Delete your Safari history in three steps
Open Safari and tap the book icon at the bottom of the screen (on iPad, it's at the top). Tap History at the bottom of the menu. Tap Clear History and Website Data, choose how far back you want to delete (last hour, today, today and yesterday, or all time), then tap the blue Clear History button that appears.
That's the complete process. Your browsing history, cookies, and cached website data disappear when ready. Safari will not show those sites in your search suggestions afterward, and the browser will not retain a record of where you've been.
If you want Safari to stop saving history altogether, you can turn on Private Browsing before you start browsing. In Private Browsing mode, Safari does not record your history, cookies, or search history — though your internet provider and the websites you visit can still see your activity.
Key Takeaways
- The book icon in Safari opens your history, bookmarks, and reading list all in one place.
- Clearing history also removes cookies and cached data, which speeds up Safari but may log you out of websites.
- You can choose to delete only the last hour, today, or everything — there is no middle ground between those four options.
- Private Browsing mode prevents Safari from recording history in the first place, though it does not hide your activity from your internet provider.
What gets deleted when you clear history
Clearing history removes three things at once: the list of websites you visited, the cookies that websites stored on your device, and the cached images and files that Safari saved to load pages faster next time. You cannot delete just one of these — the button removes all three together.
Deleting cookies means you will be logged out of most websites. The next time you visit Gmail, Facebook, or your bank, you will need to sign in again. This is a side effect many people do not expect, so if you only want to hide your history from someone else using your device, clearing everything may be more disruptive than you want.
Cached data is the largest part of what gets deleted. Websites store images, stylesheets, and other files on your device so they load faster the second time you visit. Clearing this cache frees up storage space, but it also means the next time you visit those sites, they will load more slowly while Safari downloads everything again.
The difference between the four time ranges
Safari gives you four choices for how far back to delete: the last hour, today and yesterday, today, or all time. There are no other options — you cannot delete, for example, the last week or the last month.
Choose the last hour if you want to remove only recent browsing. This is useful if you just looked up something you do not want visible in your history. Choose today if you want to clear everything from the current day. Choose today and yesterday if you want a slightly wider window. Choose all time to remove your entire history since you set up Safari on this device.
After you choose a time range and tap Clear History, the action cannot be undone. Safari does not ask you to confirm a second time, so be certain of your choice before you tap the button.
How to use Private Browsing to avoid saving history
Private Browsing mode tells Safari not to save your history, search history, cookies, or cached data while you are browsing. Open Safari, tap the tabs icon at the bottom right (it shows a number), then tap Private at the bottom left. The address bar will turn dark gray to show you are in Private Browsing mode.
While you are in Private Browsing, Safari behaves almost exactly the same as normal mode — you can visit websites, use search, and fill in forms. The only difference is that nothing gets saved. When you close a Private Browsing tab, Safari does not remember it was ever open.
Private Browsing does not hide your activity from your internet provider, your employer's network, or the websites you visit. It only hides your browsing from other people who use your device. If privacy from your internet provider matters to you, you would need a VPN app in addition to Private Browsing.
Why Safari might not delete everything you expect
Some data does not get deleted when you clear history. Bookmarks, reading list items, and saved passwords stay on your device — Safari assumes you want to keep those. If you want to delete a bookmark or a saved password, you have to do that separately.
Website data stored by apps can also persist. If you have the Facebook app installed and you use Safari to visit Facebook, the Facebook app may store data on your device that Safari's history clearing does not touch. To remove that data, you would need to go into Settings, find the app, and clear its cache separately.
Autofill information — the addresses, credit card numbers, and phone numbers that Safari remembers — also stays after you clear history. If you want to remove a saved address or credit card, go to Settings, tap Safari, tap Autofill, and delete the entries manually.
Clearing history on a shared device
If multiple people use the same iPad or iPhone, clearing your history does not prevent someone else from seeing where you have been. Each person who uses the device can open Safari and see the full history unless you clear it yourself. There is no way to have a private history that other users cannot see without using Private Browsing mode.
If you share a device and want privacy, use Private Browsing every time you browse. The downside is that you will not have a history to refer back to, and you will be logged out of websites when you close the app. The alternative is to clear your history every time you finish using Safari, which takes about 10 seconds but requires you to remember to do it.
If you want a truly separate browsing experience, the only real solution is a separate user account on the device. iPad supports multiple user accounts, and each account has its own Safari history and settings. iPhone does not support multiple user accounts, so on a shared iPhone, clearing history is your only option.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does clearing history delete my saved passwords?
No. Clearing history removes your browsing history, cookies, and cached data, but Safari keeps your saved passwords, usernames, and autofill information. If you want to delete a saved password, go to Settings, tap Passwords, find the website, and delete it manually.
Can I recover history after I delete it?
No. Once you tap Clear History, Safari permanently removes that data from your device. There is no undo button and no way to get it back. If you are not sure whether you want to delete something, do not clear all time — clear only the last hour instead.
What is the difference between clearing history and Private Browsing?
Clearing history removes data you have already saved. Private Browsing prevents Safari from saving anything in the first place. If you want to browse without a record, use Private Browsing before you start. If you have already browsed and want to remove the record, clear your history.
Does Private Browsing hide my activity from my internet provider?
No. Private Browsing only hides your history from other people who use your device. Your internet provider, your employer's network, and the websites you visit can still see where you are going. To hide your activity from your internet provider, you would need a VPN app in addition to Private Browsing.
Why does Safari log me out of websites when I clear history?
Websites use cookies to remember who you are. When you clear history, Safari deletes those cookies, so websites no longer know it is you. The next time you visit, the website treats you as a new visitor and asks you to sign in again.