Clipboard history in Windows 11 extends the standard Clipboard feature and allows one to record and manage all the copied content. You can then use it as needed by quickly accessing the interface. You can even organize the copied content for quick access.

Moreover, you can also upload the clipboard history to the cloud and sync it across all your Windows devices linked to the same Microsoft account. Despite the benefits, to prevent exposure to the confidential content that you may have copied on your PC, you may wish to clear the clipboard history from time to time. There are several ways to do it and you can choose the one you find the most convenient.

Method 1: Clear the Clipboard History from the Clipboard Itself

If you wish to clear a couple of items from the clipboard history, this might be one of the best methods to do that, and only requires you to press a keyboard shortcut to access the history.

Simply, press the Windows+V keys together on your keyboard to bring up the clipboard on your desktop. After that, click on the ‘Clear All’ button to discard all the copied items from the clipboard.

Otherwise, you can also remove a single item. To do so, click on the ‘ellipsis’ on the item tile you wish to remove. Next, click on the ‘Trash’ icon to remove it from the clipboard history.

Method 2: Clear Clipboard from the Settings App

In case you are already in the Settings app tweaking your computer or you do not prefer to use a keyboard shortcut, you can always head to the Settings app to clear the clipboard history.

First, head to the Start Menu and click on the ‘Settings’ tile to proceed. Alternatively, you can also type Settings in the menu to search for it.

Now, make sure you have selected the ‘System’ tab from the left sidebar.

Then, click on the ‘Clipboard’ tile from the right section of the screen.

Next, click on the ‘Clear’ button present on the ‘Clear clipboard data’ tile to remove all copied items from the clipboard.

Method 3: Use RUN Utility to Clear Clipboard History

You can simply type in a command in the RUN utility and clear the clipboard on your Windows 11 device. This method will be suited to those who find using the RUN utility much more convenient than using the GUI option.

First, press the Windows+R keys together on your keyboard. Once the RUN utility is visible on your screen, type or copy+paste the below-mentioned command and hit Enter on your keyboard to execute it. That’s just it, you have cleared the clipboard history.

cmd /c echo.|clip

Method 4: Create a Shortcut to Clear Clipboard Data

In case heading to a menu or pressing a keyboard shortcut is too much work, you can also create a shortcut that you can simply double-click to clear the Clipboard data. Moreover, you can place the shortcut right on the Desktop for increased convenience.

First, right-click on the empty space on the Desktop and hover over the ‘New’ option. Next, click on the ‘Shortcut’ option to continue. This will open a separate window on your screen.

Now, on the shortcut window, type or copy+paste the below-mentioned command and hit on the ‘Next’ button to proceed.

cmd /c echo.|clip

After that, give an appropriate name for the shortcut. We recommend using ‘Clear Clipboard’ for easy recognition. Lastly, click on the ‘Finish’ button.

You will now be able to see the shortcut right on your Desktop. You can double-click on it anytime to execute it and clear the clipboard history of your device.

In case you wish to invoke the newly created shortcut with a key combination, right-click on the shortcut and select the ‘Properties’ option.

Now, on the properties window, click on the ‘Shortcut key’ field and then press the key combination you prefer to use to invoke the file. The key pressed will be displayed in the field. After that, click on the ‘Apply’ and ‘OK’ buttons to confirm and close the window.

After that, press the Windows+R keys together to bring up the RUN utility and type or copy+paste the below-mentioned command. Next, hit Enter to continue. This will open a File Explorer window on your screen.

shell:Start menu

Next, double-click on the ‘Programs’ folder to continue.

Now, copy or drag the created shortcut and paste it into the File Explorer window. That’s it, you can now use the defined keys to invoke the shortcut and clear the clipboard history.

How to Disable Clipboard History on Windows 11

In case you wish to disable the history for some time instead of clearing it every time, below are the quick and simple steps to do that. Moreover, you can turn it back on anytime you want.

First, head to the Start Menu and click on the ‘Settings’ tile to proceed. Alternatively, you can also press the Windows+I keys together to open the app.

After that, make sure you have selected the ‘System’ tab from the left sidebar.

Next, from the right section, click on the ‘Clipboard’ tile to continue.

After that, click on the toggle present on the ‘Clipboard history’ tile to bring the switch to the ‘Off’ position.

And that’s it, you have successfully disabled the clipboard history on your Windows 11 device. To reenable it, you can toggle the same switch again.

There you go, folks. You can use the above-listed methods to clear your clipboard history. Also, make sure you clear the clipboard history from time to time if you have been working with confidential data on your Windows PC.