What gets erased when you clear your history
Clearing your history removes the record of websites you have visited, searches you have made, and files your browser has stored temporarily. On Windows, Mac, and Linux machines, this includes your browsing history, cookies (small files that remember your login information and preferences), cached images and files (copies saved to speed up loading), and autofill data (saved passwords and form entries, if you choose).
What does not get erased by clearing browser history: files you downloaded and saved to your computer, emails in your email account, documents you created, or files stored in cloud services like OneDrive or Google Drive. Those require separate deletion steps. Clearing history also does not erase your activity from your internet service provider's records or from the websites themselves — it only removes the local record on your machine.
The steps differ slightly between browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge) and operating systems, but the principle is the same: you open your browser settings, find the history or privacy section, select what time period to clear, choose what types of data to remove, and confirm.
Key Takeaways
- Clearing browser history removes websites you visited, searches you made, and temporary files stored locally, but not downloaded files or cloud storage.
- Each browser has its own history-clearing menu, usually found under Settings or Preferences, and you can choose to clear all time or just the last hour, day, or week.
- Clearing history does not erase your activity from your internet service provider or from the websites you visited — only your local computer record.
- To fully erase temporary files on Windows, you can also use Disk Cleanup; on Mac, you can empty the Trash and use the Storage settings in System Preferences.
How to clear history in Google Chrome
Open Chrome and press Ctrl + H on Windows or Command + Y on Mac to open the History page. On the left side, click Clear browsing data. A window will appear with options at the top: choose the time range (Last hour, Last 24 hours, Last 7 days, Last 4 weeks, All time). Most people select All time to erase everything.
Below the time range, check the boxes next to the data you want to remove: Cookies and other site data, Cached images and files, and Browsing history are the most common. You can also check Passwords and other sign-in data if you want to erase saved passwords, though this means you will need to re-enter them on sites you use regularly. Click Clear data to finish. The process takes a few seconds.
How to clear history in Mozilla Firefox
Open Firefox and press Ctrl + H on Windows or Command + Y on Mac to open the History sidebar. At the top of the sidebar, click Clear Recent History. A window will open with a dropdown menu labeled Time range to clear. Select Everything to erase all history, or choose a shorter period like Last Hour or Last 24 Hours.
Below that, you will see checkboxes for what to clear: Browsing & read History, Cookies, Cache, and Active Logins are checked by default. Leave these checked unless you have a reason not to. Click Clear Now to complete the action. Firefox will close the window once it is done.
How to clear history in Safari (Mac)
Open Safari and click the Safari menu at the top left of your screen. Select Clear History from the dropdown. A window will appear asking how far back you want to clear: choose All history to erase everything, or select a shorter period like the last hour or today. Click Clear History to confirm.
Safari's clear function removes browsing history and cookies by default. To also remove cached files, go to Safari > Preferences > Privacy and click Manage Website Data. Select all entries and click Remove All. This step is optional but thorough.
How to clear history in Microsoft Edge
Open Edge and press Ctrl + Shift + Delete on Windows to open the Clear browsing data window directly. At the top, select the time range: All time is the most complete option. Check the boxes for Browsing history, read history, Cookies and other site data, and Cached images and files. You can also check Passwords if you want to erase saved login information.
Click Clear now to remove the selected data. Edge will confirm once the process is complete. If you use Edge across multiple devices with a Microsoft account, you can also check the box for Clear browsing data from all your devices to erase history on your phone or tablet as well.
Clearing temporary files on Windows using Disk Cleanup
Beyond your browser, Windows stores temporary files in a system folder. To remove them, open the Start menu and type Disk Cleanup. Click the Disk Cleanup app when it appears. A window will ask you to select a drive; choose C: (your main hard drive) and click OK. Disk Cleanup will scan your drive for temporary files.
Once the scan finishes, you will see a list of file types you can delete. Check the boxes next to Temporary files, Recycle Bin, and Temporary Internet Files. Do not check items you are unsure about. Click Delete Files to remove the selected items. Windows will ask for confirmation; click Delete again. The process may take a few minutes depending on how much data is being removed.
Clearing temporary files on Mac
Mac does not have a built-in tool like Disk Cleanup, but you can manually remove temporary files. Open Finder and press Command + Shift + G to open the "Go to Folder" dialog. Type ~/Library/Caches and press Enter. This folder contains cached files from applications and websites. Select files or folders you recognize (like Chrome cache or Firefox cache) and drag them to the Trash. Empty the Trash afterward by right-clicking it and selecting Empty Trash.
You can also go to Apple menu > System Preferences > General > Storage to see what is taking up space on your Mac. Click Manage to see recommendations for files you can safely delete, such as old downloads or language files you do not use. This method is safer because macOS suggests what is safe to remove.
What to do if you want to prevent history from being saved
Most browsers offer a private or incognito mode that does not save your browsing history. In Chrome, press Ctrl + Shift + N on Windows or Command + Shift + N on Mac to open an Incognito window. In Firefox, press Ctrl + Shift + P or Command + Shift + P to open a Private window. In Safari, click File > New Private Window. In Edge, press Ctrl + Shift + P to open an InPrivate window.
When you use private mode, your browser does not save your history, cookies, or search queries. However, files you read are still saved to your Downloads folder, and your internet service provider can still see which websites you visit. Private mode is useful if you share your computer with others and do not want them to see your browsing, but it does not make you anonymous online.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does clearing my history delete my saved passwords?
Not unless you specifically check the box for passwords when clearing data. Most browsers separate browsing history from saved passwords, so you can clear one without affecting the other. If you want to keep your passwords but erase everything else, leave the password checkbox unchecked.
Will clearing my history speed up my computer?
Clearing browser cache and temporary files may free up a small amount of disk space, but it usually does not noticeably speed up your computer unless your drive is nearly full. The main benefit is privacy, not performance. If your computer is slow, the issue is usually RAM usage or a full hard drive, not browser history.
Can I recover my history after I clear it?
Once you clear your browser history, it is gone from your computer. You cannot recover it through your browser. However, if you synced your browser to a cloud account (like a Google account in Chrome), that data may still exist in your account's backup. Check your account settings to see what is synced and whether you can view or delete it there.
Does my internet service provider know what websites I visit even after I clear my history?
Yes. Your internet service provider can see all the websites you visit because the data passes through their network, regardless of whether your browser history is cleared. Clearing your history only removes the record from your computer. If you want to hide your activity from your internet service provider, you would need to use a VPN (virtual private network), which is a separate tool.
What is the difference between clearing history and clearing cache?
History is the list of websites you visited. Cache is the temporary copies of images, videos, and files that your browser saved to load those websites faster next time. Clearing history removes the list; clearing cache removes the stored files. Most browsers let you clear both at the same time, and both are usually checked by default.