Trexpanda types your long, repetitive text for you. You set up a short shortcut once, type it in any app, and the full text appears instantly. Here is everything you need to get going on your computer and your phone.
Everything in Trexpanda is a snippet. A snippet is just two things: a short shortcut you type, and the full text it turns into.
You type the shortcut ;addr anywhere you can type (an email, a chat, a form, a note). Trexpanda sees it and instantly replaces it with the full address. You save the typing, every single time. Shortcuts are not case sensitive, so ;addr, ;ADDR and ;Addr all do the same thing.
Get the app from the Download page and open it. It runs quietly in the background and sits in your menu bar (Mac) or system tray (Windows), ready whenever you type.
Sign in with your Google account. This is what keeps your snippets backed up and in sync, so the ones you make on your computer also show up on your phone, and the other way around.
Click New snippet. In Shortcut type something short and unusual like ;sig. In Expands to type the full text you want, for example your email signature. Save it.
Switch to any app, start typing, and when you type your shortcut it turns into the full text on the spot. As you type, a small suggestion popup shows matching shortcuts, so you can pick one even if you forget the exact name.
In Settings you can switch expansion off for a moment if you need to, and switch it back on. You can also import a whole list of snippets at once from a CSV file, or export yours to a CSV to keep a copy.
Install Trexpanda on your phone from the Download page. Trexpanda works as its own keyboard, so instead of changing every app, you type on the Trexpanda keyboard and your shortcuts work everywhere.
Open the app and follow the one-time setup. It takes you to your phone's keyboard settings where you switch Trexpanda on, then allow it. This is a normal step your phone asks for any new keyboard.
In any app, tap a text box, then tap the small globe or keyboard icon to switch to the Trexpanda keyboard. Your shortcuts only expand while you are typing on the Trexpanda keyboard.
Sign in with the same Google account you used on your computer. Every snippet you made there now appears on your phone automatically, and new ones you add on the phone flow back to your computer.
Type your shortcut, for example ;sig, and it expands right in the text box. Matching shortcuts also show in the strip above the keys, so you can tap one instead of typing the whole thing.
This box behaves like Trexpanda. Type one of the shortcuts below (or tap a chip to insert it) and watch it expand. Nothing is saved, it is just a demo.
Inside the text a snippet expands to, you can use these special pieces. Trexpanda fills them in fresh every time.
| Write this | You get |
|---|---|
{date} | Today's date, like 2026-10-07 (updates every time you use it) |
{time} | The current time, like 14:09 |
{datetime} | Date and time together |
$| | Where the cursor should land after the text appears. Handy for a greeting like Dear $|, so you can keep typing the name right away. |
A quick checklist for the most common questions.
Run through these in order. First, make sure expansion is switched on in Settings. On the phone, make sure you are actually typing on the Trexpanda keyboard (tap the globe or keyboard icon to switch to it). Then check that you typed the shortcut exactly as you saved it, for example ;sig, and remember a shortcut only fires once the whole thing is typed.
Sync works through your account. Sign in with the same Google account on both your computer and your phone. Once both are signed in to the same account, your snippets appear on both, usually within a few seconds. A working internet connection is needed for a fresh sync.
No. Shortcuts are not case sensitive, so ;brb, ;BRB and ;Brb all expand the same snippet. This works the same on your computer and on your phone.
That usually means the shortcut is a normal word, so it triggers while you write. Give it a symbol at the start, like ; or /, for example ;addr instead of addr. Short symbol shortcuts almost never fire by accident.
Yes. On both the computer and the phone you can import a list of snippets from a CSV file and export your snippets to a CSV. This is the easy way to bring in a big batch at once or keep your own backup.
Your snippets are tied to your own account and are only there to sync between your devices. You can read the full details on the privacy page.
If any step is not working the way this page describes, we are happy to help. Send us a note and tell us what you were doing when it went wrong.
Email hello@trexpanda.com