erase safari history from iphone

How to clear Safari browsing history on iPhone and iPad

Clear Safari browsing history on iPhone and iPad in a few simple steps

You'll definitely want to know how to clear Safari browsing history on iPhone and iPad . Know how to delete browsing history is part of basic user operation on all your devices, and is especially if you share devices with others. 

Luckily, deleting browsing history on Safari is easy and can be done in just a few taps, and is the same on iOS and iPadOS, so whether you're using an iPhone 15 Pro or an iPad Air , these steps will apply.

Remember, though, that deleting your browsing history only stops your activity being visible on that device. Your Internet Service Provider (ISP) will still be able to see the webpages you have visited. If you want to stop that, for ultimate privacy, you'll need to use one of the best VPN services .

The following screenshots were taken on an iPhone running iOS 17 . If you aren't running the latest version of your device's OS, we can show you how to update an iPhone or how to update an iPad .

• In Safari, tap the book icon
• Go to the history tab (clock)
• Select how far back to clear

Read on to see full illustrated instructions.

1. In Safari, tap the book icon

Firstly, open Safari and tap the book icon in the bottom bar.

2. Select the history tab (clock icon) and tap Clear

Now select the history tab (clock icon) and tap Clear at the bottom.

3. Select how far back to clear and tap Delete

Now choose how far back you'd like to delete : last hour, today, today and yesterday, or all time.

If you like, you can toggle on Close All Tabs , which will close every open tab that isn't in a tab group (we can show you how to use tab groups if you aren't sure).

Finally, when you're happy, hit Delete .

As you can see in the screenshot above, if you now go back to the history tab, your history will have been deleted.

For more iPhone tutorials, check out our guides on how to transfer data from iPhone to iPhone , how to clear RAM on iPhone , how to delete multiple contacts on iPhone and how to rearrange the iOS 17 Messages '+' menu .

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How to view and clear your web browsing history in Safari on iPhone or iPad

Easily wipe your browsing history in Apple's Safari web browser in seconds.

What you'll need

How to find your web-browsing history, how to clear your web browsing history.

Clearing your browsing history on iPhone and iPad in Safari has been a straightforward affair for years now.

Sometimes you want to clear your history to get rid of bloat and streamline your browsing experience. Other times, you're trying to hide a gift purchase from a loved one.

Apple makes it very easy to clear your browsing history on both the iPhone and iPad and we're here to show you how. Here's how you can make a fresh start in Safari and debloat your web browsing experience.

On the latest models, web browsing is smoother than ever before thanks to ProMotion in the iPhone 15 Pro and faster chipsets like the M2 found in the iPad Air 6 . If you're looking for a new Apple device, we highly recommend one of the following: 

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Viewing your web history in iOS 17 and iPadOS 17 is very easy to do, here's how:

• In Safari, tap the Bookmarks button in the toolbar that's below the address bar.
• Tap the History icon in the upper right corner. Here, you can view your entire web history.

• Use the History search bar to find previously viewed pages.

If the time calls to wipe most or all of your web browsing history in Safari, here's how to do it on both iPhone and iPad.

To note, the below steps will be the same if you attempt to wipe your web browsing history on an iPhone 15 Pro Max or an iPad Mini 6 , all Apple devices require the same steps.

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• In Safari, tap the Bookmarks button.
• Select the History icon in the upper right corner.
• Tap Clear and select how much history you'd like to clear: the last hour, the last day, 48 hours' worth, or all recorded history.

One more thing… A feature no one talks about

Privacy on the web matters more than ever in these modern times. Websites store the pages you click on, especially when you sign into a page that can contain personal information about you.

It's great to have a feature like this in Safari — but it would be good to have this automated in iOS 18 . If Apple's web browser could automatically clear history after 24 hours it would be very useful, as you wouldn't leave a trail behind.

Regardless, it's still a good feature, and one you should use every week.

Daryl is iMore's Features Editor, overseeing long-form and in-depth articles and op-eds. Daryl loves using his experience as both a journalist and Apple fan to tell stories about Apple's products and its community, from the apps we use everyday to the products that have been long forgotten in the Cupertino archives.

