Fix for "Clipboard Error. We couldn't copy the content of the clipboard"

There have been many posts on how to fix the message Clipboard Error. We couldn't copy the content to the clipboard because its in use by another application.

I tried many of the suggestions:

• Turn off live preview
• Clear the clipboard
• Reboot
• Repair Excel
• Add special folders to the Windows directory.
• Issue the command prompt 'Echo Off | clip
• Use the statement "Application.CutCopyMode = False after doing a copy and before closing a file
• Copying one cell before closing a file
• Removing com add-ins
• Closing all other applications
• And a score of others

None worked. I have a test macro that works for several minutes and does many copy/paste, graphics, formatting, etc. It would display the clipboard error at least once every 2 or 3 executions, and often every execution. I used it to test all the posted cures.

What I finally realized is that the application that was using the clipboard and causing the error was Excel itself. Excel was basically not able to keep up with the command to clear the clipboard.

The cure then became simple. Slow excel down by using the statement "DoEvents" right after I issued the command "Application.CutCopyMode = False". And to put the Application.CutCopyMode = False after I was finished with any copy that I did and right before any workbook close command. I've run my macro 10 times and no clipboard error message appears.

Please give it a try.

Hi Ive had this issue for the last year or so

The cause i found was logictech software

I disabled on startup & closed in taskmanager

Never an issue since

That's interesting that you, along with so many have this error in macros. I've seen it there too, but so far it's never prevented any copy from being successful (fingers crossed). I totally agree that the "another user" is the application itself locking the clipboard. Though, if it does prevent successful copy, I'll try that DoEvents.

Where I've found it the most aggravating is when I'm just copying by hand. When I have to keep clearing the message, it's annoying, but the copy works fine within Excel. But it's preventing the copy into the system clipboard even when it successfully copies into the Excel clipboard. So when I want to paste outside of Excel, there's nothing to paste.

This is going at the speed of my hands (Ctrl-C, Esc, Ctrl-C, Esc, Ctrl-C, etc.), not the speed of the computer.

And, as I've mentioned before, my computer has never had any Logitech software or devices.