Why and how to delete what you've searched for
Your iPhone keeps a record of every search you make in Safari, Google, and other browsers — and in Siri too. Clearing this history removes that record from your device. You might want to do this before handing your phone to someone else, before selling it, or straightforward to keep your searches private from anyone with access to your phone.
The steps differ depending on which app you use to search. Safari is the built-in browser, but if you use Chrome, Firefox, or another app, you'll clear history inside that app instead. Siri searches are cleared separately. This guide covers all three.
Key Takeaways
- Safari search history clears through Settings > Safari > Clear History and Website Data, and you choose whether to delete just today's searches or everything.
- Chrome, Firefox, and other browsers have their own clear-history buttons inside the app itself, not in iPhone Settings.
- Siri search history clears in Settings > Siri & Search > Siri Search History, and you can delete it all at once or turn off recording entirely.
- Clearing history removes the record from your device but does not erase what your internet provider or the websites themselves have recorded.
- If you want privacy going forward, you can turn on Private Browsing in Safari or use private/incognito modes in other browsers.
Clearing Safari search history through Settings
Open Settings on your iPhone. Scroll down and tap Safari. Near the bottom, you'll see "Clear History and Website Data." Tap it.
A menu appears asking what time range you want to clear. Your options are "the last hour," "today," "today and yesterday," or "all time." Choose whichever matches what you want deleted. Tap "Clear History and Website Data" again to confirm. The search history is now gone from Safari.
This method clears both your search history and the websites you've visited. If you want to keep your browsing history but only delete searches, you'll need to use Safari's own menu instead — see the next section.
Clearing Safari search history from inside the app
Open Safari. Tap the book icon at the bottom (on older iPhones, it's at the top). Tap "History" at the bottom of the screen. You'll see a list of sites and searches organized by time.
Tap "Clear" in the bottom right corner. Choose your time range — "the last hour," "today," "today and yesterday," or "all time" — and tap "Clear History." This clears only what Safari shows in its history list, which includes both searches and visited websites.
If you want finer control, you can also swipe left on individual search results or websites in the history list and tap "Delete" to remove just those items one at a time.
Clearing search history in Chrome, Firefox, and other browsers
Each browser stores its own search history separately from Safari. You must clear it inside that app, not through iPhone Settings.
Chrome: Open Chrome. Tap the three dots in the bottom right corner. Tap "Settings." Tap "Privacy." Tap "Clear Browsing Data." Choose your time range and make sure "Search history" is checked. Tap "Clear Browsing Data."
Firefox: Open Firefox. Tap the menu icon (three horizontal lines) at the bottom right. Tap "Settings." Tap "Privacy." Scroll to "Clear Private Data" and tap it. Choose your time range, make sure "Browsing History" is checked, and tap "Clear Private Data."
Other browsers: Look for a menu icon (usually three dots or three lines), then find Settings, Privacy, or History. The exact path varies, but the principle is the same — you're looking for a "clear" or "delete" option for browsing or search history.
Clearing Siri search history
Siri records what you search for when you use voice commands. This history is separate from Safari and other browsers. Open Settings. Tap "Siri & Search." Scroll down to "Siri Search History." Tap "Delete Siri Search History." A confirmation message appears — tap it again to confirm.
If you want to stop Siri from recording searches going forward, stay in this same Settings screen. Toggle off "Retain Siri & Dictation History" at the top. This prevents future searches from being saved, though it may affect Siri's ability to learn your preferences.
What clearing history does and does not do
Clearing your search history removes the record from your iPhone. Anyone who picks up your phone and opens Safari or another browser will not see what you searched for. It also removes autocomplete suggestions based on past searches.
However, clearing your history does not erase what happened on the other end. Your internet service provider (ISP) can still see which websites you visited, because that information travels through their network. The websites themselves have their own records of your visit. If you were logged into Google, Facebook, or another account while searching, those companies have records tied to your account.
Clearing history is useful for privacy from people who use your phone, but it does not make you anonymous to ISPs or websites. If you want that level of privacy, you need a VPN (virtual private network) or Tor Browser, which are separate tools beyond the scope of clearing history.
Using Private Browsing to avoid creating history in the first place
Instead of clearing history after the fact, you can prevent Safari from recording it. Open Safari. Tap the tabs icon (two overlapping squares) at the bottom right. Tap "Private" in the bottom left corner. The address bar turns dark, indicating you're in Private Browsing mode. Any searches or websites you visit in this mode are not saved to your history.
When you close a Private Browsing tab, that search is gone. This is useful if you know in advance that you want privacy — for example, before shopping for a gift or researching something sensitive. Chrome, Firefox, and most other browsers have similar private or incognito modes, usually accessible through the menu.
Private Browsing does not make you invisible to your ISP or the websites you visit. It only prevents your iPhone from keeping a local record.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does clearing search history delete my passwords and saved credit cards?
No. Clearing history removes only searches and visited websites. Passwords, credit card information, and other saved data stay on your phone unless you specifically delete them through Settings > Passwords or Settings > Payment Methods. If you want to clear those too, you must do it separately.
Can I recover search history after I delete it?
Not from your iPhone. Once you clear history, it is gone from the device. However, if you use iCloud to back up your iPhone, Apple may have a copy of your history in that backup. To remove it from iCloud as well, you would need to turn off iCloud Keychain or delete the backup itself through iCloud.com.
If I clear history, will websites know I visited them?
The websites themselves will still have records of your visit on their servers, because that information is logged when you connect. Clearing your iPhone history only removes the record from your device. The website's own logs are unaffected.
What's the difference between clearing history and using Private Browsing?
Clearing history deletes searches you've already made. Private Browsing prevents new searches from being recorded in the first place. Private Browsing is useful if you know in advance you want privacy; clearing history is useful after the fact.
Does clearing Safari history also clear my Google search history?
No. If you use Google Search through Safari, clearing Safari history removes the record from your iPhone, but Google keeps its own record if you're signed into a Google account. To delete your Google search history, you must visit myactivity.google.com on a computer or phone browser and delete it there.