Previously Software & Downloads Writer at TechRadar, and Deputy Editor at StealthOptional, he's also written a book, ' The Making of Tomb Raider ', which tells the story of the beginnings of Lara Croft and the series' early development. He's also written for many other publications including WIRED, MacFormat, Bloody Disgusting, VGC, GamesRadar, Nintendo Life, VRV Blog, The Loop Magazine, SUPER JUMP, Gizmodo, Film Stories, TopTenReviews, Miketendo64 and Daily Star.

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How to clear browsing history on Safari on iPhone or Mac

You can clear your Safari browsing history on both iOS and Mac

As tracking goes, Safari keeping your browsing history is less about privacy-busting security and more about just being useful. It's your history that means Safari remembers where to go to when you choose forward and back within a site, for instance.

It's also how Safari is able to offer you a list of sites that you regularly go to, on account of how handy it is to be able to back to them with a click. History also does keep things you may not expect, though, such as a list of items you've downloaded.

If you don't want that, though, or you're just fed up of Safari going to site addresses you haven't looked at in years, you can wipe the whole browsing history.

On a Mac, you can also wipe, for instance, just the last hour's browsing history. So if you share Safari and it's someone's special birthday coming up, you can avoid them inadvertently finding out you plan to surprise them with dance lessons.

How to clear search history on Safari on Mac

• In Safari, choose the History menu
• Select Clear History from the very bottom of the menu
• In the dialog box that appears, choose from clearing the last hour , today , today and yesterday , or all history
• Click on Clear History

Alternatively, within Safari you can press Command-Y and the current page will be replaced by a history list. There's a Clear History... button toward the top right.

Clicking on that gives you exactly the same dialog about choosing how far back you want to clear your browsing history. But this page does also give you one extra option — the ability to delete one specific item.

How to clear one item from Safari search history on Mac

• In Safari, press Command-Y
• From the long list, click once on a history item to select it
• Right-click to bring up a menu, then choose Delete

Alternatively, if you select one, two, or more items in the history list, you can then press the Delete key to remove them all.

That kind of precision removal is only possible on your Mac, not on iOS . However, whether it's precision or wholesale clearing of your history, though, there is a way to replicate it on iOS.

If you have set iCloud to share your Safari history, then just doing this on your Mac also removes the history from your iPhone, and iPad.

Otherwise, you're stuck with going to your iOS device. And then with clearing the entire history.

How to clear search history on iPhone

• Go to Settings on your iOS device
• Tap on Safari
• Scroll down to Clear History and Website Data
• Tap that, then tap Clear History and Data to confirm

One important thing to note is that you can't selectively remove, say, today's browsing history on the iPhone or iPad . It's all or nothing, with iOS.

What you leave behind

Clearing your history like this does remove the list of sites and pages you've visited. It does mean you can't go back to that site you read last Tuesday, not without remembering what it was and going there yourself.

What it doesn't remove, though, is the information that gets used by something like AutoFill. If you have your address, for instance, and you're used to online forms being filled out with it, you've still got that feature.

You've also still got anything you downloaded. It's purely that Safari won't keep the list of downloads.

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How to Clear Search History on iPhone

Clear selected Safari entries or your entire browsing history

In This Article

Jump to a Section

• Clear History Via Safari
• Clear History Via the Settings App
• Frequently Asked Questions

The Safari web browser on your iPhone keeps a log of web pages that you visit. If you want to clear your search history, you can do so through Safari or your iPhone's Settings app.

These procedures work for all recent versions of iOS.

Clear Browsing History Using the Safari App

Here's how to delete your browsing history through the Safari app on your iOS device.

Open the Safari app and tap Bookmarks (the icon that looks like an open book) at the bottom.

Tap History (clock icon).

Select Clear , and then select All time to erase your browsing history completely. Alternatively, choose The last hour , Today , or Today and yesterday .

Depending on the setting you chose, you've deleted your browsing history.

To delete individual entries, instead of tapping Clear , swipe from right to left over the website you want to remove, and then choose Delete .

Clear Browsing History Using the Settings App

You also can delete your browsing history through your iOS device's Settings app.

