, or use the PowerToys Advanced Paste window, which can show clipboard history and paste as plain text. How Windows treats rich text versus plain text explains why one copy can carry both.

FAQ

Is there a Windows setting to always paste plain text?

No. Windows has no global setting. Word has its own default (above), and PowerToys gives you a separate shortcut, but plain Ctrl+V still pastes with formatting in apps that accept it.

Why does Ctrl+Shift+V change the formatting in PowerPoint?

In PowerPoint, Ctrl+Shift+V pastes formatting you copied with the format painter shortcut, not text. Use Alt, H, V, T or the Paste Options button instead.

How do I paste plain text into Slack?

Slack has its own rules for line breaks and formatting. How to keep line breaks when pasting into Slack covers it.

Related reading

• Ctrl+Shift+V Not Working? Fixes for Word, Excel, Browsers
• Why Pasted Text Changes Font in Word (and How to Fix It)
• How to Copy Plain Text From a Website
• Can PowerToys Replace a Clipboard Manager?

Sources

• Control the formatting when you paste text (Microsoft Support) — Keep Source Formatting, Merge Formatting, Keep Text Only; default settings under File > Options > Advanced; Ctrl after pasting.
• Keyboard shortcuts in Word (Microsoft Support) — Ctrl+Shift+V pastes text only.
• Paste Text Only shortcut in Word (Microsoft 365 Insider) — Ctrl+Shift+V as Paste Text Only in Word.
• Keyboard shortcuts in Microsoft Edge (Microsoft Support) — Ctrl+Shift+V pastes without formatting.
• Keyboard shortcuts for Google Docs (Google) — Ctrl+Shift+V pastes without formatting.
• Commonly-supported Windows shortcuts for pasting without formatting (The Old New Thing) — browsers support Ctrl+Shift+V; Alt, H, V, T in Office; the Run box trick.
• Use keyboard shortcuts to create PowerPoint presentations (Microsoft Support) — Ctrl+Shift+V pastes formatting; Ctrl+Alt+V opens Paste Special.
• Keyboard shortcuts in Excel (Microsoft Support) — Ctrl+Alt+V opens Paste Special.
• Advanced Paste (Microsoft Learn) — Paste as plain text, Win+Ctrl+Alt+V, runs locally.
• Text formatting in Notepad (Windows Insider Blog) — Notepad formatting and the option to turn it off.

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