fdrop

Copy text from Mac to iPhone

Paste on your Mac, tap Copy on your iPhone. A shared clipboard that works in any browser.

Clipboard

Press ⌘V / Ctrl+V anywhere

Clips are visible to devices on your Wi-Fi for 30 minutes. Avoid sending passwords.

Keep for

On your network

live
Looking for files…

AirDrop is the obvious choice, but it needs both devices close by, awake and discoverable, and it can be slow to show the iPhone. For a link, an address, a code or a paragraph, emailing yourself is a lot of steps for something you want to paste in five seconds.

The quick way, with fdrop

  1. 1

    Open fdrop.cc on both devices

    Safari or Chrome on the Mac, Safari on the iPhone. Same Wi-Fi, no login.

  2. 2

    Paste on the Mac

    Copy the text, open fdrop.cc and press ⌘V anywhere on the page.

  3. 3

    Copy on the iPhone

    The text appears under Clipboard within a few seconds. Tap Copy and paste it wherever you need.

fdrop clipboard on an iPhone showing text sent from a Mac, with a Copy button
Text pasted on the Mac shows up on the iPhone with a Copy button.

Other ways, and their catch

Universal Clipboard

Copy on the Mac and paste on the iPhone. It works when both are signed into the same Apple ID with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and Handoff turned on.

Good: Nothing to open: copy and paste as usual. Catch: Same Apple ID only, so it can’t send text to someone else’s device, and it times out after a couple of minutes.

WhatsApp or Telegram to yourself

Send it to your own chat (Message yourself in WhatsApp, Saved Messages in Telegram) and open WhatsApp or Telegram on the iPhone.

Good: You probably have the app already. Catch: Needs the app signed in on both devices.

Email it to yourself

Attach it (or paste it) in an email to yourself and open the email on the iPhone.

Good: Works on every device. Catch: Lots of steps for a quick copy, and it clutters your inbox.

Good to know

Questions

How do I copy text from Mac to iPhone without a cable?

Open fdrop.cc on both, paste on the Mac and tap Copy on the iPhone. Universal Clipboard is the main built-in option, with the limits listed above.

Is there a length limit?

Up to 50,000 characters per clip, which is about 20 pages of text. Longer than that, save it as a file and send the file.

Do the Mac and iPhone need to be on the same Wi-Fi?

Yes for the clipboard: clips show up on devices that share your internet connection, like home or office Wi-Fi.

Why not just use Universal Clipboard?

Use it when it works. fdrop helps when the iPhone isn’t nearby, is signed into a different Apple ID, or isn’t showing up, and it gives you a link you can open anywhere.

Who can see what I paste?

Only devices on the same internet connection with fdrop open. Clips are deleted after 30 minutes, and you can delete your own sooner.

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