safari history mac book

Tips & Tricks

Troubleshooting, how to access & search safari history on mac.

Just about all modern web browsers default to maintaining a history log of your web browsing activity, and Safari for Mac is no different. This article will focus on how to access your Safari history on the Mac, and also how to search Safari browsing history for specific words, terms, and matches.

Accessing and searching through Safari browser history can be helpful for tracking down websites or articles that were previously visited on a particular topic but that you’ve since forgotten, retrieving previously visited websites, looking for a particular match, amongst many other valid uses for individual users, parents, public computers, information security, systems administrators, and much more.

Searching Safari web browsing history on a Mac is easy, here’s how it works:

How to Search Safari History on Mac

• Open the Safari web browser on the Mac if you have not done so already
• Pull down the “History” menu and choose “Show All History”

• You’ll now be presented with all stored Safari History of web browsing activity, with each browsing history session separated by date
• Click into the search box seen in the upper right corner of the History screen

• Type in any word, term, or phrase to search the Safari History for, any matches will be shown on screen

In the example here, we searched for the term “Chromebook” and Safari returned all matches for that term.

Safari History Search will find matches as far back as possible, searching through all Safari history for the current Mac user. Anything matching will be returned as a search result.

Searching browser history can be helpful for many reasons, whether you’re trying to recall something you were looking at some time ago, or you want to find a website or article about a particular topic you know you have visited before. Of course searching through web browser history can also be useful for forensic purposes and data auditing too, for those involved in fields where that can be necessary or relevant.

Safari will store browser history for as long as you have been using Safari, unless it has been cleared specifically. There are multiple options for clearing Safari history, and if you want to completely clear all history in Safari on the Mac that is possible. You can also prevent browser history from being stored in the first place by choosing to use Private Browsing mode in Safari for Mac , which doesn’t store local browsing session data or cookies.

Do keep in mind if you (or the target Mac) run multiple different versions of Safari, like Safari alongside Safari Tech Preview, then you’d need to check history in both Safari browsers, and likewise you’d want to clear history in both of them too if you were wanting to clear our history for whatever reason.

The capability to find and look through past browsing data is not unique to the Mac, you can also search Safari browsing history on the iPhone and iPad too, and virtually every other modern web browser also has the same capability, except for most TOR browsers and privacy centric apps like Firefox Focus.

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Related articles:

• How to Recover Deleted Safari History on Mac
• How to Delete Specific Safari History on Mac
• View Browsing History on iPhone, iPad, iPod touch from Safari
• How to Clear Google Maps Search History on iPhone & iPad

» Comments RSS Feed

My safari on my MacBook Pro is getting buggy and a lot of things aren’t working, like I can’t click on an email address to start an email from the mail program, I click and nothing happens. Now I am trying to find a web page from a few days ago, so I try to go to ‘show all history’ but nothing happens. I can’t get my history to show in the browser!! It does have recent history, it’s just that I can’t access my whole history like I should be able to. What gives?

I used to use history a lot when I created a search in Safari. After going to a website that lead to further exploration it would sometimes take clicking the back arrow several times to get back to the original search and it was quicker to go to history and just click on the original search. Since one of the recent updates I have been unable to find the original searches any more. I don’t know if I am just not seeing it or if it isn’t there. Anyone else have this problem?

I have asked this before but I’m asking it again. It is possible to make a guide on how to go to root and _delete_ the option “new private window” from the File dropdown menu? How to edit the nib file etc…

You can Enable Parental Controls on Mac and that can be used to disable Safari Private Mode.

Or this below, which I found on the web and would not recommend to anyone:

If logging isn’t practical or you want to be more proactive and prevent Private Browsing from being accessible in the first place, it is possible (though not a short process) to disable Private Browsing if you are willing to mess with Safari’s internal files.

Note that macOS 10.12+ will not allow you to modify, overwrite, or delete Safari. You can make the following modifications to a copy of Safari and put that version in the Dock, but the original Safari will still need to exist in the Applications folder.

