Menu bar clipboard, minus the cloud.
MacBar captures text, screenshots, copied image files, and Finder files, extracts OCR on-device, and gets you back to paste in one clean loop.
Paste screenshots into apps as images, or copy them back out as files when Finder is the target.
Direct answer
MacBar is a local-first clipboard manager for macOS. It stores clipboard history for text, screenshots, copied image files, and Finder files, runs OCR on-device with Apple Vision, and lets you search, preview, pin, copy, and AirDrop clipboard items from the menu bar.
Built for the copy-paste loop you actually repeat all day
Product evidence
MacBar does not hide its strongest ideas in settings. OCR, image/file reuse, and onboarding are visible in the first few screens because those are the moments that decide whether a clipboard tool is genuinely useful.
Desktop context
The panel opens over your current desktop, so search, preview, and reuse happen in one quick stop before you paste back into the app you were already using.
OCR in context
OCR is not a side feature. It is part of the main clipboard surface, so text inside images becomes something you can immediately search and reuse.
Starts simple
MacBar now introduces the first steps directly in the panel, so people understand what to copy, how to reopen items, and how image copy modes behave before the history gets crowded.
Why MacBar
OCR that matters
Error dialogs, annotated mockups, chat screenshots, terminal captures, or image files copied from Finder. Select the image, let Vision extract the text locally, then search or copy it back.
Search everything
You do not need to remember where something came from. If it was copied, MacBar can help you find it.
Files and sharing
Image files copied from Finder preview like screenshots, while files keep their full paths. Reveal them in Finder, paste them again, or send files and images straight from the panel with AirDrop.
Selection that follows
Mouse browsing no longer fights the current selection. Skim a dense clipboard history, stop on the right row, then act immediately.
Pinned memory
Pin prompts, links, shell commands, and boilerplate text so they do not disappear in the scroll.
Stays fast
The panel does less repeated work on every open and every keystroke, so image-heavy histories stay usable instead of turning sluggish.
Daily flow
Text, screenshots, copied image files, and Finder files are captured quietly in the background.
Hit ⇧⌘M, type a few letters, or use the arrow keys and shortcuts.
Copy the item, let the panel get out of the way, and continue where you already were.
Where it helps most
MacBar was built around practical screenshot-heavy scenarios where other clipboard managers usually stop at image previews.
Private by default
MacBar keeps its scope intentionally narrow. It does not sync to the cloud, does not phone home, and does not depend on third-party libraries to handle your clipboard history.
Availability
MacBar is distributed through the Mac App Store. Install it there, launch it once, and leave it in your menu bar for daily clipboard work.
Beta access
Join the MacBar TestFlight to try in-progress builds and share feedback before changes reach the public App Store version.
FAQ
No. Clipboard history stays local and OCR runs on-device. MacBar does not upload clipboard data and does not need a network connection during normal use.
Text, images, and Finder file copies. Search covers text content, OCR results from screenshots and copied image files, filenames, and full file paths.
MacBar is available through the Mac App Store. Check the current App Store listing for availability in your region.
MacBar is especially useful for people who constantly copy screenshots, copied image files, text snippets, and Finder files, then need to search or reuse them quickly.
MacBar is built around screenshot-heavy workflows. It can run local OCR on screenshots and copied image files, index OCR text for search, keep file paths searchable, and make files and images directly actionable from the panel.
Representative perspectives
These are sample user perspectives based on common use cases, not verified customer testimonials.
“The best part is not typing browser errors from screenshots by hand anymore.”
Works across terminal captures, bug reports, chat screenshots, and copied code fragments.
“Design annotations stop being trapped in images once OCR makes them searchable.”
Useful for spec screenshots, redline numbers, and quick visual references copied out of Figma or chat.
“I use it like a scratch buffer for links, files, meeting snapshots, and prompts all day.”
The value is speed: open, search, copy, and get back to the app you were already using.
