Short answer: KDE Connect is excellent when your phone and computer share a Wi-Fi network. Syncer works over any network — your phone on mobile data, your laptop at the office, your desktop at home — and every clip is end-to-end encrypted on the way.
Where KDE Connect shines
Credit where it's due: KDE Connect is free, open source, needs no account, and talks directly between your devices with no server in the middle. It also does far more than clipboard sync — notifications, file transfer, remote input, media controls. If all your devices sit on the same Wi-Fi, it's a great choice and we'd happily recommend it.
Where it gets awkward: off your LAN
KDE Connect is designed for devices on the same local network. The moment your phone drops to mobile data, or your laptop is on a coffee-shop or office network, the devices can't see each other — unless you set up a VPN or similar to put them back on one network. Guest networks and corporate Wi-Fi that isolate devices cause the same problem even when you're in the same room.
That's the gap Syncer fills. Your devices don't need to find each other: each one keeps a live connection to Syncer's relay, so a copy on any network reaches your other devices on any other network.
Syncer vs. KDE Connect
| Syncer | KDE Connect | |
|---|---|---|
| Same Wi-Fi | Yes | Yes |
| Across different networks | Yes, any internet connection | Needs a VPN or similar |
| What's in the middle | A relay that only sees ciphertext | Nothing — direct on your LAN |
| Account | Quick email sign-in | None |
| Open source | No | Yes |
| Scope | Clipboard, history, phone keyboard | Clipboard, files, notifications, remote input and more |
KDE Connect features as publicly documented at time of writing. It's a great project — use it where it fits.
What you get with Syncer
- Works anywhere. Home Wi-Fi, office network, mobile data, hotel Wi-Fi — clips arrive over a live connection, usually before you've switched devices.
- Every platform. Linux, Windows, Mac, Android and iPhone share one clipboard.
- Your clipboard on your phone's keyboard. Tap a clip on the Syncer keyboard in any app and it's pasted at your cursor.
- Searchable history. 7 days of clips, searchable, on your device.
There is a server. Unlike KDE Connect, Syncer routes clips through a relay. It only ever sees ciphertext and deletes each clip once your device fetches it — but if you want no third party at all, KDE Connect on one network is the purer option.
Phone → computer takes a tap. Android 10+ and iOS both stop apps from reading the clipboard in the background, so a copy made on your phone goes out when you tap Sync in Syncer or on the Syncer keyboard. Computer → phone needs nothing: the clip is waiting on the Syncer keyboard.
Text today. Syncer syncs text — links, codes, commands, addresses, notes. Image and screenshot sync is planned, not shipped.
End-to-end encrypted, so we can't read your clipboard
- Sealed on your device. Every clip is encrypted with XChaCha20-Poly1305 under a clipboard key that only your paired devices hold — before it ever leaves the device you copied on.
- Signal-verified pairing. Syncer uses the Signal Protocol to verify each new device and hand your clipboard key over safely. New devices need explicit approval from one you already trust, and you can revoke any device instantly.
- A relay that only sees ciphertext. Our servers pass along sealed blobs they have no key to open, and delete each one the moment your device fetches it. Anything unfetched expires within 7 days.
- Passwords stay put. Passwords and anything your OS or password manager marks sensitive are never synced — they stay on the device you copied them on.
- Backups only you can open. Optional backups are sealed with a key derived from your PIN using Argon2id and encrypted with AES-256-GCM. Your PIN never leaves your device.
The full model — including the honest trade-offs — is on our security page.
Take your clipboard off the LAN
Install Syncer on your computer and phone, pair them once, and it works on any network.
Free. Also on Mac, iPhone — all downloads.
Questions
Does KDE Connect work over the internet?
KDE Connect is designed for devices on the same local network. To use it across networks you'd typically set up a VPN or similar so your devices appear to be on one network again.
Can I use Syncer and KDE Connect together?
Yes. Plenty of people keep KDE Connect for notifications and file sharing at home and use Syncer for clipboard sync everywhere else. If you do, turn off KDE Connect's clipboard plugin so the same copy isn't synced twice.
Is Syncer open source?
No. KDE Connect is open source; Syncer isn't. Instead, Syncer uses established, well-studied cryptography — the Signal Protocol for pairing, XChaCha20-Poly1305 for clips — and documents exactly how on its security page.