Tap Settings and then scroll down and tap Safari .

Scroll down and tap Clear History and Website Data .

In the confirmation box, tap Clear History and Data . You've deleted your Safari browsing history.

This method clears your entire browsing history, with no option to delete items selectively.

Open the Safari app and tap the book icon at the bottom of the screen. Tap the History icon (clock) and pull down on the screen to reveal the Search History field. Enter a search term .

You can't, but neither can anyone else. When you enter Safari's Private Browsing mode , the iPhone doesn't store your browsing history. To browse without recording the history, tap the Safari app > Tabs icon > [number] button > Private .

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How-To Geek

How to clear history, cache, and cookies in safari on iphone or ipad.

We're going to assume that most How-To Geek writers know how to delete the history, cookies, and cache in Mobile Safari, but just in case you don't know, here is how to do it.

Open up the Settings app and find Safari in the left-hand list, and then scroll down the right side until you find the "Clear History and Website Data" button.

You'll be prompted to verify that you really want to do this, and it will point out that this is also going to delete the history from other devices using your iCloud account to sync Safari.

Related: How to Clear Cookies / Cache for a Single Website on iPhone or iPad

Perhaps this is a good time to point out that you should use private browsing mode if you don't want history being saved on your device!

How to clear Safari history on iPhone

How to clear chrome history on iphone, how to clear firefox history on iphone, how to clear siri history on iphone.

• How to browse privately 

How to clear the search history on your iPhone

• To clear the browsing history on your iPhone, delete it directly from the browser you use. 
• You can also delete your Siri search history and data. 
• Browsing the web in private mode can eliminate the need for clearing your iPhone's history.

The reason for wanting to clear the search history on your iPhone is your business. 

But the fact is, browsers keep a running log of all the sites you visit. And if you're curious about how to delete your browsing history, know that browsers aren't the only thing on your phone being tracked. If you normally use Siri to search for things on the web, it might be worth deleting your Siri data, too.

Here's how to clear the history on your iPhone, whether you use Safari, Siri, Chrome, or Firefox.

You can clear your search history in Safari in several ways, removing individual pages, deleting by batches, or clearing all search history at once.

Clearing all history on Safari

1. On your iPhone, go to Settings and select Safari .

2. Scroll down and tap Clear History and Website Data .

3. Confirm by clicking Clear History and Data .

Clearing Safari history based on time periods

1. Open Safari and tap the Bookmarks icon at the bottom of your screen. The icon looks like an open book.

2. Tap on the History icon on the upper-right hand corner of your screen. The icon looks like a clock. 

3. Tap Clear at the bottom right-hand corner of your screen. 

4. Select the time range you want to clear, from The last hour to Today to Today and yesterday to All time .

Deleting individual sites from Safari history

1. Open Safari and tap the Bookmarks icon at the bottom of your screen. 

2. Tap on the History icon on the upper-right hand corner of your screen. 

3. Swipe left on the website, then tap Delete . You can also swipe all the way left.

Like Safari, you can clear your search history in Chrome in several ways. Note that deleting your entire history in Chrome will clear synced data from your other Google accounts.

Clearing all history on Chrome

1. On your iPhone, open Chrome and tap the Menu icon at the bottom right-hand corner of your screen. The icon looks like three dots.

2. Tap History .

3. At the bottom of your screen, tap Clear Browsing Data.

4. Select a time range and the information you want to delete. In this instance, check Browsing History and uncheck items you do not want to delete. 

5. At the bottom of your screen, tap Clear Browsing Data . Confirm the action in the pop-up box that appears. 

Deleting individual sites from Chrome history

1. On your iPhone, open Chrome and tap the Menu icon at the bottom right-hand corner of your screen. 

3. At the bottom of your screen, tap Edit.

4. Select the sites you want to delete, and then tap Delete .

The searches you perform on Firefox are logged. And like Safari and Chrome, you can choose different ways to clear your browsing history. 

Clearing all history on Firefox

1. On your iPhone, open Firefox and tap the Menu icon at the bottom right-hand corner of your screen. The icon looks like three horizontal lines.