Install the necessary files

Install Xcode (available in the App Store) Download a zip file of Nib-Decompiler from GitHub (or clone the repository if you know how to do that) Open the NibDecompiler.xcodeproj Xcode project in Xcode Compile the project. This will produce a file named NibDecompiler.action. You can now close the project. Copy NibDecompiler.action into ~/Library/Automator* From your download, copy NibDecompiler.workflow into ~/Library/Services* Remove the “New Private Window” option from the menu bar

Note that this involves editing the Safari internal files. You will need to redo these steps every time you update Safari.

Go to Safari in the Finder and right-click “Show Package Contents” This will open the app as if it were a folder. Go to Contents, then Resources, then Base.lproj folder. Find MainMenu.nib. Copy it outside of the package somewhere (like the Desktop). Right-click on the file and choose “NibDecompiler”. The file will be made editable. Open the file in Xcode (should be double-clickable) In the window with the Safari menu, choose “Safari” to expand it. Click on the “New Private Window” menu item. Hit the delete key to see it disappear. Save the file. Back in the Base.lproj folder of the Safari app, make a copy MainMenu.nib just in case something goes wrong and you need to restore it. Copy your edited MainMenu.nib to Base.lproj, overwriting the existing one. Open Safari to make sure that it still opens (if it doesn’t, restore your original MainMenu.nib file). (Optional) If everything works, you may delete the backup MainMenu.nib if you so choose. By removing the “New Private Window” menu item from the menu bar, they will not be able to enter private browsing. Additionally, keyboard shortcuts are tied to menu items, so that’s disabled too.

* ~ means your user home directory. Library is a hidden folder that isn’t visible when you navigate to the home directory. You can get to this folder in the Finder by going to the “Go” menu and choosing “Connect to Folder…”, then typing in ~/Library. You will then see the folders you need to copy files to.

Instructions copied from this MacRumors forum thread ( https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/how-to-disable-private-browsing-in-safari.175238/page-3#post-23387488 )

You can see things you wish you didn’t see by doing this on someone elses computer!

You can find cold things in their refrigerators, too, genius.

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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 Manage Your Browsing History in Safari

Revisit websites or remove them from your Safari search history

In This Article

Jump to a Section

• Step-by-Step: Manage History on macOS
• Use Private Browsing in Safari
• Step-by-Step: Manage History on iOS Devices
• Use Private Browsing on iOS

The Apple Safari web browser keeps a log of your search history and the websites that you visit. Learn how to manage your browsing history in Safari and how to browse privately.

Instructions in this article apply to Safari for Mac computers with OS X Yosemite (10.10) through macOS Catalina (10.15) and Apple mobile devices with iOS 8 through iOS 14.

How to Manage Safari History on macOS

Safari has long been the standard web browser for macOS . Here's how to manage Safari's history on a Mac:

Open the Safari browser and select  History  in the menu bar located at the top of the screen.

You'll see a drop-down menu with the titles of the web pages you visited recently. Select a website to load the respective page or select one of the previous days at the bottom of the menu to see more options.

To clear your Safari browsing history and other site-specific data that's stored locally, choose  Clear History  at the bottom of the History  drop-down menu.

If you want to keep website data (like saved passwords and other autofill information), go to  History  >  Show All History . Press Cmd + A  to select everything, then press  Delete to remove your browser history while retaining website data.

Select the period you want to clear from the drop-down menu. Options include the last hour , today , today and yesterday , and all history .

Select Clear History to delete the list of sites.

If you sync your Safari data with any Apple mobile devices using iCloud , the history on those devices is cleared as well.

How to Use Private Browsing in Safari

To prevent websites from appearing in the browser history, use Private Browsing. To open a private window in Safari, go to File > New Private Window , or use the keyboard shortcut Shift + Command + N .

