How to Copy and Paste on a Mac

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Copy-paste has become an indispensable computer operation, enabling us to duplicate or modify lines of code, entire sections of a Word document, photographs, and more, making work easier and faster.

There are many ways to perform a simple action, and if one method doesn't work for you, there are plenty of other options. To get started, all you need is a Mac computer or laptop and a basic understanding of the user interface, such as how to select text, click with your mouse or trackpad, and use toolbars. We'll also show you how to remap your copy and paste shortcuts for your convenience. Let's get started with this guide on how to copy and paste on a Mac!

How to Recover Accidentally Deleted Files While Copying

If you accidentally used the "Move to Trash" shortcut to copy files on your Mac, the files will be lost. You can check your Trash to recover them. If the deleted files aren't in the Trash, you'll need to download a data recovery tool to retrieve them. We recommend using the Data Recovery Wizard for Mac to restore accidentally deleted files.

How to Copy and Paste on a Mac

On a Mac, you can copy and paste data, images, or documents using context menus or keyboard shortcuts. Once you press your mouse or trackpad, a window will pop up. Here's how to do it quickly and easily:

Use keyboard

One way to do this is by using keyboard keys, as follows:

Step 1: To copy text or an image, first click on it. Hold down the Shift key on your keyboard and use the arrow keys to highlight the text. You can also use your mouse to click and drag the cursor to select the content.

Step 2: Next, press Command + C on your keyboard. Press the button with the ⌘ icon and the letter C at the same time. This copies the text or image to your clipboard.

(Note: Unfortunately, you can't copy more than one block of text or image at a time, which means you'll overwrite whatever was previously copied.)

Step 3: Paste the copied content into your program. If you're using a Mac, the pre-installed “TextEdit” app is a good place to paste and store both text and images.

Step 4: Press Command + V to paste. The copied text and images will be pasted into the current document.

(Note: You can copy only one set of text or images at a time, which means that when you copy new material, it will overwrite what you previously copied.)

Use the mouse

The second way to copy and paste on a Mac is by using the trackpad. Here's how:

Step 1: Select the text or image you want to copy, and press Ctrl+C.

Step 2: Right-click on the cursor and select Copy from the context menu.

From the context menu, select “Copy.”

Step 3: Open the application where you want to paste the information. Move your cursor to the place where you want the copied text to appear.

Step 4: Right-click and select Paste from the context menu that appears.

Click to Paste Text

(Nota bene: Most programs also include a Paste option under their Edit menu.)

Use the toolbar

The third method on our list is using a toolbar to copy and paste text, files, images, and so on. Here's how it works:

Step 1: Use your mouse or trackpad to select the text you want to copy by highlighting it.

Step 2: Click on “Edit” in the toolbar at the top of the window, and then select “Copy” from the drop-down menu.

Step 3: Click once to place your cursor where you want the text to be pasted.

Step 4: From the toolbar at the top of the screen, choose Edit, then select from the drop-down menu.

Remap the Copy and Paste Shortcuts on Your Mac

One of the most challenging tasks when switching between a Mac and a Windows computer, or vice versa, is getting used to the cut, copy, and paste shortcuts. On a Mac, you can copy something by pressing "Command + C."

All of the above methods are great and simple, but there's a clever way to remap your keyboard shortcuts to make copying and pasting more convenient for you. Here's how to remap the copy and paste keys on a Mac:

Step 1: First, go to “System Preferences” and click on “Keyboard.”

Step 2: There are a lot of options here! First, click on the "Shortcuts" tab at the top of the window pane. You can refer back to this image if you need help finding it later.

Step 3: Click on "App Shortcuts" on the left to make browsing easier.

Click the application shortcut to launch it.

Step 4: The new shortcut will appear here. Since we have both "Paste and Match Style" and "Paste" shortcuts, we need to differentiate them; in other words, we want the first one to paste with the style. You can see a "+" button at the bottom right corner – click it to add more items.

Step 5: In the small window that appears, type in the following information to create the shortcut:

(Note that you can set up keyboard shortcuts to work only with specific Mac apps, rather than system-wide.)

Step six: Let's look at the Edit menu to see what we need to do before we proceed.

Step 7: Since Menu Titles are very picky, you need to match the command wording exactly. Here, use "Paste" and "Match Style". Remember to capitalize the "Menu Title", and then press your desired shortcut keys (in this case, Command-V) to create the new shortcut:

Step eight, simply click "Add," and we're done. Great. And we should also set "Command-Shift-Option-V" as the default paste. Perfect.

Step 9: Click "Add" one more time, and you're done! No need to restart or log out and back in.

Click on “Add”

Screenshot Management - How to Crop Screenshot on Mac

It's necessary to know how to manage screenshots on Mac, including how to take a screenshot and how to crop a screenshot.

Conclusions

On a Mac, there are multiple ways to copy and paste content, and knowing all these methods will help you make the most of this feature. We've tried to cover every possible way to copy and paste files, folders, images, videos, and more. Let us know if this guide on how to copy and paste on a Mac was helpful.