You can delete individual search terms from Google, but the process depends on whether you want to erase them from your search history or stop Google from suggesting them

Google keeps two separate records of what you search for. Your search history is a list of everything you've looked up, stored in your Google account. Your search suggestions are predictions Google shows you when you start typing in the search box. You can delete from either one, but the steps are different, and deleting from history doesn't automatically stop Google from suggesting that term to you later.

If you're signed into Google, every search you make gets saved to your account unless you turn off Web & App Activity. If you're not signed in, Google still tracks searches on that device, but they're stored locally rather than in your account. This matters because it changes where you go to delete them.

Key Takeaways

  • Deleting a search from your Google history takes three steps: go to myactivity.google.com, find the search term, and click the delete button next to it.
  • Google will stop suggesting a term if you delete it from history, but only after you've deleted it — past suggestions won't disappear on their own.
  • If you're not signed into Google, you need to clear your browser history instead, because those searches live on your device, not in your Google account.
  • Turning off Web & App Activity stops Google from saving new searches to your account, but it doesn't delete searches you've already made.

Delete a search from your Google account history

Go to myactivity.google.com in your browser while signed into the Google account you use for searching. This is Google's activity dashboard, where it stores everything you've searched for, every video you've watched on YouTube, and every website you've visited while signed in.

On the left side, click Search. This filters the activity to show only your searches. Scroll through the list or use the search box at the top to find the specific term you want to delete. Once you find it, click the three-dot menu next to that search entry and select Delete. Google will remove it from your history when ready.

If you want to delete multiple searches at once, you can select the checkbox next to each one, then click the delete button that appears. This is faster than deleting them one at a time, especially if you're cleaning up after a research session or removing searches you don't want in your history.

Stop Google from suggesting a deleted search term

After you delete a search from your history, Google will stop suggesting that exact term when you start typing in the search box. However, this only applies to new suggestions — if Google already showed you that suggestion before you deleted it, the deletion won't erase that past suggestion from your memory or from any screenshots you took.

If you want to prevent Google from ever suggesting a term again without deleting it from your history, you can click the X next to a suggestion as it appears. This tells Google not to show you that suggestion in the future, but it doesn't remove the search from your activity log. This is useful if you want to keep the search in your history for reference but don't want to see it suggested every time you start typing.

Delete searches if you're not signed into Google

If you search without signing into your Google account, those searches aren't stored in your Google account — they're stored on your device in your browser's history. You need to clear your browser history to remove them, not your Google activity.

In Chrome, press Ctrl + H (Windows) or Command + Y (Mac) to open your history. On the left, click Clear browsing data. Set the time range to All time or the period you want to clear, make sure Cookies and other site data and Cached images and files are checked, and click Clear data. This removes your search history from that browser on that device.

In Firefox, press Ctrl + H (Windows) or Command + Y (Mac), right-click the search you want to delete, and select Delete. To clear all history, go to Settings, click Privacy & Security, scroll to History, and click Clear Recent History. Choose your time range and click Clear Now.

Turn off search history to stop Google from saving new searches

If you don't want Google to save your searches going forward, you can turn off Web & App Activity. Go to myactivity.google.com, click the toggle for Web & App Activity at the top, and confirm you want to turn it off. From that point on, Google won't save new searches to your account.

Keep in mind that turning this off doesn't delete your past searches — it only stops Google from recording new ones. If you want a clean slate, delete your history first, then turn off Web & App Activity. Also, some Google services may not work as well without this setting on, because Google uses your search history to personalize results and suggestions.

You can turn Web & App Activity back on at any time by clicking the same toggle. Google will resume saving your searches to your account.

Delete searches on your phone or tablet

On an Android phone or tablet, open the Google app, tap your profile picture in the top right, and select Manage your Google Account. Go to the Data & Privacy tab, scroll down to Web & App Activity, and tap it. You'll see your search history. Tap the three-dot menu next to a search and select Delete. To delete multiple searches, tap and hold one, then tap the others you want to remove, and hit the delete button.

On an iPhone or iPad, the process is similar. Open the Google app, tap your profile picture, go to Manage your Google Account, select Data & Privacy, and tap Web & App Activity. Find the search you want to delete, swipe left on it, and tap Delete. You can also delete your entire search history from this screen by tapping Delete all activity at the bottom, though this removes everything, not just searches.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does deleting a search from my history delete it from Google's servers?

Deleting a search from myactivity.google.com removes it from your account, so you won't see it in your history or get suggestions based on it. However, Google may still have records of the search on its servers for security and legal reasons. For practical purposes, it's gone from your account and won't affect your suggestions or personalization.

Can I delete searches on Google without signing in?

If you weren't signed in when you searched, the search was never saved to your Google account, so you can't delete it from myactivity.google.com. You need to clear your browser history instead. If you were signed in, you can delete it from your Google activity even if you're not signed in right now — just sign back in and go to myactivity.google.com.

Will deleting a search stop Google from showing me ads about it?

Deleting a search from your history will reduce how much that topic influences your ads, but Google may still show you related ads based on other signals like your location, the websites you visit, or your YouTube activity. Deleting one search won't completely stop ads on a topic — you'd need to turn off Web & App Activity or use privacy tools like Incognito mode to prevent Google from tracking that behavior in the first place.

What's the difference between deleting a search and using Incognito mode?

Deleting a search removes it after the fact from your history. Incognito mode (in Chrome) or Private Browsing (in Firefox) prevents Google from saving the search in the first place — nothing you do in that window gets added to your history. Incognito is better if you want to search without a record; deleting is better if you've already searched and want to clean up your history.