When you close the private window, Safari doesn't remember your search history, the web pages you visited, or any autofill information. The only distinguishing feature of the new window is that the address bar is tinted dark gray. The browsing history for all tabs in this window remains private.

In Safari for Windows , select the settings gear and choose Private Browsing from the drop-down menu.

How to Manage History in Safari on iOS Devices

The Safari app is part of the iOS operating system used in the Apple iPhone , iPad, and iPod touch . To manage the Safari browsing history on an iOS device:

Tap the  Safari app to open it.

Tap the Bookmarks  icon at the bottom of the screen. It resembles an open book.

Tap the History icon at the top of the screen that opens. It resembles a clock face.

Scroll through the screen for a website to open. Tap an entry to open the page in Safari.

To clear the browsing history, tap  Clear  at the bottom of the History screen.

Choose one of the four options:  The last hour , Today , Today and yesterday , and  All time .

Clearing your Safari history also removes cookies and other browsing data. If your iOS device is signed into your iCloud account, the browsing history is removed from other devices that are signed in.

Tap  Done  to exit the screen and return to the browser page.

If you only want to remove individual sites from your Safari history, swipe left on the entry, then tap Delete .

How to Use Private Browsing in Safari on iOS Devices

You can also use Private Browsing in iOS to prevent your Safari search history and web data from being saved:

Open the Safari app and then press and hold the tabs icon (the two overlapping boxes) at the bottom of the screen.

Tap Private .

Tap the plus sign to open a private browsing window.

When you are in private browsing, the background of the URL address bar is black instead of light gray. Enter a URL or search term as usual.

When you are ready to go back to regular browsing, tap the tabs icon and then tap Private to turn off private browsing.

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How to delete web browsing history on Mac

Periodically cleaning out your browser’s data (such as your history, or your cache and cookies ) can help protect your privacy from snoops who want to discover what sites you’ve visited recently, or what you’ve searched for. We’ve looked at clearing your iPhone browsing history elsewhere; in this article we explain how to clear the web browsing history on your Mac, covering the four most popular Mac browsers : Safari, Chrome, Firefox and Opera.

If you’d like to prevent your browser collecting history data in the first place, see How to use private web browsing on Mac – this is a useful feature if you’d like to hide your tracks online.

Clear history in Safari

Safari’s Clear History tool appears twice in its dropdown menus. You can click Safari > Clear History, or go for History > Clear History instead.

You can choose to clear the last hour, or all of today’s accumulated data, or today plus yesterday, or just all the data since… well, forever! Select from the dropdown list and click Clear History.

Although quick to access, the Clear History tool is badly named because it actually takes a scorched Earth approach – in addition to actual browsing history, it deletes cookies and the entire browser cache too.

Happily, Safari does offer more surgical cleaning tools that let you proceed on a site-by-site basis. It just hides these tools away – but we’re here to help.

Remove individual sites from Safari history

By clicking History > Show All History you’ll see a list of the sites you’ve visited recently; right-clicking any in the list shows a menu complete with Remove option. Alternatively, select any entry in the list and tap the Backspace or Delete key on your keyboard. Note that the Clear History button at the top right of the list displays the same global clear-up dialog box as mentioned above.

Although you can select several entries in the History list in the usual way by holding down Shift or Cmd, you can only delete them by subsequently tapping the Backspace or Delete key on your keyboard. Right-clicking won’t work in this instance.

Clear history in Chrome

View your browsing history in Chrome by selecting History > Show Full History (or using the hotkey combination Cmd + Y, although this doesn’t always seem to work).

You can remove specific entries on an individual basis: click the tickbox to the left of it, then Delete in the blue bar at the top, and confirm Remove.

If you’d prefer to delete all your history in one go, click ‘Clear browsing data’ in the lefthand list of options.

Select a time range from the dropdown menu – you can select the last hour, day, week or four-week period, or all time – and then make sure the ‘Browsing history’ tickbox is filled.

