All web browsers remember a list of the web pages you’ve visited. You can delete this list at any time, clearing your browsing history and erasing the tracks stored on your computer, smartphone, or tablet. Each browser has its own separate history, so you’ll need to clear the history in multiple places if you’ve used more than one browser.
In Google Chrome:
- Click or tap the menu icon with three dots on the upper-right side of the browser window.
- Click or tap History > History (CTRL+H).
- On the left hand side, scroll to Clear Browsing Data. A box will appear which will ask you how much history you want to delete.
- If you want to completely clear out your history, also click the boxes for cookies and other site data and cached images and files. Then click Clear Data. That’ll clear out your previous searches.
- You may also want to prevent Chrome from auto-completing searches in the future. In Settings, (also found by tapping on the three dots on the upper-right of your browser) click Sync and Google services, and scroll to Other Google Services. Under Other Google Services, find Autocomplete searches and URLs and toggle this switch off (to the left).
- If you need to clear your mobile history, tap on the three dots, then on History. Click on Clear Browsing Data, then tap Clear Data.
For Firefox:
- Click or tap the menu icon with three lines on the upper-right side of the browser. window.
- Click on the Library icon from the drop-down menu.
- Click on the History icon that comes up in the drop-down menu inside the Library tab.
- Click on the View History sidebar. You’ll see options ranging from “Today” to “Older Than 6 Months.”
- Right-click on the option you want and press Delete.
- For mobile, tap the three-bar menu icon on the upper right side of the browser, then tap Settings.
- Tap Search, scroll down, and then clear the Show search history check box.
For Safari (desktop):
- Click the Safari menu, then click the History tab.
- Click on Clear History and Website Data.
- From the drop-down menu, choose the time frame you want to delete (most likely all history.)
- Click Clear History.
For Safari (mobile):
- Go to the Settings icon on the home screen.
- Scroll down to Safari.
- Tap on Clear History and Website Data.
- Keep in mind that this process deletes every bit of your browsing data, as well as browser cookies.
For Internet Explorer:
This will depend on the version you are using. For older versions:
- Click on the Favorites button (the star icon) in the top right hand corner.
- Select the History tab and click on how you want to view your history (date, site, etc.)
- Right-click on whatever you want to delete and select the Delete option.
For IE 10 or 11:
- Click on the Tools button (the wheel).
- Select Safety and then Delete Browsing History.
- This will give you several options on deleting files, cookies and history.
Microsoft Edge:
To clear your browsing history in Microsoft Edge, click menu > Settings > Choose what to clear. You can also press Ctrl+Shift+Delete to open these options.
Ensure the “Browsing history” box is checked and click “Clear”. You can also choose to clear other types of private data from here, including your download history, cached data, cookies, and tabs you’ve set aside. Just check the type of data you want to delete and click the “Clear” button.
To delete search activity from Google Maps, YouTube and Other Google products:
- Go to your Google account (https://myaccount.google.com/)
- Scroll the left hand panel and click Data & personalization.
- Under “Activity and timeline,” click My Activity.
- From the left hand panel, click Delete activity by.
- Select the date or time you wish to delete and hit delete.
On your Android phone/tablet:
- Open your device’s Settings app to Google or click on the Google icon from your phone’s main screen.
- Click on Google Account or Manage Your Account (depending on which way you arrived at the account)
- Click on Manage Your Data & Personalization
- Under Activity and time, click My Activity
- To the right of the search bar, click on the three dots and select Delete activity by
- Select the date or time you wish to delete and hit delete.
On your iPhone/iPad:
- Open the Gmail app. If you don’t use Gmail, go to https://myaccount.google.com/)
- Click on Menu (three bars), then Settings, then your account, Click on Manage your Google Account
- At the top, click on Data & Personalization
- Under “Activity and timeline,” click My Activity
- At the top right of the page, click on the three dots and select Delete activity by
- Select the date or time you wish to delete and hit delete.
