How to See and Delete Your Google History

clear history — Clearing your online browsing history is a simple matter of following the steps, no matter which browser you use, from Chrome, to Firefox, to Apple's Safari, but may have to be repeated on different devices. Yui Mok/PA Images/Getty Images

Your web browser history is a peek into your inner world, motivations and behaviors. And as such, you might not want your Google digital diary shouting its contents to anyone who peeks over your shoulder at just the wrong moment.

You can manage this sensitive history no matter which browser you use, from Chrome, to Firefox, to Apple's Safari, but the steps are all a little different. And keep in mind that if you have multiple devices — and more than one browser on each device — that you may have to repeat some of these processes so that your main squeeze doesn't know that you've been, for example, searching for an engagement ring online.

Here's how to view and delete your history in various browsers. We'll start with Chrome, which is made by Google. Google is now such a ubiquitous and powerful search engine that the company's products, such as its Chrome browser, log your previous searches by syncing them between your various devices (laptop, tablet smartphone). However, once you delete your history in one device, it will remove it from all devices. These steps will remove searches using other search engines as well.

Contents

In Google Chrome
For Firefox
For Safari
To delete search activity from Google Maps, YouTube and Other Google products

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:

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.

To delete search activity from Google Maps, YouTube and Other Google products:

On your computer:

Go to your Google account (https://myaccount.google.com/)
Scroll the left hand panel and click Privacy & 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.

Google History FAQ

How do I delete Google searches?

Clearing your Google search history is simple. First, open Chrome on your computer, phone or tablet. In the top right corner, tap on the three vertical dots and then on the "History" option. Now click on "Clear browsing data" and select the "Time range" that you want from the drop down menu. Finally, ensure that "Browsing history" is checked and hit "Clear data."

How do I see my browsing history?

In the Chrome browser or app, click the menu button in the top right corner. Now select "History" and then "History" again to view your browsing history. Alternately, you can also use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+H or navigate to the URL chrome://history.

How do I see deleted activity on Google?

To view your deleted activity on Google, open a tab on your Google Chrome browser. Next, enter the link https://www.google.com/settings/. This will take you to your Google Account where you can browse the list of everything that Google has recorded from your activity.

Does clearing the history delete everything?

Clearing your browsing history does not delete everything. It only deletes the list of the websites and pages that are stored locally on your device. This action doesn't delete the data stored on Google's servers. Google keeps your "deleted" data for audits and other internal uses.