Paste without formatting on Mac: the shortcut and how to make it default

Short answer

Press ⌥⇧⌘ V (Option-Shift-Command-V). That’s macOS’s Paste and Match Style: the text takes on the font, color and size of the place you paste it. It’s also in the Edit menu of Pages, Notes, Mail and most other Mac apps.

Google Docs uses ⇧⌘ V instead, and Word and Outlook offer Keep Text Only in the button that appears after you paste. To make it the default, assign ⌘ V to Paste and Match Style in System Settings → Keyboard → Keyboard Shortcuts → App Shortcuts, or use a clipboard manager that pastes plain text.

The shortcut: ⌥⇧⌘V, or Paste and Match Style

Copy some text, click where you want it, and press ⌥⇧⌘ V (Option-Shift-Command-V). Apple calls this Paste and Match Style: the pasted text matches the font, color, size and other style of the text around it, instead of bringing the source’s bold headings and blue links with it.

The same command is in the Edit menu. Regular ⌘ V keeps the original formatting.

Apple notes that apps can define their own shortcuts, so not every app has this one. The quickest check: open the app’s Edit menu and look for Paste and Match Style. If it’s there, ⌥⇧⌘ V works.

Paste without formatting, app by app

App	Paste without formatting	Make it the default
Pages	`⌥⇧⌘ V`, or Edit → Paste and Match Style	App Shortcuts (below)
Notes	`⌥⇧⌘ V`, or Edit → Paste and Match Style	App Shortcuts (below)
Mail	`⌥⇧⌘ V`, or Edit → Paste and Match Style	Mail → Settings → Composing → Message format: Plain Text
Google Docs	`⇧⌘ V` (Paste without formatting)	Use the shortcut each time
Microsoft Word	Paste Options button → Keep Text Only; `⌃⌘ V` opens Paste Special	No setting covered in Microsoft’s Mac help
Outlook for Mac	Paste control icon → Keep Text Only	No setting covered in Microsoft’s Mac help
Slack	No shortcut in Slack’s list	A clipboard manager
Any app, with NotchDesk	`⌃⌘⇧ V`	Always-plain list of apps

Pages, Notes and Mail

Apple’s own apps all have Edit → Paste and Match Style. Mail goes one step further: Format → Make Plain Text turns the whole email into plain text, and Mail → Settings → Composing → Message format makes every new email plain text. Plain text drops bold, tables and images, but every recipient can read it.

Google Docs

Google lists ⇧⌘ V as “Paste without formatting” on a Mac. Don’t confuse it with ⌥⌘ V, which pastes formatting you copied with ⌥⌘ C.

Word and Outlook

Microsoft handles this after the paste. In Word, a Paste Options button appears next to pasted text; choose Keep Text Only, which discards formatting and non-text items such as pictures and tables, and turns tables into paragraphs. If you don’t see the button, it’s controlled by Show Paste Options buttons in Word’s Edit settings. ⌃⌘ V opens Paste Special if you want to pick the format first.

In Outlook for Mac, paste, click the paste control icon at the bottom of the pasted text, and choose Keep Text Only. Microsoft also suggests it when pasted text comes in at a bigger font size.

Slack

Slack’s keyboard shortcut list has no plain-text paste. One related tip from that list: if a link is on your clipboard, select some text in the message field and press ⌘ V to turn it into a link.

Make plain-text paste the default with App Shortcuts

macOS lets you assign your own shortcut to any menu command. That means you can give ⌘ V to Paste and Match Style, so plain paste becomes what you get without thinking.

Choose Apple menu → System Settings, click Keyboard, then Keyboard Shortcuts, and select App Shortcuts.
Click Add. Choose All Applications from the Application menu. In Menu Title, type Paste, and give it a combination you don’t use, such as ⌃⌥⌘ V. This frees ⌘ V; Apple warns that a shortcut already in use won’t work.
Click Add again. For All Applications, type Paste and Match Style and press ⌘ V.
Test it: copy bold text from a web page and paste it into a note.

Things to know before you rely on it:

The menu title must match exactly, including capitals. Apple says you can only add shortcuts for menu commands that already exist.
It only changes apps that have that command. Google Docs, Word and Outlook use their own methods, so they keep their usual behaviour.
Some apps don’t allow custom shortcuts, according to Apple.
When you do want formatting, use the combination you gave to Paste.

