How do you clear browsing history on iphone

Looking to clear your iPhone’s cache in the Safari browser but not sure how? Here is the simplest way to clear your browsing history in Safari on iOS.

Clearing your browser history is important; not only does it improve the overall performance of the app, but it prevents you from filling out forms and using old information, making it a more secure way to browse the web.

Plus, there is an added layer of security, as it means that anyone who does have access to your mobile can’t see what you’ve been searching for.

If you’re looking to clear your browsing history to help the health of your mobile, make sure you keep reading.

What we used

• We used an iPhone 13 Pro running iOS 15

The Short Version

• Click on the Safari app
• Click on the Bookmarks button
• Click on the History button
• Press Clear
• Choose All time

1. Step
   1

   Click on the Safari app

   

   Unlock your iPhone and click on the Safari app. It is blue and white and has a compass in the middle.

   

2. Step
   2

   Click on the Bookmarks button

   

   Once in Safari, click on the Bookmarks button. It lives in the bottom menu of the page and is the second app from the right, it also looks like an open book.

   

3. Step
   3

   Click on the History button

   

   From the new drop-down menu that is presented, click on the History button. It lives on the far right side of the drop-down menu and looks like a clock.

   

4. Step
   4

   Press Clear

   

   Press the Clear button to clear your history. It is in the bottom right of the dropdown page and is blue.

   

5. Step
   5

   Choose all time

   

   From the new drop-down menu that is presented click on All time to delete all of your browsing histories. We recommend saving or downloading any pages or information that you will need, and you can always choose to delete a smaller period of time, such as today and yesterday, if you think there is information there you will need soon. However, we do recommend clearing all of your browsing histories at some stage.

   

Troubleshooting

How often should I clear my browsing history?

While it will differ from person to person depending on how often you use Safari, you should be aiming to clear your browsing history on a regular basis, since it is more secure and can provide better performance.

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1. 

   1

   Open the Settings app (

   
   ). You'll be clearing your browsing history from the Settings app, not from the Safari app. While you can delete your browsing history in Safari, this won't remove any autofill information or cookies. Clearing your history through the Settings app will ensure that everything is deleted.[1]

2. 

   2

   Scroll down and tap "Safari." You should find this in the fifth group of options.

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3. 

   3

   Scroll down in the Safari menu and tap "Clear History and Website Data." A window will pop up asking you to confirm.[2]

   • If this button is grayed-out, you'll need to disable website restrictions. Return to the Settings menu and select "Restrictions." Enter your restrictions passcode then tap "Websites." Select "All Websites" to allow clearing history. If you don't have the restrictions passcode, you won't be able to clear the history.[3]

4. 

   4

   Confirm that you want to delete the history. Your Safari browsing history, cache, autofill, and cookies will be deleted. Your browsing history will also be deleted on any other devices you are signed into with your iCloud account.

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1. 

   1

   Open the Chrome app. If you use Chrome on your iPhone, you can clear the browsing history from within the Chrome app itself.

2. 

   2

   Tap the Menu button (⋮) and select "Settings." You may have to scroll down to see it.

3. 

   3

   Tap the "Privacy" option. A new menu will appear with a variety of reset options.

4. 

   4

   Tap "Clear Browsing History" to clear your history. You'll be asked to confirm that you want to delete it.

5. 

   5

   Tap "Clear All" to delete all of your browsing data. This will clear your history, cache, site data, and cookies.

6. 

   6

   Tap "Clear Saved Autofill Form Data" to remove autofill information. This will clear out the suggestions that appear when you select text fields

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1. 

   1

   Open the Phone app (

   
   ). You can delete your call history so that none of your calls appear on the Recents list.

2. 

   2

   Tap the "Recents" tab. This will display a list of recent calls that you've made and received.

3. 

   3

   Tap "Edit" in the upper-right corner. Red minus signs will appear next to each call in the log.

4. 

   4

   Tap a red minus (

   
   ) to delete a single entry. Tapping the minus sign next to an entry will delete it.

5. 

   5

   Tap "Clear" to delete all of the entries at once. If you want to delete the whole list, tap "Clear" in the upper-left corner. This only appears after you've tapped "Edit." All of the entries in the Recents tab will be deleted.

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1. 

   1

   Open the Messages app (

   
   ). You can delete text message conversations using the Messages app.

2. 

   2

   Tap the "Edit" button. This can be found in the upper-left corner.

3. 

   3

   Select each conversation that you want to delete. Tap the checkbox for each conversation that you want to remove. You can select multiple conversations.

4. 

   4

   Tap "Delete" after selecting conversations. All of the selected conversations will be deleted without confirmation.

5. 

   5

   Change your message history settings. By default, Messages will store all of your messages forever. You can change these settings to only keep messages for a year or for 30 days, which can free up space and reduce clutter:

   • Open the Settings app.
   • Select "Messages."
   • Tap "Keep Messages."
   • Select how long you want to store messages for. This will automatically delete messages that are older than the new setting.

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1. 

   1

   Open the Settings app (

   
   ). If you want to get rid of words added to your iPhone's autocorrect dictionary, you can do so from the Settings app.

2. 

   2

   Select "General" (

   
   ). A list of your general iPhone options will open.

3. 

   3

   Scroll down and tap "Reset." Various reset options will appear.

4. 

   4

   Tap "Reset Keyboard Dictionary." You'll be asked to confirm. All of the custom words that you have saved will be deleted.

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1. 

   1

   Open the Google app. If you use the Google app to search Google, you can clear your search history through the app.

2. 

   2

   Tap the Gear button in the upper-left corner. This will open the Settings menu.

3. 

   3

   Scroll down and tap "Privacy." You'll see your active account.

4. 

   4

   Tap the "Browsing" option. The "History" section will appear at the top of the screen.

5. 

   5

   Tap "Clear on-device history" to delete your search history. Note that this will only delete the search history for your app. Your searches will still be stored with the active Google account.

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1. 

   1

   Use this option if you want to completely erase your iPhone. This will delete all of the history and data on the iPhone, and you'll be prompted to set it up as new when the process is complete.

2. 

   2

   Open the Settings app (

   
   ). If you're sure you want to erase everything on your iPhone, open the Settings app.

3. 

   3

   Select the "General" (

   
   ) option. Your iPhone's general settings will open.

4. 

   4

   Scroll down and tap "Reset." Your device's reset options will appear.

5. 

   5

   Tap "Erase All Content and Settings." You'll be asked to confirm that you want to completely delete everything.

6. 

   6

   Wait while your iPhone resets. This process may take a little while to complete.

7. 

   7

   Set up your iPhone. Once the reset is complete, you'll be taken through the initial setup. You can setup your iPhone as new, or restore an iTunes or iCloud backup.

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Add New Question

• Question

  When I search for a person on Facebook, my phone won't let me delete it. Why?

  

  This may be because you are using the Facebook app and that Safari does not interact with the app's searching system.

• Question

  How do I delete the history from my iPhone, like the stuff that is behind the home screen?

  

  Tap the home button 2 times to open the menu, then swipe up on any open app or game to close it out.

• Question

  How do I clear recent notifications on my iPhone 7?

  

  Go to the home page and pull your finger down from the top of the screen to the bottom. A notification bar will pop up that shows all of your notifications. Tap the "X" at the top right and then press "Clear." Do that to all of the notifications you want to clear.

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About This Article

Article SummaryX

1. Open Settings.
2. Tap Safari.
3. Tap Clear History and Website Data.
4. Confirm deletion.

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