How to remove asterisks and ### from ChatGPT answers when copying
The Problem with Markdown Symbols in ChatGPT Copies
When you ask ChatGPT to write an article, draft a report, or compose an email, it formats the output using Markdown. This means it wraps bold text in double asterisks like bold text and structures headings using hashtag symbols like ### Heading. This looks neat on the chatgpt.com interface because the browser renders it into styled text.
However, the moment you copy this text to paste it elsewhere, things get messy. Whether you use the default copy button or select the text manually, the raw Markdown formatting symbols often get copied to your clipboard. When you paste this into a plain text editor, an email in Gmail, or a chat in Telegram, you are left with unsightly asterisks and hashtags throughout your text. Cleaning this up manually is tedious and breaks your writing flow.
The Manual Method: How to Clean the Text Yourself
If you want to remove these symbols manually, you can do so by using a text editor with a find-and-replace feature. Here is the honest, step-by-step process:
- Copy the text from ChatGPT and paste it into a text editor that supports search and replace, such as Notepad++, VS Code, or Sublime Text.
- Press
Ctrl + H(orCmd + Hon Mac) to open the Find and Replace dialog. - In the "Find" field, type
**to target the bold asterisks, leave the "Replace with" field completely empty, and click "Replace All". Then, repeat the process by searching for###or other heading hashes and replacing them with empty space.
While this method works, it has a major drawback: it is a repetitive chore that you must perform every single time you copy a response. Additionally, if your text contains actual mathematical asterisks or hashtags you wanted to keep, this blanket replacement will delete them as well.
The One-Click Solution: Clean Copy with DevPause
You can eliminate manual editing entirely by using the free browser extension DevPause. Once installed, DevPause adds a row of utility action buttons directly below every response on the AI interface.
Here is how to get a clean copy in one click: 1. Scroll to the bottom of the ChatGPT reply. 2. Click the "Copy Plain" button added by the extension.
DevPause immediately parses the AI output, strips out raw Markdown formatting characters like asterisks, backticks, and hashtags, and copies the clean, formatted text directly to your clipboard.
Your privacy is fully protected when using DevPause. The extension does not read your chat history, has no built-in AI, and does not send any of your text or data to external servers—all processing happens entirely locally on your device. It works seamlessly across chatgpt.com, claude.ai, and gemini.google.com.
To install the extension, visit: https://devpause.vercel.app/
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does ChatGPT copy text with asterisks in the first place?
ChatGPT generates its responses in Markdown syntax, which is a standard lightweight markup language. If the application you paste into does not support rich HTML copying, it falls back to the raw source text, displaying the asterisks and hashtags.
Does using DevPause break the formatting of my lists and tables?
No. DevPause is designed to strip only the raw Markdown syntax characters while preserving the structural layout of bullet points, numbered lists, and data tables so they look professional.
Is DevPause safe to use with confidential work data?
Yes. DevPause is built with a strict offline-first approach. It never reads your active conversations or transmits any clipboard data to external servers, making it completely safe for professional and personal use.