2. Tap History . 

3. Select Clear Recent History, and then tap Everything.

Deleting individual sites from Firefox history

1. On your iPhone, open Firefox and tap the Menu icon at the bottom right-hand corner of your screen.

4. In History, you will see a list of recently visited sites. Swipe left on the website, then tap Delete . You can also swipe all the way left.

If you normally use Siri, it's worth noting that Apple saves the history of your Siri interactions. If you're concerned about privacy, you can delete your Siri search history . 

1. On your iPhone, go to Settings and select Siri & Search.

2. Select Siri & Dictionary History .

3.  Tap Delete Siri & Dictation History .

How to browse privately 

If you want to browse freely without needing to delete your history later, you should use private browsing mode. To learn how to do that, check out our guide on how to turn on private browsing mode for Safari, Chrome, Firefox, and more.

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2 Simple Ways to Clear Safari Search History

Last Updated: November 28, 2023 Fact Checked

This article was written by Gonzalo Martinez and by wikiHow staff writer, Rain Kengly . Gonzalo Martinez is the President of CleverTech, a tech repair business in San Jose, California founded in 2014. CleverTech LLC specializes in repairing Apple products. CleverTech pursues environmental responsibility by recycling aluminum, display assemblies, and the micro components on motherboards to reuse for future repairs. On average, they save 2 lbs - 3 lbs more electronic waste daily than the average computer repair store. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 508,650 times.

Do you need to delete searches that pop up when you click Safari's URL bar? Whether you want to delete Safari history on your Mac computer or iPhone, you can do this in a few simple steps.

• This will remove all history, cookies, and other browsing data from Safari.

• If you choose to leave this on, Safari will suggest searches more often as your browser history builds.

• You can choose: the last hour , today , today and yesterday , or all history .

Troubleshooting Safari History Data

• Go to Settings → Screen Time → Turn Off Screen Time .
• You can turn Screen Time back on after you have successfully cleared your history.

• For iOS, go to Settings , then click your Apple ID . Click iCloud and toggle Safari off.
• For Mac, go to System Preferences → iCloud . Uncheck the box for Safari .
• Clear your Safari history following the steps above.

• To restart an iPhone without a home button, press and hold the lock button and top volume button for at least five seconds. Slide to power off. After a few minutes, hold the power button to turn it on.
• To restart an iPhone with a home button, press and hold the lock button and home button for at least five seconds. Slide to power off. After a few minutes, hold the power button to turn it on.
• To restart a Mac , click the Apple icon in the top left. In the drop-down menu, click Restart… . It will power on again automatically.

Community Q&A

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201265
• ↑ https://support.apple.com/guide/safari/clear-your-browsing-history-sfri47acf5d6/mac
• ↑ https://support.apple.com/lv-lv/guide/safari/ibrwe75c2a3c/mac
• ↑ https://appletoolbox.com/cant-delete-safari-history-on-iphone-ipad-fix/#Why_cant_I_clear_Safari_history_and_website_data_on_my_iPhone_or_iPad

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1. Open Safari. 2. Click the URL bar. 3. Delete anything in the bar. 4. Click Clear Recent Searches . Did this summary help you? Yes No

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How to Clear Safari History, Cache, and Cookies on your iPhone

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Safari stores your browsing history as well as cached files and cookies from every website you visit. Clearing Safari history, cookies, and cached data on your iPhone can be beneficial for various reasons, including performance improvement, privacy, troubleshooting, and general maintenance.

Sometimes, you also may simply want a fresh start and prefer to clear your history regularly to minimize your digital footprint.

Clearing your history ensures others can’t see which websites you’ve visited or what information you’ve searched for. This is mostly applicable if you share your iPhone with others or search for sensitive information.

Over time, cached files and cookies from sites you visit can accumulate and take up a significant amount of storage space on your iPhone. Clearing them will free up storage capacity. Excessive data accumulation, including history, cookies, and cache, can slow down Safari’s performance. Clearing this data could speed up your browsing experience.

Also, if a website isn’t loading properly, clearing your browsing history, cache, and cookies will force Safari to download fresh data and could help resolve the issue.