Can the Shortcuts app do it?

Partly. Shortcuts has Get Clipboard and Copy to Clipboard actions, and on a Mac you can give any shortcut a keyboard shortcut (open it, go to its details and choose Add Keyboard Shortcut). But a shortcut can only change what’s on the clipboard; you still press ⌘ V afterwards. Apple also doesn’t document an action that’s guaranteed to strip formatting, so we haven’t included a recipe. App Shortcuts or a clipboard manager is simpler and more predictable.

Clipboard managers that paste as plain text

A clipboard manager is the one option that works the same way across apps, including Slack and others that lack Paste and Match Style. Each of these keeps a history too, which we cover in How to see your clipboard history on a Mac.

Maccy (free, open source): open it with ⇧⌘ C, select a clip and press ⌥⇧ ↩ to paste it without formatting. ⌥⇧-click works too.
Raycast: in Clipboard History, open the Action Panel with ⌘ K and choose Paste as Plain Text. Turn on Prefer pasting as plain text to strip formatting on every paste.
Paste: select an item and press ⇧ ↩, or right-click it and choose Paste as Plain Text. Always paste as Plain Text in Paste Settings → General makes it the default.

NotchDesk

This is our app, so read this part with that in mind. NotchDesk adds a shortcut that works on whatever you just copied, without opening a history first:

⌃⌘⇧ V in any app pastes what’s on the clipboard without its fonts, colors and links. Your formatted copy is put back on the clipboard right after, so a normal ⌘ V still pastes it with formatting.
Always-plain apps. Terminal, iTerm2, Xcode, VS Code, Zed and Ghostty are on the list from the start, and you can add any app. Every paste NotchDesk makes into them, from Quick Paste (⌃⌘ V) or a click on a clip, is plain text. Your own ⌘ V isn’t changed.
Paste as Plain Text and Copy as Plain Text in the menu of any text or code clip in your history.

To paste directly, NotchDesk needs Accessibility permission; without it, the plain text is copied for you to paste. It runs on macOS 14 and later, with a 14-day free trial. The first 100 buyers get a lifetime license for $25 (1 Mac) or $49 (3 Macs); after that it’s $9 a month or $89 a year. The rest of the clipboard tools are on the features page.

If you only want plain-text paste, Maccy is free and does it well. Raycast makes sense if you already use it as a launcher. For a fuller comparison, see The best clipboard managers for Mac in 2026.

Questions people ask

What is the shortcut to paste without formatting on a Mac?

Option-Shift-Command-V (⌥⇧⌘ V), which runs Paste and Match Style. It works in most Mac apps. In Google Docs, use Command-Shift-V (⇧⌘ V).

How do I make paste without formatting the default on a Mac?

In System Settings → Keyboard → Keyboard Shortcuts → App Shortcuts, give Paste another shortcut, then assign ⌘ V to Paste and Match Style for All Applications. It only affects apps with a command of exactly that name. Raycast and Paste also have an always-paste-plain-text setting.

Why doesn’t Option-Shift-Command-V work in some apps?

Each app sets its own shortcuts. If the app’s Edit menu has no Paste and Match Style command, the shortcut does nothing. Google Docs, Word and Outlook have their own ways to drop formatting, covered in the table above.

How do I paste without formatting in Word on a Mac?

Paste as usual, click the Paste Options button next to the text, and choose Keep Text Only. It discards formatting and non-text items such as pictures and tables.

How do I paste plain text in Outlook for Mac?

Paste, then click the paste control icon at the bottom of the pasted text and choose Keep Text Only. It removes formatting and images and leaves only the text.

Can I paste without formatting in Slack?

Slack’s keyboard shortcut list doesn’t include one. Paste through a clipboard manager that offers plain text, such as Maccy, Raycast, Paste or NotchDesk.

Sources

We make NotchDesk, so we have a stake in this topic. We’ve tried to be fair to every app mentioned, and checked prices and features on each maker’s own site on the date above. Spotted something out of date? Email hello@notchdesk.com and we’ll fix it.