Why and how to delete your browsing record
Clearing your browser history removes the record of websites you have visited. When you clear history, your browser deletes the list that appears when you start typing in the address bar, the sites shown on your new tab page, and any stored passwords or autofill information you choose to remove. The process takes less than a minute and works the same way whether you use Chrome, Firefox, Safari, or Edge — you open a menu, select a time range, and confirm.
Most people clear history for privacy: to remove the record before someone else uses the computer, or to stop websites from tracking your visits. Some clear it to free up storage space, though the amount is usually small. Whatever your reason, the steps are straightforward and the same every time.
Key Takeaways
- Every major browser has a keyboard shortcut to open the clear history menu: Ctrl+Shift+Delete on Windows, Command+Shift+Delete on Mac for Chrome and Firefox, and Command+Y then the trash icon in Safari.
- You can clear history from the last hour, the last day, the last week, the last four weeks, or all time — choose based on how far back you want to erase.
- Clearing history does not sign you out of websites, but it does remove saved passwords if you check that box, so verify what you are deleting before you confirm.
- Clearing your history on one device does not clear it on other devices unless you use a synced account like Google Account or Firefox Account.
Clear history in Google Chrome
Open Chrome and press Ctrl+Shift+Delete on Windows or Command+Shift+Delete on Mac. The clear browsing data window opens immediately. At the top, you will see a dropdown menu that says "All time" — click it to choose how far back to clear. Your options are "Last hour," "Last 24 hours," "Last 7 days," "Last 4 weeks," or "All time."
Below that, you will see checkboxes for what to delete. By default, "Cookies and other site data" and "Cached images and files" are checked. Leave these checked. If you also want to remove saved passwords, check the "Passwords and other sign-in data" box — but know that this will delete passwords you have saved, so you will need to re-enter them next time. When you are ready, click the blue "Clear data" button.
If you use a Google Account and have turned on sync, clearing history on this device will also clear it on any other device where you are signed in with the same account. To check your sync settings, click your profile picture in the top right, then "Sync and Google services," then look for "Sync is on."
Clear history in Mozilla Firefox
Open Firefox and press Ctrl+Shift+Delete on Windows or Command+Shift+Delete on Mac. The clear recent history window opens. At the top, click the dropdown that says "Everything" to choose a time range: "Last Hour," "Last 2 Hours," "Last 4 Hours," "Today," or "Everything."
Below that, you will see what Firefox is set to clear. By default it clears browsing and download history, cookies, and cache. If you want to also remove saved passwords, check the "Active Logins" box. Then click the blue "Clear Now" button. Firefox will clear the data and close the window.
If you use a Firefox Account and have sync turned on, your history will clear on all devices where you are signed in. To check, click the menu button (three horizontal lines) in the top right, then "Settings," then "Sync" on the left side.
Clear history in Safari
Safari works differently from Chrome and Firefox. Open Safari and press Command+Y to open the history sidebar on the left. At the top of the sidebar, click "Clear" — a small button in the top right corner. A dropdown menu appears with options: "the last hour," "today," "today and yesterday," or "all history." Choose the time range you want.
Safari will immediately clear your history for that period. Unlike Chrome and Firefox, Safari does not show you a list of what else will be deleted — it clears history only, not cookies or cache, unless you go to Safari menu > Settings > Privacy and click "Manage Website Data" to remove those separately.
If you use iCloud and have iCloud Keychain turned on, clearing history on one Apple device will also clear it on your other Apple devices. Check this in Settings > [Your Name] > iCloud on iPhone or iPad, or System Settings > [Your Name] > iCloud on Mac.
Clear history in Microsoft Edge
Open Edge and press Ctrl+Shift+Delete on Windows. The clear browsing data window opens on the right side of the screen. At the top, click the dropdown that says "All time" to choose your time range: "Last hour," "Last 24 hours," "Last 7 days," "Last 4 weeks," or "All time."
Below that, checkboxes show what will be deleted. By default, "Cookies and other site data" and "Cached images and files" are checked. If you want to remove saved passwords, check "Passwords." When you are ready, click the blue "Clear now" button at the bottom.
If you use a Microsoft Account and have sync turned on, clearing history will sync across your devices. To check your sync settings, click your profile picture in the top right, then "Settings," then "Profiles" on the left, then "Sync."
What gets deleted and what stays
When you clear history, you remove the list of websites you visited and the dates you visited them. You also remove cookies (small files websites use to remember you) and cached files (copies of images and pages stored on your computer to load faster next time). If you check the password box, you remove saved login information.
Clearing history does not sign you out of websites. You will still be logged into Gmail, Facebook, or any other site you were using. It also does not delete files you downloaded — those stay in your Downloads folder. And it does not erase your browsing activity from your internet service provider's records or from any website's own logs of your visits.
If you want to browse without saving history at all, use private or incognito mode: press Ctrl+Shift+N in Chrome or Edge, Ctrl+Shift+P in Firefox, or Command+Shift+N in Safari. Websites you visit in private mode are not added to your history, though your internet service provider can still see them.
Clearing history on mobile devices
On iPhone or iPad, open Safari, tap the book icon at the bottom, then tap "History" at the top. Tap "Clear" in the bottom right, then choose "the last hour," "today," "today and yesterday," or "all history." Tap "Clear History" to confirm.
On Android, open Chrome, tap the three-dot menu in the top right, then "Settings," then "Privacy," then "Clear browsing data." Choose your time range and what to delete, then tap "Clear data."
Frequently Asked Questions
Will clearing my history delete my bookmarks?
No. Bookmarks are stored separately from history. Clearing history removes only the list of sites you visited, not the sites you saved as bookmarks. Your bookmarks will still be there after you clear.
Can I clear history from a specific website only?
Most browsers do not have a built-in way to delete history for one site. Your best option is to use private or incognito mode when visiting sites you do not want recorded. If you have already visited a site, you can delete it manually by finding it in your history list and clicking the delete button next to it, but this takes longer than clearing all history at once.
If I clear my history, can someone recover it?
Clearing your browser history removes it from the browser itself. However, your internet service provider keeps its own records of sites you visit, and websites keep logs of your visits on their servers. Clearing your browser history does not erase those records.
Does clearing history on my phone clear it on my computer too?
Only if you use a synced account. If you are signed into the same Google Account, Firefox Account, or Microsoft Account on both devices and have sync turned on, clearing history on one device will clear it on the other. If you are not signed in or sync is off, clearing history on one device does not affect the other.
What is the difference between clearing history and clearing cache?
History is the list of websites you visited. Cache is the copies of images, videos, and pages that your browser saved to load faster next time. Most browsers clear both when you use the clear history button, but cache takes up more storage space. If you only want to free up storage, you can sometimes clear cache without clearing history, though the option varies by browser.