How to Clear Safari History

To clear your Safari history and website data such as cookies and caches, follow these steps:

• Open the Settings app on your iPhone.
• Scroll down to Safari and tap it.
• Find Clear History and Website Data and tap it.
• On the next screen, you’ll have the option to clear history from the Last Hour , Today , Today and Yesterday , or All history. Select whichever one you prefer.

How to Clear Safari Cache and Cookies

The steps above will clear all of your browsing history, plus cookies, cache, and other browsing data (this is what “website data” refers to). However, you can preserve the history of the sites you’ve visited while clearing out only your cookies and other stored browsing data such as caches and stored preferences for individual websites.

Here’s how to clear your Safari cache and cookies, but keep your history:

• Open the Settings app.
• Scroll all the way down to Advanced and tap it.
• Tap Website Data . Depending on how much data is stored, this screen might take a few seconds to load.
• To flush the data for an individual site, locate it in the list and swipe right-to-left to delete it. You can also select Show All Sites to expand the list.
• To delete all cookies and caches, select Remove All Website Data at the bottom of your screen and then tap Remove Now to confirm.

Clearing Safari’s history and website data is a straightforward process that can protect privacy, improve performance, and help manage valuable storage space effectively. Whether or not you’ve been thinking about it, give it a try to see if you notice a difference.

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How to Clear Safari Profile Web History on iPhone

In iOS 17 , Apple has increased the options available for clearing Safari's web history and website data. You can even clear Safari's cache for a specific Safari profile. Keep reading to learn how it works.

If a site you regularly frequent has elements that have stopped working, or if a site has stopped loading completely, there may be a conflict between an older version of it that Safari has cached and a newer one. Or perhaps you simply want to protect your privacy by wiping the slate clean and removing all the data associated with websites you've visited.

With ‌iOS 17‌, Apple doesn't just let you clear Safari's history and website data for a specific timeframe. You can also clear the cache for a specific Safari Profile. (Profiles are is designed to help separate your browsing sessions into things like Work, School, or Personal: For more on how to use Profiles, click this link .)

How to Clear Safari Cache

Here's how to clear Safari history and website data on iPhones running ‌iOS 17‌, and iPads running iPadOS 17 .

• Open the Settings app.
• Scroll down and tap Safari .
• Tap Clear History and Website Data in blue.
• Choose a timeframe in which to clear your history: Last hour , Today , Today and yesterday , or All history .
• Choose a specific profile to clear from the list, or check All Profiles .
• To close all open tabs within your timeframe and profile(s), toggle on the switch next to Close All Tabs .
• Tap Clear History , then confirm when prompted.

That's all you need to do. The next time you open the associated profile(s), you should notice that all web history for the chosen timeframe will be gone.

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2 weeks ago by Tim Hardwick

How to Clear Safari History and Website Data on iPhone 12: A Step-by-Step Guide

Clearing your Safari history and website data on your iPhone 12 is a straightforward process. Head to your Settings app, scroll down to Safari, and tap on it. Next, scroll down to the bottom and select ‘Clear History and Website Data.’ Confirm your action, and voila, your browsing history is gone!

Step by Step Tutorial: Clearing Safari History and Website Data on iPhone 12

Before diving into the steps, let’s understand what this process does. Clearing your Safari history and website data will remove all the records of the websites you’ve visited and any data that’s been stored by those websites on your phone. This can help protect your privacy and free up some storage space.

Step 1: Open Settings App

Open the Settings app on your iPhone 12.

The Settings app is where you can tweak and change all sorts of options on your iPhone. It’s represented by a gear icon and can usually be found on your home screen or in the App Library.

Step 2: Scroll Down to Safari

Scroll down and tap on ‘Safari’ to open the Safari settings.

Safari is Apple’s web browser, and it has its own section in the Settings app. This is where you can adjust things like your search engine, privacy settings, and other options related to web browsing.

Step 3: Tap ‘Clear History and Website Data’

At the bottom of the Safari settings, you’ll see ‘Clear History and Website Data.’ Tap on this to continue.

When you tap on this, a pop-up message will appear to confirm your action. This is to make sure you don’t clear your data by accident.

