Delete Safari history in three steps
Open Settings, tap Safari, scroll down to "Clear History and Website Data," and tap it. Choose how far back you want to delete — last hour, today, today and yesterday, or all time — then tap "Clear History and Website Data" again to confirm. Your browsing history, cookies, and cached files disappear when ready.
If you want to delete history without opening Settings, you can also do it directly in Safari. Tap the book icon at the bottom of the screen, then the clock icon for history, swipe left on any entry to delete it individually, or tap "Clear" in the top right corner to delete everything at once.
The Settings method is faster if you want to clear everything. The Safari app method works better if you only want to remove a few specific pages or sites.
Key Takeaways
- Settings > Safari > "Clear History and Website Data" removes your entire browsing history, cookies, and cached files in one action.
- You can choose to delete history from the last hour, today, today and yesterday, or all time — Safari does not let you pick a custom date range.
- Deleting history in Safari does not sign you out of websites or remove saved passwords unless you specifically choose to clear those separately.
- If you use iCloud to sync Safari across your devices, clearing history on your iPhone also clears it on your Mac, iPad, and other synced devices.
- Private browsing mode prevents Safari from recording history at all, so you can avoid the need to delete later.
What gets deleted when you clear history
Clearing Safari history removes three things: your browsing history (the list of sites you visited), cookies (small files websites store to remember you), and cached files (images and data Safari saved to load pages faster). All three disappear when you tap "Clear History and Website Data."
What does not get deleted: your saved passwords, autofill information, credit card numbers you saved, or your login status on websites. If you want to remove those too, you have to clear them separately in Settings > Safari > "Advanced" > "Website Data" or by removing individual passwords in Settings > Passwords.
Delete history from specific time periods
When you tap "Clear History and Website Data," Safari shows you four options: the last hour, today, today and yesterday, or all time. Pick whichever matches what you want to remove.
"Last hour" clears only the sites you visited in the past 60 minutes. "Today" removes everything from midnight to now. "Today and yesterday" goes back two calendar days. "All time" removes your entire history since you set up Safari on that iPhone.
Safari does not let you pick a custom date range — you cannot say "delete everything from March 5 to March 12." If you need to delete history from a specific week or month, use the "all time" option or delete individual sites one at a time through the Safari app.
Remove individual sites from history
Open Safari and tap the book icon at the bottom center of the screen. Tap the clock icon to see your history organized by time. Swipe left on any site to reveal a red delete button, then tap it to remove just that entry.
You can also tap "Edit" in the top right corner of the history view, then tap the red minus sign next to any site to delete it. This method is slower than clearing everything at once, but it lets you keep most of your history while removing only the pages you do not want to see.
How iCloud sync affects history deletion
If you have iCloud sync turned on for Safari, deleting history on your iPhone also deletes it from your Mac, iPad, and any other Apple device signed into the same iCloud account. The deletion syncs across all devices within a few minutes.
To check if iCloud sync is on, go to Settings > [Your Name] > iCloud and look for Safari in the list. If the toggle is green, your history is synced. If you want to delete history on only one device without affecting the others, turn off iCloud sync for Safari first, delete the history, then turn sync back on.
Use Private Browsing to avoid recording history
If you do not want to delete history later, use Private Browsing mode to prevent Safari from recording it in the first place. Open Safari, tap the tabs icon in the bottom right corner, then tap "Private" to switch to a private window. Any sites you visit in private windows do not appear in your history.
Private Browsing also prevents Safari from storing cookies and cached files from those sites. When you close a private window, Safari forgets everything about it. You can have both regular and private windows open at the same time — tap the tabs icon and switch between them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does deleting Safari history sign me out of websites?
No. Deleting history removes only the list of sites you visited. It does not delete your login cookies, so you stay signed into most websites. If you want to sign out everywhere, you have to do that manually on each site or clear cookies separately in Settings > Safari > "Advanced" > "Website Data."
Can I recover Safari history after I delete it?
No. Once you confirm the deletion, Safari permanently removes the history from your iPhone. If you use iCloud sync, the deletion also syncs to your other devices. There is no undo or recovery option.
What is the difference between clearing history and using Private Browsing?
Clearing history removes sites you already visited. Private Browsing prevents Safari from recording new sites as you visit them. Private Browsing is useful if you want to browse without leaving a record; clearing history is what you do after the fact if you want to remove a record you already made.
If I delete history on my iPhone, does it delete on my Mac too?
Yes, if iCloud sync is on for Safari. Both devices are signed into the same iCloud account, so deleting history on one automatically deletes it on the other within a few minutes. If you want to delete history on only one device, turn off iCloud sync for Safari first.
Does Safari have a way to auto-delete history?
No. Safari does not have a built-in option to automatically delete history on a schedule. You have to delete it manually each time. Using Private Browsing mode is the closest alternative — it prevents history from being recorded at all.