(You can delete cache and cookies at the same time if you wish, or untick them to ignore. The cache entry will tell you how much space will be saved, as well as warning that sites may load more slowly.)

Hit Clear Data to trigger the deletion.

Clear history in Firefox

Firefox offers straightforward history deletion tools too. Select History > Clear Recent History (or hit Shift + Cmd + forward delete) for the simplest method.

At the top of the dialogue box you’ll be able to choose a time range: Last Hour, Last Two Hours, Last Four Hours, Today or Everything. Then, if you click the Details chevron you can choose which forms of browsing data you wish to delete. When you’ve decided, hit Clear Now.

Delete individual sites from your Firefox history

As with the other browsers, Firefox lets you remove individual entries from your history. Click History > Show All History, and then right-click an entry and select Delete Page.

You can delete multiple entries in this way by clicking one, then holding Shift and selecting another: Firefox will highlight both entries and all the entries between them. Or use Cmd + A to select all.

And remember that you can just look at the history from this month, the last seven days etc by using the options on the left.

Clear history in Opera

Let’s do one more browser: the purists’ favourite, Opera.

Select History > Show All History from the top bar (or use the hotkey combo Shift + Cmd + H). You’ll see the full history divided into days. Hover over an entry and click the X on the right to remove it from your history.

To delete all of your history at once, click Clear Browsing Data at the top right of the history page. You can adjust the timeframe – past hour, day, week, four weeks or all time – and choose whether to clear your cookies, autofill forms and other data at the same time as the history.

Click Clear Browsing Data to wipe the selected data.

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.

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 may want a fresh start with your web browsing — perhaps to get rid of some history that may bring up a memory you'd rather forget as you type in a website URL in the address bar.

Apple makes this feature very easy to access on both the iPhone and iPad by offering two ways to clear your history. So with this in mind, here's how you can do just that and make a fresh start in Safari .

Viewing your web history in iOS 17 and iPadOS 17 is very easy to do — and it's all done from Safari.

• 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 , and an iPad Mini 6 for example.

• 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.

Master your iPhone in minutes

iMore offers spot-on advice and guidance from our team of experts, with decades of Apple device experience to lean on. Learn more with iMore!

It's great to have a feature like this in Safari — but it would be good to have this automated. To tell Apple's web browser to automatically clear history after 24 hours 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 Geek

How to wipe your browsing history automatically in safari on mac.

Safari records all your web activity, so it's best to occasionally clear it with Safari's self-destruct tool. Here's how it works.

Your browser records all your web activity. Therefore, for added privacy, it's best to regularly clear your browsing history. Safari on your Mac can take care of this for you and automatically wipe your history every once in a while. Here's how to set it up.

Launch Safari on your Mac from the Launchpad or by looking it up on Spotlight .

Next, click "Safari" from the left corner of the menu bar and select "Preferences." Alternatively, you can press Cmd+comma on your keyboard to head directly into this menu.

Under the "General" tab, locate the "Remove History Items" option.

From the dropdown beside it, you can select how often Safari should delete your browsing history. You can have it cleared as frequently as every day or every year.

When you enable this setting, Safari automatically wipes logs of the websites you visit, your web searches, and more.

If you prefer reviewing your browsing history before clearing it, you can choose "Manually" from the dropdown and periodically erase your web activity from Safari yourself.

At the bottom of the "General" section, you'll also find a separate setting called "Remove download list items." With this option, you can configure Safari to automatically remove the list of files you downloaded (but not the files themselves).

You can have them wiped after a day, as soon as you quit Safari, or when the download is unsuccessful.

Enabling these won't affect your Safari browsing data on other Apple devices such as an iPhone or an iPad. As of yet, the options to automatically wipe your browsing history and the download list are not available on Safari's iOS and iPadOS apps.

There's a lot more you can do for a more secure experience on Safari, including browsing in incognito mode by default and optimizing it for maximum privacy .