Step 4: Confirm Your Action

After tapping ‘Clear History and Website Data,’ confirm that you want to clear it.

This step is important because once you clear your history and data, it’s not recoverable. Make sure you’re ready to lose all the data before you confirm.

After completing these steps, all your Safari history and website data will be cleared from your iPhone 12. Your browser will be like new, without any record of the sites you’ve visited or data that’s been stored.

Tips for Clearing Safari History and Website Data on iPhone 12

• Before clearing your data, consider if you need to save any login information or bookmarks, as these will also be deleted.
• Clearing your history can improve your iPhone’s performance if Safari is running slow.
• If you’re concerned about privacy, make it a habit to clear your history and data regularly.
• Be aware that clearing Safari history and website data will also clear it from other devices signed into your iCloud account, if Safari syncing is turned on.
• If you only want to remove data from specific websites, you can do this by going into the ‘Advanced’ section of Safari’s settings and selecting ‘Website Data.’

Frequently Asked Questions

Why should i clear my safari history and website data.

Clearing your history and website data can help protect your privacy, especially if you share your device with others. It also frees up storage space and can improve the performance of Safari on your iPhone.

Can I recover my Safari history after I clear it?

No, once you clear your Safari history and website data, it cannot be recovered.

Will clearing Safari history clear my autocomplete information?

Yes, clearing your history will also clear any autocomplete information stored by Safari.

Will clearing Safari history log me out of websites?

Yes, clearing your website data will log you out of most websites and you’ll need to sign in again.

Can I clear the history and website data for just one specific site?

Yes, you can clear data for specific websites by going to the ‘Advanced’ section of Safari’s settings and selecting ‘Website Data.’ From there, you can remove data from individual sites.

• Open Settings App
• Scroll to Safari
• Tap ‘Clear History and Website Data’
• Confirm action

Clearing your Safari history and website data on your iPhone 12 is a simple yet effective way to keep your personal information private and maintain your iPhone’s performance. It’s a quick process that ensures your browsing habits remain your own, and it can help your device run more smoothly. By following the steps outlined above, you can easily clear your history and data. Remember, once it’s gone, it’s gone for good, so always double-check before wiping the slate clean. For more tips and tricks on how to get the most out of your iPhone or other Apple devices, stay tuned to our content, where we’re always ready to help you navigate the tech world.

Matt Jacobs has been working as an IT consultant for small businesses since receiving his Master’s degree in 2003. While he still does some consulting work, his primary focus now is on creating technology support content for SupportYourTech.com.

His work can be found on many websites and focuses on topics such as Microsoft Office, Apple devices, Android devices, Photoshop, and more.

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How to clear the cache on your iPhone (and why you should)

How many tabs are open on your mobile browser right now? Go ahead, check -- you might be surprised by what you find.

Americans spend over five hours a day on their smartphones. That's over five hours of your phone potentially accessing, retrieving, and saving cache and cookies, which can negatively impact your iPhone's storage space .

What is cache?

Cache is the temporary storage of some data, like parts of a website from the last time you visited it, for example. Browser cache is content from a website that is stored on your phone during a browser session to help the browser execute faster the next time you visit that page.

Also:  How to clear Google search cache on Android

Cache data can slow down your phone's overall browsing performance, however, since it takes up storage space on your device, so it's good to clear it out regularly. In this article, we mainly focus on clearing web browser cache on an iPhone, but you should know that other types of cache include mobile app cache and CPU cache.

How to clear cache on iPhone

What you'll need: Everything you need to clear your browser cache is within the iPhone's settings app or the Safari app, so grab your iPhone to get started.

Keep in mind that clearing the cache can clear private data, which can close all open tabs in Safari. This is also likely to log you out of all your websites, prompting you to sign in again the next time you open them. 

How do I clear the cache from Chrome on iPhone?

If Google Chrome is your preferred browser, it may have a substantial amount of data stored on your device, which could also slow down performance. 

