Universal Clipboard Not Working Between macOS Catalina and iOS 13

Last Updated: June 16, 2020 6:38 pm

So far, I had been using a universal clipboard on my iDevices without any issue. But suddenly the problem arrived out of nowhere, and Universal Clipboard stopped working between macOS Catalina and iOS 13. As a result, I couldn’t copy and paste anything across my Mac and iPhone. Thankfully, I was able to overcome the problem after trying out some workarounds. Check them out, if you need help!

Universal Clipboard Not Working Between Mac and iPhone? How to Fix

Prerequisite:

Be sure your devices are within the Bluetooth range (about 33 feet or 10 meters).
Universal Clipboard is compatible with the following devices:

Your iPhone or iPad must be running iOS 10 or later and Mac must have macOS Sierra or later.
You must be signed in with the same iCloud account both on your Mac and iOS device.
Besides, make sure to cut, copy and paste within a short period of time.

Solution #1: Start From The Scratch

In the first solution, we are going to give a fresh start to all the essential things like Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and Handoff. Besides, we are also going to get rid of the existing Bluetooth files and give a reboot to both the Mac and iPhone or iPad.

Turn Off Bluetooth And Wi-Fi Both On Your Mac and iOS Device

On Mac: Click the Bluetooth button at the top right corner and select Turn Bluetooth Off. Likewise, click on the Wi-Fi icon and select Turn Wi-Fi Off.

On your iOS Device: Click on Settings app → Wi-Fi/Bluetooth and turn it off.

Disable Handoff Across The Devices

On your Mac: Click on Apple menu → System Preferences → General. Now, uncheck the box for “Allow Handoff between this Mac and your iCloud devices.”

On your iDevice: Open Settings app → General → Handoff and then turn off Handoff.

Wipe Out All The Bluetooth Files

Open Finder → Click on Go menu → press “option” key and choose Library → Select Preferences folder → Type in Bluetooth in the search field.

Now, select all the files and right click. Then, Move them to the Trash.

Note: To ensure the files have been perfectly wiped out, type in Bluetooth in the search bar. If the files do not show up that means they are gone.

You can also open Terminal → and paste the following command:

sudo rm /Library/Preferences/com.apple.Bluetooth.plist

Then, hit return. Next, you have to enter the password and hit return again. It will confirm that there are no such files on your device.

Next, restart both your Mac and iOS device. Once they have rebooted, turn on Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and Handoff.

Now, copy anything on your Mac and try to paste it on your iOS device to see if the problem is gone.

Solution #2: Software Update

If the Universal Clipboard is still not functioning as expected, go for the software update. The reason why I recommend it is because the problem could well be due to a hidden bug. And only a software update will be able to fix it perfectly.

To get it done on iOS devices, go to Settings → General → Software Update and then download and install the update.

After the update, check out if you have succeeded in solving the problem or not.

Wrapping Up…

In my case, I was able to resolve the issue by trying out the first solution. One of my friends who had run into the same problem got success with the same fix. So, I expect you to be on the winning side as well.

You might want to refer to these posts as well:

Could you fix the problem by trying out the above solutions? Share your feedback in the comment below.