Beeftext Is the Best Free Text Replacement Tool for Windows
Text replacement tools, also called snippet managers, are one of those productivity tools that everyone needs, even if they don’t know it. They allow you to insert any text in just a couple of keystrokes and are ideal for those who enter the same information over and over again (essentially anyone who uses a computer). Whether you’re answering the same customer question multiple times a day for work or constantly telling friends about your parking situation at home, it’s handy to have a quick way to insert long pieces of information.
The Mac comes with a decent text replacement tool, which I mentioned when I talked about how I fixed my worst writing habits . Windows, it turns out, is not. So I’m glad I found Beeftext . It’s a completely free and open source app that makes it easy to store and run snippets.
To get started, simply download and install the tool (or use the portable version if you prefer). Now you can start creating “Combos”. You can enter any text in the “Fragment” field. Note that there is also support for variables, which means you can automatically include things like date, time, or clipboard contents.
Finish writing a snippet and you can optionally select a keyword that will trigger the snippet, replacing the word. This will work in any application on your computer, so don’t use words you might need to type in another context. I like to use short words that start with a semicolon, like ;word , because otherwise I never type words that start with a semicolon.
If you don’t want to create a bunch of keywords, there’s no need—you can use the Ctrl-Shift-Enter keyboard shortcut from any app to launch a “select box” that lets you search and paste any snippets you want.
There is so much more you can do with this app. For example, in the emoji shortcodes settings there is a checkbox that allows you to use a tool to quickly insert emojis. Variables allow you to emulate keystrokes or even PowerShell scripts in your snippets, meaning you can use this to set up automation if you’ve actually spent some time on it. All this and much more is described in the documentation . It’s one of those tools that you’ll set up once and then wonder how you lived without it.