To clear the cache in Chrome, open the Google Chrome app and follow these steps:

• Tap  Settings .
• Go to  Privacy and Security .
• Select  Clear Browsing Data .
• Select the time from which to delete the data (if you want to delete all your browsing history, choose All Time ).
• Go through the items you'd like to delete, like your Browsing History, Cookies and Site Data, Cached Images and Files, Saved Passwords , and Autofill Data.
• Confirm by tapping  Clear Browsing Data  at the bottom of the screen.
• Tap Done when you've deleted the Chrome cache.

Also: Apple releases iOS 17.4 with podcast transcripts, new emojis, and EU app store changes

Clearing the browsing and cache data in Google Chrome doesn't close all open tabs, but it will refresh each tab and log you out of websites. Once you tap on one of the tabs you want to access, you'll have to log back in.

How can I browse on Safari without history?

If you're learning how to clear cache on an iPhone, you may also be wondering if there's a way to use Safari without saving any browsing history. You can turn on Private Browsing by following these steps:

• Open  Safari .
• Tap on  Tabs .
• Choose Private .

You can also enable private browsing by going to your iPhone Settings, finding Safari, and toggling on the private option. 

How do I clear my app cache on my iPhone?

To clear the app cache from your iPhone Settings app, you can either delete the app and reinstall it, offload it, or try to clear the cache from within the app. Unfortunately, iOS apps don't have consistent settings across the board that would allow you to clear the cache of every app.

Also: Apple warns: Don't put your wet iPhone in rice. Do this instead

Apps like TikTok and CapCut, for example, have options to Clear Cache within their respective settings. Amazon lets users delete their browsing history, while the Reddit app can clear local history. It all depends on what the app's settings let you do. 

Is "clear cache" the same as offloading?

Not exactly, though app offloading can help if your phone is slowed down by low storage. To offload an app  means to uninstall an app without deleting any documents or data associated with it. 

Also: Apple secures iMessage against threats from the future

To offload an app, go to  Settings , then  General , choose  iPhone Storage  and select the app to offload, then tap  Offload App . If you ever download it again, you'll pick up where you left off for that app.

Are cookies and cache the same thing?

Cookies and cache are not the same. Cookies are data files that websites send to your phone, including things like saved passwords to keep you logged into an account or even the website preferences from the previous time you visited. 

Also: I tested the best Mint alternatives, and this is my new favorite money app

Though they do sound harmless, cookies can also track how you browse the internet. They monitor patterns in your browsing and search history, even seeing what you clicked on or what your mouse hovered over. Ever made an innocuous search on Amazon only to find ads for it on all the apps you use? Cookies likely made that possible.

Can I block cookies on my iPhone?

While you can block cookies on Safari, the ranks are divided on whether you should. Blocking cookies entirely means that websites won't be able to get information from you, but it also means that some websites may not even work correctly on your browser. A lot of users actually enjoy a more personalized browsing experience, so cookies are a good thing for them.

 If you'd like to block cookies in Safari, follow these steps:

• Go to  Settings  and select  Safari .
• Tap on the toggle next to  Block All Cookies .

There are also third-party extensions that help you block cookies and trackers in Google Chrome, like Ghostery and Disconnect .

How do I check iPhone storage?

On an iPhone, Settings can show you what's taking up most of your media storage, like photos, videos, and music. You can also see what each particular app's storage consumption is, which includes temporary data. To view the details of your iPhone's storage space, follow these steps:

• Go to the iPhone Settings .
• Tap on General .
• Select iPhone Storage .
• Scroll through to find the app you're looking for.
• Tap on the app to view storage status and options.

Unfortunately, you can't clear your iPhone cache for third-party apps by going into your Settings app, but this gives you a visual of your iPhone's storage and the option to delete or offload apps.

Also: Here's the fastest way to declutter your iPhone and free up Gigabytes of space

When you look at your device's storage space, you'll probably see recommended steps you can take to optimize your iPhone's storage, like offloading unused apps.

• How to better organize text messages on your iPhone, thanks to iOS 17
• How to transfer data from Android to an iPhone: 2 simple and fast ways
• How to turn on 80% charging limit on the iPhone 15 to save battery health
• How to leave a FaceTime voice or video message when your call goes unanswered

[Solved] Stop System Data From Taking All Your iPhone Storage

On iPhone, System Data is a storage category that houses the caches and temporary files that iOS processes use. It speeds up loading times by making it easier to retrieve frequently accessed data. Caching should barely be noticeable. System Data only takes up around 5 to 10 GB, and if storage usage is too large (e.g., 15 GB), it could indicate underlying performance issues.