PowerUninstall

Weekly Sale

How to View and Clear Your Safari History on Mac

Written By Chloe Turner

Last updated: February 11, 2022

Technical Writing Specialist who creates different types of articles, from reviews to how-to types of articles for Mac.

We all spend a vast proportion of our time surfing, that’s why your Mac swarms with a list of sites you have browsed in the past. Safari uses iCloud to maintain the same browsing history across your Macs and iOS devices. You only need to have Safari toggled on in iCloud preferences. Macs preserve your browsing history for up to a year, while iOS devices keep it for a month.

You’ve to manage your browsing history to determine what goes to your Apple data download. However, erasing it will not give you a clean slate due to iCloud backups. So in this article, we will show you how to view history on Safari , and ways to delete them. Let’s get started.

Contents: Part 1. Understanding Search Browser History & Why You Need to Turn It off Part 2. How to View and Clear Safari History on Mac Manually Part 3. How to Clear Other Browser History Manually Part 4. Other Choices to Clear Browser History Part 5. Conclusion

Part 1. Understanding Search Browser History & Why You Need to Turn It off

Unpacking Search Browser History

Your browser memorizes every website you visit. To prevent this, enable Incognito Mode or Private Browsing. Otherwise, your browser stores all these pages systematically and they’re inextricably linked to your account. Sites you visit can pop up in autofill Google search forms if you track them. They stick out in violet in your search results.

Browsers also save information about the time when you surfed any page. Browsing history doubles as a website retrieval tool to home on any page from corpus items through the search bar.

Why would you mull over a nuked browsing history?

Sometimes, you wipe out this data for privacy, regulatory compliance, business secrecy, anxiety or simply spruce up your Mac. So, no website you opened will appear in your browser search results titled “ already visited ”.

When you want to sell or give away your Mac, failure to erase browser history could expose troves of your online data to prying eyes. Equally, clearing your history will throw a snooping eye off the scent if someone attempts to look up your surfing history.

Wipe Out Browser History in a Click with a Dedicated Removal Tool

Automate your way of handling histories with a versatile browser removal tool for clockwork accuracy. Privacy tool adds an extra layer of security in safeguarding your privacy with the total annihilation of surfed pages.

We recommend you use the module Privacy of iMyMac PowerMyMac to automatically wipe away history details, cookies, and other pieces of data regurgitated by browsers. This software works like stink to clear out various types of Apple data download records.

It also allows you to determine the cookies you wish to retain like the frequently-visited-sites. It boasts powerful algorithms that scan faster and delete in a single click. Try it out to wipe out your online footprint.

Part 2. How to View and Clear Safari History on Mac Manually

How to View Safari History on Mac

• Search the web browsing history in Safari on your Mac. You can search your browsing history to quickly find webpages you visited before.
• In the Safari app on your Mac, choose History > Show All History.
• Type in the Search field at the top-right corner of the window.

How to Clear Safari History on Mac

• Launch Safari from the dock.
• Click on history in the menu bar at the upper parts of your screen. You can pore over your recent browsing history by drifting the mouse over the latest date in this list of entries.
• Choose Show All History at the upper drop-down menu. This throws up the entire browser history exhibited by date. Use the keyboard shortcut ⌘Command+Y to launch the history in Safari.
• Click ▶ on the left of any date to extend the browser archives for that date in a complete list. You can wipe out the history by clicking on Clear history on the upper-right of the page.

Part 3. How to Clear Other Browser History Manually

Google chrome.

• Launch Chrome.
• Click on History from the menu bar on the crest of the screen. This spew up a collection of Recently Closed websites and an assortment of Recently Visited
• Click on Show Full History at the foot of the drop-down menu. This reveals a list of your Chrome browsing history.
• Scroll down to see your browser history. The pages appear incrementally and you can keep looking through to go back months earlier. You can discard your history by clicking on Clear browsing data at the top left of the window.
• Launch the Firefox browser.
• Click on the History tab at the top of the menu bar.
• Select “ Clear Recent History ”.
• Decide the time range you want wiping out (“Everything” will erase all history).
• Hover over the Details arrow, click it.
• Select “ Browsing and Download History ”.
• Un-check the other options.
• Select “ Clear now ” to wrap up.

