Adding a webpage to your Safari favorites

To save a webpage you want to return to, open the page in Safari and tap or click the Share button — it looks like a square with an arrow pointing out of it. On iPhone and iPad, this button is at the bottom of the screen. On Mac, it sits in the top-right corner of the browser window. A menu will appear with several options.

Look for Add Bookmark in that menu and tap or click it. A small window will open asking where you want to save it. By default, Safari suggests saving to your Favorites folder, which is the easiest choice for pages you visit often. You can change the name of the bookmark if the page title is long or unclear — for example, you might shorten "How to Troubleshoot Your WiFi Router | TechHelp Central" to just "WiFi Troubleshooting". Then tap or click Save.

Key Takeaways

  • The Share button (a square with an arrow) opens the menu where you can save any webpage as a favorite in Safari.
  • Favorites appear in your Favorites bar on Mac or in a dedicated Favorites folder on iPhone and iPad, so you can reach them with one tap.
  • You can rename a bookmark when you save it, which helps you find it later if the original page title is confusing or very long.
  • Organizing favorites into folders keeps your list short and makes it faster to find the pages you use most.
  • Deleting a favorite removes only the bookmark, not the webpage itself — you can always visit the site again by typing the address.

Finding your favorites after you save them

On Mac, your favorites appear in the Favorites bar — a row of buttons that sits just below the address bar. If you do not see it, go to the View menu at the top and click Show Favorites Bar. Any bookmark you save to the Favorites folder will show up there automatically.

On iPhone and iPad, tap the Bookmarks button at the bottom of the screen (it looks like an open book). Your Favorites folder appears at the top of the list. Tap it to see all your saved pages. You can also add a Favorites folder to your home screen by tapping the Share button and selecting Add to Home Screen, which creates a shortcut that opens Safari directly to your favorites.

Creating folders to organize your favorites

If you save many pages, a single Favorites folder can become crowded. You can create separate folders for different topics — for example, one for recipes, one for work resources, and one for hobby sites. On Mac, go to Bookmarks in the menu bar and click Edit Bookmarks. Right-click in the left sidebar and select New Folder. Type a name for the folder and press Enter.

On iPhone and iPad, open the Bookmarks menu, tap Edit in the bottom-right corner, then tap New Folder. Name it and tap Save. Once you have created folders, you can move bookmarks into them by dragging them on Mac, or by tapping Edit, selecting the bookmarks you want to move, and choosing a destination folder on iPhone and iPad.

Editing or removing a favorite

To change a favorite's name or location, open the Bookmarks menu. On Mac, click Edit Bookmarks from the Bookmarks menu. Find the bookmark you want to change, right-click it, and select Edit. You can update the name, the web address, or move it to a different folder. Click Done when you finish.

On iPhone and iPad, open the Bookmarks menu, tap Edit, then tap the bookmark you want to change. Update the name or folder and tap Done. To delete a favorite, swipe left on it (iPhone and iPad) or right-click and select Delete (Mac). Deleting a bookmark only removes it from your list — it does not delete the webpage from the internet, and you can always visit the site again by typing its address.

Syncing favorites across your devices

If you use Safari on more than one device — a Mac, iPhone, and iPad, for example — you can keep your favorites the same on all of them. This requires an iCloud account, which is free if you own an Apple device. On each device, go to Settings (iPhone and iPad) or System Settings (Mac), tap or click your name at the top, and make sure iCloud is turned on. Then find Safari in the iCloud settings and turn it on.

Once you enable iCloud syncing, any favorite you add on one device will appear on all your other devices within a few minutes. If you turn off syncing, your favorites stay on each device but stop updating across devices. You can turn syncing back on at any time without losing your bookmarks.

Using the reading list instead of favorites

Safari also has a Reading List, which is different from favorites. The Reading List is meant for pages you want to read later but do not need to keep forever. To add a page to your Reading List, tap or click the Share button and select Add to Reading List. These items appear in a separate folder and can be marked as read or unread, similar to email.

Use favorites for sites you visit regularly — your email, banking, news sites, or work tools. Use the Reading List for articles or pages you found interesting but may not need again. This keeps your favorites list focused on the pages you actually use.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I see my Safari favorites on my Mac and iPhone at the same time?

Yes, if you turn on iCloud syncing in your settings. Any favorite you save on your Mac will appear on your iPhone and iPad within a few minutes, and vice versa. You can turn syncing on or off in the iCloud settings on each device.

What is the difference between a favorite and a bookmark?

In Safari, the terms are used interchangeably — a favorite is a bookmark you have saved. The Favorites folder is just the default location where new bookmarks go. You can move bookmarks to other folders or keep them in Favorites; they work the same way.

Can I delete a favorite by accident and get it back?

Safari does not have an undo button for deleted bookmarks. However, you can always visit the webpage again by typing its address in the search bar, and then save it as a favorite again. If you synced your bookmarks to iCloud, the deleted favorite may still exist on another device.

How do I move a favorite from one folder to another?

On Mac, open Edit Bookmarks, drag the favorite to the folder you want. On iPhone and iPad, open Bookmarks, tap Edit, select the favorite, and choose a new folder from the menu that appears.

Why do some of my favorites show a small icon next to the name?

That icon is the website's favicon — a tiny image that represents the site. Safari downloads it automatically from the webpage. It helps you recognize your favorites at a glance, especially in a long list.