Local-First
Free to Use
Built by Devs, for Devs

Your clipboard, but it understands your code

Terminal-native clipboard vault for developers

Install the official CLI, keep your workflow local-first, and retrieve clipboard context by type instead of by order. Clip Gate auto-classifies everything you copy into developer-meaningful types, then lets you retrieve it by type, not by order.

Read Docs
$ curl -fsSL https://clipgate.github.io/install.sh | sh

Free to use. No account required. Official installs via the site, PyPI, and Homebrew.

~
The Problem

Your clipboard is a black hole.
You copy dozens of things per session. Only the last one survives.

You don't need clipboard history. You need clipboard intelligence — knowing what each item is, and retrieving it by type instead of by order.

Without Clip Gate
$ pbpaste
build.log
# Wait... where's my error?
# Which of the 20 things I copied was it?
# Scroll through clipboard history...
# Gone forever.
With Clip Gate
$ cg paste --type error
TypeError: Cannot read property 'map' of undefined
$ cg list
ID TYPE AGE PREVIEW
01KN3K4Q command 7s git push origin main
01KN3K49 error 21s TypeError: Cannot read...
01KN3J4H json 17m {"status": "ok"}
Architecture

What happens when you copy

Every clipboard item flows through a 5-stage pipeline in under 5ms.

Capture stdin / clipboard Classify 40+ regex patterns Guard secret detection Vault encrypted at rest Retrieve typed queries

< 5ms end-to-end · runs entirely on your machine

Classification Engine

13 types. 60+ patterns. Zero config.

Every clipboard item is automatically classified the instant it's captured.

↓ Click any type to see how Clip Gate detects it ↓

cg copy --verbose
typeerror
confidence0.92
id01KN3K49
storagesqlite
Real Workflows

See exactly what changes

Here's the most common case — debugging a crash and handing it to your AI. The pattern repeats for paths, secrets, SHAs, and every other typed item.

Before Traditional
$ npm run dev
TypeError: Cannot read properties of undefined
at UserService.getUser (src/user.ts:42:18)
# 1. Select error text with mouse
# 2. Cmd+C
# 3. Switch to browser, open Claude
# 4. Click input, Cmd+V, type context
# 5. ~60 seconds of context switching

The problem: Terminal → mouse select → copy → switch window → paste. Five steps, one brain context switch, and you've lost your flow.

After With Clip Gate
$ npm run dev 2>&1 | cg copy
TypeError: Cannot read properties of undefined
at UserService.getUser (src/user.ts:42:18)
$ cg paste --type error | claude "what caused this?"
Claude: The error means 'user' is undefined at line 42.
getUser() is called before the DB connection resolves.

What changed: Zero window switching. The error is captured the moment it appears. You pipe it directly to Claude from the same terminal.

Saved: ~55 seconds and zero context switches
AI-Native

Plugs into every AI tool you already use

Built-in MCP server exposes your clipboard vault to any MCP client. Or pipe cg pack output to any CLI AI. No accounts. No API keys. Local-first.

Claude Code

Native MCP. Reads your typed history without a single copy-paste.

MCP

Cursor

MCP-aware coding. Errors and snippets surface inside the editor.

MCP

ChatGPT / Codex

Pipe cg pack straight into the CLI or paste into chat.

CLI

GitHub Copilot

Hand bundled context to Copilot Chat via paste or terminal.

CLI

Continue.dev

MCP server discoverable as a tool source for any model.

MCP

Windsurf

Pipe vault entries as context blocks into Cascade.

CLI
~/your-project
# Start the MCP server (one command, runs locally)
$ cg mcp
cg: MCP server listening on stdio · 6 tools registered
# Or pipe directly: bundle the last 3 errors and ask Claude
$ cg pack --type error -n 3 | claude "find the root cause"
Claude: All three failures share a common DB timeout origin...
Browser Extension

The same intelligence — now in your browser

Capture errors, code snippets, and JSON from any web page. Pipe them straight to your terminal. Zero context switching, zero re-typing.

chrome-extension://clipgate
Clip Gate browser extension popup

Smart copy from any page

One click captures the right thing — the error message, the code block, the JSON payload — already classified by type.

Secret-safe by default

Keys and tokens copied from a page never touch disk. Memory-only vault, auto-expires in 5 minutes.

Pipes straight to your terminal

Browser captures appear instantly in cg list. Use cg paste --type error from any shell — same DB.

Install Extension Read the docs
Philosophy

Design principles

Local First

Everything runs on your machine. Encrypted local vault. No cloud. No telemetry. No accounts.

Invisible Until Needed

Minimal output by default. One-line confirmation on stderr. Add --quiet for true silence.

Secrets Are Sacred

API keys auto-detected. Memory-only vault. 5-minute TTL. Zero bytes on disk, ever.

AI-Native

Built for AI workflows from day one. Context packing, MCP server, structured output formats.

Download

Install in 30 seconds

curl -fsSL https://clipgate.github.io/install.sh | sh

macOS (ARM + Intel) and Linux (x86_64 + ARM64). Auto-detects your platform.

pip install clipgate

No Rust needed. Works on macOS, Linux, and Windows. Follow the package instructions on the docs page.

open https://clipgate.github.io/releases/

Grab a prebuilt binary from the release notes page for your platform.

brew install clipgate/tap/cg

macOS and Linux via the official Homebrew tap. Release binaries remain hosted on the site.

open https://clipgate.github.io/support/

Need help? Read the docs, check release notes, or contact support from the official site.

Also available on: PyPI Chrome Web Store

Then try your first commands:

$ echo "TypeError: x is undefined" | cg copy
$ cg list
ID TYPE AGE PREVIEW
01KN3K49 error 5s TypeError: x is undefined
$ cg paste --type error
TypeError: x is undefined
$ eval "$(cg shell-init)" # shell aliases
Pricing

Simple now, scalable later

Start with the free binary. Advanced capabilities can arrive later on top of the same official distribution flow.

Free

Free binary

Core clipboard capture, classification, search, packing, and local storage. Download from the official site and use it on your own machine.

Coming Soon Advance

Advance

Advanced workflow automation, larger sync-aware surfaces, and deeper integrations planned on top of the same base binary.

Docs

Official docs

Read setup, command references, and architecture notes on the public site. No source-code digging required.

Support

Need help?

Use the support page for install help, release questions, and product feedback.

Latest from the blog

Latest from the blog

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I accidentally pasted a password or API key — what to do next

A calm step-by-step recovery playbook and how to stop it forever.

Stop losing what you copy.

Install the free binary and turn your clipboard into a developer tool.

Read Docs