Clear all your Safari favorites at once on Mac or iPhone

To clear all favorites in Safari, open the app and go to History in the menu bar, then select Clear History. A window will appear asking what time period you want to clear — choose All History from the dropdown. Make sure Favorites is checked in the list of items to remove, then click Clear History. This removes all bookmarks and favorites you have saved.

On iPhone or iPad, the process is similar. Open Settings, scroll down and tap Safari, then tap Clear History and Website Data. A confirmation message will appear — tap it again to confirm. This clears your favorites along with your browsing history and cookies.

If you only want to remove specific favorites rather than all of them, you can delete them one at a time from the Favorites bar or the Bookmarks menu without clearing your entire history.

Key Takeaways

  • On Mac, use History > Clear History and make sure Favorites is checked before you confirm.
  • On iPhone and iPad, go to Settings > Safari > Clear History and Website Data.
  • Clearing history removes favorites permanently — there is no undo, so make sure you want to delete them first.
  • You can delete individual favorites from the Favorites bar or Bookmarks menu without clearing your entire history.
  • Clearing favorites does not affect your saved passwords or autofill information.

Delete individual favorites without clearing history

If you only want to remove a few favorites, you can delete them one by one. On Mac, click the Bookmarks menu and find the favorite you want to remove. Right-click it and select Delete, or simply click the X that appears when you hover over it.

You can also edit your Favorites bar directly. If the Favorites bar is visible below the address bar, right-click any favorite on it and choose Delete. On iPhone, tap the Bookmarks icon at the bottom of the screen, then tap Edit in the lower right corner. Find the favorite you want to remove and swipe left on it, then tap Delete.

Find your favorites if you cleared them by mistake

If you cleared your favorites and want to recover them, your options depend on whether you use iCloud. If you have iCloud Keychain turned on, your bookmarks and favorites may be backed up to iCloud. Go to Settings on Mac or iPhone, click your name at the top, then select iCloud. Look for Safari in the list — if it is turned on, your bookmarks may still exist in iCloud even if they are gone from your device.

You can also check your browser history to find websites you bookmarked. Open History and look through recent entries to find sites you want to bookmark again. Unfortunately, if you did not have iCloud backup turned on, there is no way to recover deleted favorites — they are permanently removed once you clear them.

Understand what clears when you clear history

When you clear history in Safari, you have control over what gets removed. The Clear History window shows checkboxes for different types of data: Cookies and Website Data, Autofill information, and Favorites. You can uncheck items you want to keep. For example, if you only want to clear your browsing history but keep your favorites, uncheck the Favorites box before you confirm.

Your saved passwords are stored separately and do not get deleted when you clear history, even if you clear everything else. If you want to remove a saved password, you need to go to Settings > Passwords (on iPhone) or Preferences > Passwords (on Mac) and delete it there.

Manage favorites across your devices

If you use Safari on multiple devices and have iCloud turned on, clearing favorites on one device may affect the others. When you clear favorites on your Mac, those same favorites will disappear from your iPhone and iPad if they are synced through iCloud. To prevent this, turn off iCloud sync for Safari before you clear your favorites, then turn it back on afterward.

To turn off iCloud sync on Mac, go to System Preferences > Apple ID > iCloud and uncheck Safari. On iPhone, go to Settings > your name > iCloud and toggle off Safari. Wait a few minutes for the change to sync across your devices before you clear your favorites.

Organize favorites instead of deleting them

If you want to clean up your favorites without losing them completely, you can create folders to organize them. On Mac, go to Bookmarks > Edit Bookmarks, then right-click in the sidebar and select New Folder. Drag your favorites into the folders you create. On iPhone, tap Bookmarks > Edit, then tap New Folder at the bottom of the screen.

You can also rename favorites to make them easier to find. Right-click a favorite on Mac and select Edit, or tap and hold on iPhone, then change the name. Organizing your favorites takes a few minutes but keeps them available if you need them later.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does clearing Safari favorites delete my passwords?

No. Passwords are stored separately and are not removed when you clear favorites or history. If you want to delete a saved password, go to Settings > Passwords on iPhone or Preferences > Passwords on Mac, find the password, and delete it manually.

Will clearing favorites on my Mac delete them from my iPhone?

Only if you have iCloud sync turned on for Safari. If your devices are synced, clearing favorites on one device removes them from all your devices. Turn off iCloud sync for Safari before you clear if you want to keep them on other devices.

Can I undo clearing my favorites?

Not directly. Once you clear favorites, they are gone unless you had iCloud backup enabled. If iCloud was on, your bookmarks may still exist in iCloud and you can turn Safari sync back on to restore them. Otherwise, they cannot be recovered.

How do I clear favorites but keep my browsing history?

When you open the Clear History window, uncheck the Favorites box and leave History checked. This removes your browsing history while keeping your bookmarks and favorites intact.

What is the difference between favorites and bookmarks in Safari?

Favorites are bookmarks that appear on your start page or in the Favorites bar for quick access. All favorites are bookmarks, but not all bookmarks are favorites. You can have bookmarks stored in folders that do not appear in your Favorites bar.