[FEATURE] Paste images from clipboard directly into Claude Code (Windows)

Found 3 possible duplicate issues:

1. https://github.com/anthropics/claude-code/issues/12644
2. https://github.com/anthropics/claude-code/issues/26001
3. https://github.com/anthropics/claude-code/issues/25255

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🤖 Generated with Claude Code

that worked a few weeks ago but was broken by some recent changes

+1 on this feature request. I work at Micron and use Claude Code extensively for engineering workflows on Windows 11. The Anthropic team specifically encouraged me to request this feature.

My workflow relies heavily on the Windows Snipping Tool (Win+Shift+S) to capture screenshots of test results, error messages, and system configurations. Currently there's no way to paste these directly into Claude Code -- I have to save the screenshot to disk first and then reference the file path, which completely breaks the conversational flow.

This would be a huge quality-of-life improvement for Windows users. The clipboard already has the image data; Claude Code just needs to read it.

+1 on this feature request.

Actually, I just got it working.
The shortcut is ALT-V, not CTRL-V.

Actually, I just got it working. The shortcut is ALT-V, not CTRL-V.

Yes, on mac os command + v doesnt work but crl + v does work.

### Preflight Checklist [x] I have searched existing requests and this feature hasn't been requested yet[x] This is a single feature request (not multiple features) ### Problem Statement When working with Claude Code on Windows, I often encounter visual issues — error messages, UI bugs, terminal output, or diagrams — that are easier to show than describe. My natural workflow is to capture a screenshot with Win+Shift+S, which puts the image directly in the clipboard. The problem is that I cannot paste that image into Claude Code. I have to stop, open an image editor or file explorer, save the screenshot to disk, find the file path, and then reference it manually. This completely breaks the flow of the conversation and adds unnecessary friction to what should be a two-second action. The core problem is: visual context is trapped in the clipboard with no way to share it inline, forcing a multi-step workaround that interrupts the debugging or development workflow. ### Proposed Solution Allow Ctrl+V in the Claude Code prompt to detect when the clipboard contains an image and attach it to the current message, the same way text is pasted today. The image would be sent alongside the prompt so Claude can analyze it visually no file path required. ### Alternative Solutions Saving the screenshot to disk and manually typing or dragging the file path into the prompt. This works but breaks the workflow and requires leaving the terminal. * Using a third-party clipboard-to-file tool to auto-save screenshots. This adds an external dependency and still requires referencing a path. Neither alternative feels native or frictionless compared to a simple Ctrl+V. ### Priority High - Significant impact on productivity ### Feature Category CLI commands and flags ### Use Case Example 1. I am debugging a layout issue in my web app. I open the browser, see the broken UI, and press Win+Shift+S to capture the relevant area. 2. I switch to my terminal where Claude Code is running. 3. I type: "Why does this component look broken?" and press Ctrl+V to attach the screenshot. 4. Claude sees the image and immediately identifies the CSS issue. Current experience: Step 3 fails silently nothing is pasted. I have to open Paint, save the image, find the path, and type something like @/Users/julio/Desktop/screenshot.png before Claude can help. Expected experience: Ctrl+V attaches the image inline and I send the message in one step, without leaving the terminal or touching the file system ### Additional Context his is consistent with how Claude.ai handles image input in the browser paste from clipboard works there out of the box. Windows 11 clipboard (Win+Shift+S, PrintScreen, Snipping Tool) stores images in memory without saving to disk by default, making file-path-based workarounds inconvenient. This feature would also benefit macOS users (Cmd+Ctrl+Shift+4) and Linux users with similar clipboard capture tools. Common use cases: pasting error screenshots, UI layout bugs, terminal output rendered as image, hand-drawn diagrams, or design mockups.

You can just use alt + v instead of ctrl + v on Windows

> Actually, I just got it working. The shortcut is ALT-V, not CTRL-V. Yes, on mac os command + v doesnt work but crl + v does work.

alt + v works

<img width="239" height="109" alt="Image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/689cbc88-495a-4b80-8b08-f190cf4f041d" />

alt + v works for Windows

<img width="239" height="109" alt="Image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/965d8f3e-0bb9-4ec4-98a3-9bdd9db80c3d" />

it seems they have support ctrl + v for v2.1.84 for windows, but i have another problem with it as it cause me unable to paste pure image path which i used to rely on alt + v to paste screenshot and ctrl + v to paste path

alt + v works for Windows <img alt="Image" width="239" height="109" src="https://private-user-images.githubusercontent.com/56516234/565629890-965d8f3e-0bb9-4ec4-98a3-9bdd9db80c3d.png?jwt=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.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.7kEAHRFSayY-YnDypQFCXJ54m8dKyPrC6qwwO__z3yc">

Thanks for helping me, it does work perfectly.

WSL actually does not support ALT + V

clipaste fixes this. Tiny background daemon that normalizes the screenshot clipboard — adds a file URL so Cmd+V works, and adds the PNGf type so Ctrl+V works.

brew install hqhq1025/clipaste/clipaste
brew services start clipaste

Also supports SSH remote paste via clipaste ssh-setup user@host.

I think CTRL + V should be made the default. Even though ALT + V works, nobody knows about it.

alt + v doesn't work anymore. So there's no way to paste images to the claude code terminal right now other than dragging a file in

Edit: Reinstalled and alt + v works again

there is an interesting workaround: ask claude to read the windows clipboard content, the it performs:

PowerShell(Add-Type -AssemblyName System.Windows.Forms
$img = [System.Windows.Forms.Clipboard]::GetImage()…)
⎿  SAVED: C:\your\session-folder\clipboard.png (803x219)

Not as nice as a real "paste image", but works to avoid the need to manually save and paste the path

+1, please make this happen!!

+1

Confirming the same issue on my setup:

Environment:

• Windows 10 Enterprise (19045)
• Windows Terminal + PowerShell 7
• Claude Code v2.1.205
• Native Windows (not WSL)

Symptoms:

• Clipboard image paste (Ctrl+V) does not attach the image — no error shown, just nothing happens.
• Drag-and-drop of files into the input also does not work anymore (used to insert the file path as text).
• Both used to work in a previous version; can't pin down exactly which update broke it.

Same clipboard contents work fine in other apps (Paint/Word), so it does look like it's isolated to Claude Code's Windows clipboard/drag-drop handling, consistent with what's reported here and in #26679 / #32791.