How to cut, copy, and paste on Android phones

Slicing, copying, and pasting are actions which can be often carried out in apps and between apps: getting an deal with from a message right into a map, transferring a picture from an electronic mail to a doc, or simply transferring textual content from one finish of a observe to a different. However whereas I’ve identified easy methods to lower, copy, and paste on a laptop computer or desktop laptop for, properly, without end, I wasn’t fairly as positive at first easy methods to do it on my Android telephone.

Actually, reducing, copying, sharing, or pasting on Android is fairly easy — irrespective of which app you’re in or what you’re making an attempt to maneuver round. Right here’s easy methods to do it.

Be aware: I’ve examined these strategies on a Google Pixel 8 working Android 14 and a Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 working Android 14 and One UI 6.0.

The method for choosing textual content on the display screen, whether or not it’s editable textual content (as in a kind) or non-editable textual content (like on a webpage), is similar in most situations:

• Press and maintain on a phrase till it’s chosen.
• Drag the handles at every finish of the choice if you wish to embrace extra phrases.
• Faucet Choose all on the pop-up bar above the choice to pick out all of the textual content within the part.

In some apps (corresponding to Google Maintain), it’s also possible to double-tap on a phrase to pick out it, fairly than tapping and holding. You would possibly discover this simpler if the app you’re utilizing helps it. (Gmail, for instance, doesn’t.)

Nevertheless you do it, as soon as you choose your textual content, you’ll get a listing of choices that seem above the choice.

• Faucet Copy to repeat the textual content to the keyboard, leaving the unique textual content in place.
• Faucet Reduce to maneuver the textual content to the clipboard, eradicating the unique textual content. (You may solely do that in a discipline or kind the place textual content is editable.)

Android really has a neat trick the place if there’s textual content on the clipboard while you pull up the on-screen keyboard, you’ll see that textual content prepared to stick simply above the keys — simply faucet the textual content to stick it on the present cursor place. (This works on Google’s default Gboard keyboard, the Samsung Keyboard, and it’d work on different keyboard apps as properly.)

• To stick the textual content, press and maintain your finger on the spot you need to drop the textual content in, then select Paste from the pop-up menu when it seems.
• Faucet Share to ship the textual content straight into one other app — for instance, to repeat an deal with from an internet site and paste it right into a message to somebody on WhatsApp.

There’s an alternative choice should you’re transferring textual content inside a doc: with the textual content chosen, long-press someplace within the choice, then drag it to its new location. This works in the identical manner as going by way of the clipboard and the Reduce and Paste choices.

You’ll discover some variations in numerous apps — for instance, in Chrome, the place should you press on the present web site URL, you’ll get a duplicate icon you could choose, not a pop-up bar. Usually, although, use a protracted press to pick out and replica and a protracted press to stick.

Working with photos is much more depending on the app you’re utilizing, in my expertise, however a protracted press is an efficient place to start out. In Google Chrome, for instance, press and maintain on a picture, and also you’ll see a pop-up dialog with a Copy picture possibility on it.

It’s not fairly this easy in each different app. Should you’re taking a look at a picture in Google Maintain, you might want to faucet on it to make it full display screen, then faucet the three dots (prime proper), then select Copy. In Google Docs, you simply want a single quick faucet to convey up the Copy possibility.

Pasting could be very easy, irrespective of which app you’re in.

• As with textual content, long-press on the spot the place you need the picture to be inserted.
• Decide Paste from the pop-up bar that seems.

That is assuming you possibly can paste in any respect. In Google Images, which could be the place you’re sharing most photos from, there’s no copy function in any respect, unusually sufficient. On this app:

• Faucet on a photograph to make it full display screen.
• Faucet Share to convey up the sharing choices.
• Now you can ship the picture on to every other app in your telephone by deciding on the app, however you possibly can’t copy and paste it.

It’s the identical story in fairly a couple of different apps, together with WhatsApp and Google Messages. You may’t entry copy and lower choices there, solely the usual share possibility.

Whereas the picture copying and pasting course of is fairly inconsistent between apps — and at instances not accessible in any respect — it’s best to be capable of get your photos from one place to a different with out an excessive amount of problem.