Cai vs Maccy
Maccy is a lightweight, open-source clipboard manager — it stores what you copy and lets you find it fast. Cai does that too, but adds an AI action layer on top: summarize, translate, OCR, create GitHub issues, run shell commands, and more. If you just need clipboard history, Maccy is great. If you want to act on what you copy, Cai picks up where Maccy leaves off.
When to use Cai
- You want clipboard history plus AI actions on what you copy
- You need OCR, translations, summaries, or smart replies
- You want to create GitHub issues or Linear tickets from any text
- You want a single tool that replaces both a clipboard manager and an AI assistant
When to use Maccy
- You only need clipboard history and want the lightest possible tool
- You prefer a minimal app that does one thing extremely well
- You want to expose clipboard history to Claude via MCP
- You don't need AI, OCR, or automation features
Feature comparison
| Feature | Cai | Maccy |
|---|---|---|
| Clipboard history | ✓ | ✓ |
| Search clipboard history | ✓ | ✓ |
| Pin clipboard items | ✓ | ✓ |
| AI actions (summarize, translate, etc.) | ✓ | ✕ |
| OCR / Image to text | ✓ | ✕ |
| Custom AI prompts | ✓ | ✕ |
| Shell command execution | ✓ | ✕ |
| GitHub & Linear integration | ✓ | ✕ |
| Built-in AI model | ✓ | ✕ |
| Apple Intelligence support | ✓ | ✕ |
| Community extensions | ✓ | ✕ |
| MCP server for Claude | ✕ | Community-built |
| Ultra-lightweight | ✕ | ✓ |
| Free and open source | ✓ | ✓ |