Arkive Support
Need help with Arkive? Start here — most questions are answered below. For anything else, contact steffen@stormmarketing.dk and we'll get back to you.
Getting started
How do I capture something on my Mac? Just copy it. Arkive watches your clipboard automatically and saves text, links, and images as you copy them — no extra step.
How do I capture something on my iPhone? iOS doesn't allow apps to watch the clipboard silently, so on iPhone you send things to Arkive using the share sheet (the "Share" button in Photos, Safari, and most other apps). You can also turn on an optional in-app paste button in Settings.
How do I open Arkive on my Mac? Click the Arkive icon in your menu bar, or use the keyboard shortcut you set during setup.
Search
What's the difference between keyword and semantic search? Typing in the search bar searches both what your clips say and what they mean — you can search "flight confirmation" and find an email that never uses that phrase, or search for a color and find a matching screenshot. This runs entirely on your device.
Sync
How does sync work between my Mac and iPhone? Turn on sync in Settings, and your clips move between your devices through your own private iCloud account. Arkive's developer has no access to this data — it's never visible to anyone but you, on your own devices.
Why didn't a full-resolution image sync to my other device? By default, only previews sync to keep iCloud usage small. Turn on "Sync full-quality images" in Settings if you want originals everywhere — a large history can then use a gigabyte or more of iCloud storage.
Privacy & security
Does Arkive send my clipboard data anywhere? No. All processing — search, image recognition, detecting passwords and keys — happens on your device. Nothing is sent to an external server. See the full .
How does Arkive protect sensitive items like passwords? Arkive automatically detects text that looks like a password, API key, or similar credential and seals it behind Face ID, Touch ID, or your device passcode. You can turn this off (so sensitive items are discarded instead of stored) in Settings.
Can I lock the whole app, not just sensitive items? Yes — turn on "Require [Face ID/Touch ID] to open Arkive" in Settings for an additional lock on top of individually protected clips.
Trial & unlock
How does the free trial work? Arkive is free to use in full for 30 days from your first launch. After that, you'll need to unlock it with a one-time $2.99 purchase — there's no subscription.
I already paid — why is it asking me to unlock again on my other device? A purchase made on one device should apply automatically to your other devices signed into the same Apple ID. If it doesn't, open Settings and tap "Redeem Purchase" to refresh it.
I reinstalled Arkive and it's asking me to pay again. Open Settings (or the unlock screen) and tap "Redeem Purchase" — this restores your existing purchase without charging you again.
Managing your data
How do I delete everything Arkive has stored? Settings → Backup → "Clear all history…". This is permanent and cannot be undone.
How do I stop Arkive from capturing from a specific app (like my password manager)? On Mac, add its bundle identifier under Settings → Ignored Apps. Arkive also automatically skips anything a password manager marks as sensitive.
How long does Arkive keep my clips? By default, indefinitely, up to 2,000 items. You can change or disable both the time limit and the item cap in Settings → Retention. Pinned items are never removed automatically.
Troubleshooting
Arkive isn't capturing anything on my Mac. macOS may be blocking clipboard reads. Open Settings and check the Clipboard Access status — if it needs attention, follow the link to System Settings → Privacy & Security and allow Arkive to read the clipboard.
A synced clip isn't showing up on my other device. Give it a moment — sync depends on iCloud's own timing. Check Settings for the last-synced status. If it's been a while, make sure both devices are signed into the same iCloud account with iCloud Drive enabled.