You’ll see slower processes at first. As things worsen, however, your iPhone will start saying it’s low on storage. The best approach is to fix the issue fast to prevent performance degradation. Follow these troubleshooting steps.

If you’re trying to save a generous amount of storage space, you should search for a trusted cleaning app. For instance, Intego Washing Machine will delete all unnecessary files from your system, including temporary files and caches, while optimizing your iPhone’s health for a long time.

➡️ Try Intego Washing Machine for free

How To Reduce System Data Storage Usage on iPhone

1. offload unused apps.

Time needed:  3 minutes

When you offload an app, you delete it from your iPhone while preserving its documents and data. It’s an effective way to free up storage space without permanently deleting content. Since some apps store large caches in System Data, offloading can potentially reduce its storage space. Here’s how:

You can also offload apps manually.

• Scroll down to the list of apps—select unused apps with a large file size.

• Repeat as many times as needed.

2. Clear Safari Cache

Safari caches a lot of website data (e.g., images, scripts, and cookies) to load pages faster on subsequent visits. This data accumulates over time and increases your System Data size. If you rarely clear your browser history, now’s the best time to do so.

• Go to Settings and scroll down to Safari .

3. Manage Message History

Messages with file, video, and photo attachments take up significant storage space, and they’re typically cached in System Data. I suggest deleting old SMS and iMessage conversations automatically.

• Open Settings and scroll down to Messages .
• Select Keep Messages under Message History .

4. Invest in iCloud+

An iCloud+ subscription won’t directly reduce System Data size on your iPhone, but it can help you manage your files better. Upload your largest files (e.g., videos, HD photos, and documents) on the cloud.

• Go to Settings > [your Apple ID name] .

5. Factory Reset iPhone

As a last resort, factory reset your iPhone. You might resolve the hidden glitch that’s spiking System Data’s storage space after you wipe all your files. Just make sure to set up iCloud Backup beforehand. Otherwise, consider your data gone.

• Open Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone .

• Select Continue to confirm the action.

Recheck iPhone Storage before you sync iCloud Backup. If System Data is still taking up too much space, the underlying issue isn’t with your system files or settings preferences. Unfortunately, there’s likely a more complex underlying issue.

The best approach is to contact Apple Support and have their certified technicians check for other software and hardware problems. Since iCloud Backup syncs across Apple devices, check System Data’s storage usage on your Mac , too.

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Safari User Guide

• Get started
• Go to a website
• Bookmark webpages to revisit
• See your favorite websites
• Use tabs for webpages
• Import bookmarks and passwords
• Pay with Apple Pay
• Autofill credit card info
• View links from friends
• Keep a Reading List
• Hide ads when reading
• Translate a webpage
• Download items from the web
• Add passes to Wallet
• Save part or all of a webpage
• Print or create a PDF of a webpage
• Interact with text in a picture
• Change your homepage
• Customize a start page
• Create a profile
• Block pop-ups
• Make Safari your default web browser
• Hide your email address
• Manage cookies
• Clear your browsing history
• Browse privately
• Prevent cross-site tracking
• See who tried to track you
• Change Safari settings
• Keyboard and other shortcuts

Clear your browsing history in Safari on Mac

You can remove all records that Safari keeps of where you’ve browsed during a period of time you choose. If your Mac and your other Apple devices have iCloud set up for Safari , your browsing history is removed from all of them. Clearing your browsing history in Safari doesn’t clear any browsing histories kept independently by websites you visited.

Open Safari for me

Choose how far back you want your browsing history cleared.

When you clear your history, Safari removes data it saves as a result of your browsing, including:

History of webpages you visited

The back and forward list for open webpages

Frequently visited site list

Recent searches

Icons for webpages

Snapshots saved for open webpages

List of items you downloaded (downloaded files aren’t removed)

Websites added for Quick Website Search

Websites that asked to use your location

Websites that asked to send you notifications