How to copy text from a Microsoft Teams meeting on Mac
Press ⌘ ⇧ 2 during the Teams call and drag over the text in the shared screen or slide; it is copied the moment you let go. Copyable works with the Teams app and Teams in the browser, reads the frame on your Mac and never uploads it.
How to do it with Copyable
Give the shared content room
Make the meeting window full screen so the shared content gets as much of your display as possible.
Press ⌘ ⇧ 2 and drag over the text
The screen freezes, so the text stays put even if the presenter keeps scrolling.
Paste it
The text is in your clipboard the moment you let go, and the panel next to your selection shows it. Paste it into the chat, your notes or a document. A link in the selection shows up as a button.
Without Copyable
The free ways, and where they stop working. If one of them covers what you need, you don’t need an app.
Ask for it in the chat
Ask the presenter to post the text, the link or the file in the meeting chat.
Where it stops: Depends on the presenter, and on whether they are still in the meeting.
A screenshot, then Preview
Press ⌘ ⌃ ⇧ 4 (Command-Control-Shift-4) and select the area to copy a screenshot to the clipboard. Open Preview, choose File → New from Clipboard and select the text with Live Text.
Where it stops: Works for anything on screen, but each capture takes several steps and leaves a Preview window to close.
Tips for Teams
- A shared screen is a compressed video stream. If letters come out wrong, wait for the picture to sharpen and capture again.
- Teams’ live captions are text on screen too. Capture a line someone just said like any other text.
- Numbers from a shared spreadsheet can go back into one as cells with Table mode.
Questions
Does it work with the new Teams app?
Yes. Copyable reads the screen, so the Teams app, Teams in a browser and any other meeting app work the same.
Does it record the meeting?
No. It reads one still frame when you press the shortcut and doesn’t save the image.
Does anything go to Microsoft?
No. Copyable makes no network requests. Recognition happens on your Mac with Apple’s Vision framework.
Why is the shared screen black in my capture?
Some meeting apps can hide shared content from screen capture when the host turns that on. Then it appears black to every capture tool on the Mac, Copyable included.
Copy text from anything on your screen
Copyable reads the text in any area you select with ⌘ ⇧ 2, on your Mac, without uploading anything. $4.99 once, plus tax where it applies. Requires macOS 14 Sonoma or later, Apple silicon or Intel.
Buy for $4.99