The basic way to copy on iPad

To copy something on your iPad, touch and hold the text or image you want to copy until a menu appears. A box will highlight the content, and you'll see options including Copy. Tap Copy and the content moves to your clipboard — the invisible holding space where copied items wait until you paste them elsewhere.

For text, you can adjust what gets copied by dragging the blue handles at the start and end of the highlighted section before you tap Copy. This is useful when you only need part of a sentence or paragraph rather than everything you initially selected.

Once you've copied something, you can paste it into another app, document, or message by touching and holding where you want it to go, then tapping Paste. Your clipboard holds only one item at a time — copying something new replaces what was there before.

Key Takeaways

  • Touch and hold text or an image until a menu appears, then tap Copy to send it to your clipboard.
  • You can adjust the selection by dragging the blue handles before copying, so you don't have to copy an entire paragraph if you only need part of it.
  • Paste what you've copied by touching and holding in the destination app or document and selecting Paste.
  • Your clipboard stores only one item at a time, so copying something new replaces the previous item.
  • The Universal Clipboard feature lets you copy on one Apple device and paste on another if they're signed into the same iCloud account.

Copying from different apps and sources

The copy method works the same way across most iPad apps — Mail, Notes, Safari, Messages, and others all use the touch-and-hold gesture. However, some apps have their own copy buttons or options in menus. In Safari, for example, you can also copy a link by touching and holding the link itself, which copies just the web address rather than the surrounding text.

When you copy from a webpage in Safari, you get the text as it appears on the page. If you copy a link, you get the URL. If you copy an image, you get the image file itself. Different apps may handle what you've copied differently — a Notes app might paste text as plain text, while an email app might preserve formatting like bold or italics.

Using the Universal Clipboard across your devices

If you have an iPhone, Mac, or another iPad signed into the same iCloud account as your iPad, you can copy on one device and paste on another. This is called the Universal Clipboard. Copy something on your iPad, switch to your iPhone, and paste it there — no manual transfer needed.

For Universal Clipboard to work, both devices must be on the same Wi-Fi network and signed into the same iCloud account. You also need to have Handoff turned on in Settings. Go to Settings > General > AirPlay and Handoff and make sure the toggle next to Handoff is on. The feature works with text, images, and links.

What to do if copy isn't working

If the Copy option doesn't appear when you touch and hold, the app you're using may not support copying from that particular element. Some apps restrict copying for security or copyright reasons — you might not be able to copy from a password field, for example, or from certain protected documents.

If copying worked before but stopped, try closing and reopening the app. If that doesn't work, restart your iPad by holding down the power button and volume button together until the power-off slider appears, then slide it to turn off the device. Wait a few seconds and turn it back on. This clears temporary glitches that sometimes block copying.

If you're trying to copy from a website and it's not working, the website owner may have disabled copying on that page. In that case, you can try taking a screenshot instead and using the text recognition feature in the Photos app to extract text from the image.

Copying multiple items with the clipboard menu

Your iPad's clipboard normally holds only one item, but you can see what's currently in it and access recent copies by opening the clipboard menu. On newer iPad models running iPadOS 16 or later, you can access clipboard history by swiping down from the top-right corner to open Control Center, then looking for clipboard options if your device supports them.

On older iPad models, you don't have a built-in clipboard history feature. If you need to keep multiple items saved, copy them into a Notes document or use a third-party clipboard app from the App Store. These apps let you save multiple copies and organize them by category or date.

Copying images and files

Copying images works the same way as copying text — touch and hold the image until the menu appears, then tap Copy. You can then paste the image into Notes, Mail, Messages, or any other app that accepts images. The image goes into your clipboard just like text does.

For files in the Files app, touch and hold the file name until a menu appears. You'll see options including Copy. Once copied, you can navigate to another folder and paste it there, or open another app and paste the file if that app supports it. Some apps, like Mail, let you paste files directly into messages.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I copy and paste between my iPad and iPhone?

Yes, if both devices are signed into the same iCloud account and on the same Wi-Fi network. This is the Universal Clipboard feature. Copy on your iPad, switch to your iPhone, and paste. It works with text, images, and links, but only if Handoff is turned on in Settings.

What happens if I copy something and then copy something else?

The new item replaces the old one in your clipboard. Only one item can be stored at a time. If you need to keep multiple items, paste them into a Notes document or use a clipboard manager app from the App Store.

Why can't I copy from some websites?

Some websites disable copying to protect their content or for security reasons. If copying is blocked, you can take a screenshot of the content instead. On newer iPads, you can use the text recognition feature in the Photos app to extract text from screenshots.

Does copying use data or battery?

Copying text and images uses almost no battery or data. The Universal Clipboard feature uses a small amount of data to sync between devices, but it's minimal. Copying is one of the lightest operations your iPad performs.

Can I copy from a PDF on my iPad?

Yes. Open the PDF in the Books app, Files app, or Safari, touch and hold the text you want to copy, and tap Copy. Some PDFs may have copying disabled by the document creator, in which case the Copy option won't appear.