Part 4. Other Choices to Clear Browser History

Icloud apple’s data.

You don’t have to panic about iCloud backups associated with browsing history. Turn on Safari iCloud syncing and clear out your history across your able devices. Follow the steps under Safari with iCloud sync enabled.

Sign Out your Accounts

Browsing without having social media, iTunes or Google account logged in prevents search engines from tying up pages visited you. However, these pages still exist in your browser history. But these pages will no longer appear as “already visited”. Alternatively, use the Incognito Mode or Private Browsing to dissociate listed pages with your accounts.

Third-Party Tool

Erasing browser history ensures your history doesn’t fall into the wrong hands. Browser Cleanup Tool "Privacy" of PowerMyMac blazes the trail as dedicated software to securely and quickly wipe out browser history from Macs, from the first day. It provides a safe pair of hands to clean up browsers in a split-second. Download it for free so you won’t soil your hands with digital dirt.

Furthermore, Mac stores info on your internet activity with caches, logs, outdated files, and downloads. Privacy (Browser Cleanup) from iMyMac PowerMyMac offers a new broom to brush away all bits of your browser history.

How To See History Of Safari On Mac

• Software & Applications
• Browsers & Extensions

Introduction

Safari, the default web browser for Mac, is a powerful tool for navigating the vast expanse of the internet. Whether you're conducting research, shopping online, or simply browsing for leisure, Safari keeps track of the websites you visit, creating a record of your browsing history. This feature not only allows you to revisit previously viewed pages with ease but also provides insights into your online activities.

Understanding how to access and manage your Safari browsing history is essential for optimizing your browsing experience. By delving into your browsing history, you can retrace your steps, revisit valuable resources, and gain a deeper understanding of your online habits. Furthermore, being able to clear your browsing history can help maintain privacy and declutter your browsing experience.

In this guide, we will explore the various aspects of Safari history on Mac, including how to access, view, manage, and clear your browsing history. By the end of this article, you will have a comprehensive understanding of how to leverage Safari's history feature to enhance your browsing efficiency and privacy. Let's embark on this journey to uncover the hidden gems of your browsing history and learn how to navigate the digital landscape with finesse.

Accessing Safari History

Accessing your Safari browsing history on Mac is a straightforward process that allows you to delve into your past online activities. Whether you're looking to revisit a previously viewed website or gain insights into your browsing patterns, accessing your Safari history is the first step in unlocking a treasure trove of digital information.

To access your Safari browsing history, follow these simple steps:

Open Safari : Launch the Safari web browser on your Mac. You can do this by clicking on the Safari icon in the dock or by searching for Safari using Spotlight.

Navigate to History : Once Safari is open, look for the "History" option in the top menu bar. Click on "History" to reveal a dropdown menu containing various options related to your browsing history.

View History : Within the "History" dropdown menu, you will find the "Show All History" option. Click on "Show All History" to open the History window, which displays a comprehensive list of your browsing history.

Explore Your History : Upon accessing the History window, you will be presented with a chronological list of websites you have visited, organized by date and time. You can scroll through this list to locate specific websites or periods of browsing activity.

By following these steps, you can effortlessly access your Safari browsing history and gain valuable insights into your past online endeavors. Whether you're seeking to revisit a previously discovered article, track your online shopping activities, or simply understand your browsing habits, accessing your Safari history is the gateway to a wealth of digital information.

Understanding how to access your Safari history empowers you to harness the full potential of your browsing experience. It allows you to retrace your digital footsteps, uncover valuable resources, and gain a deeper understanding of your online interactions. With the ability to access your Safari history at your fingertips, you are poised to navigate the digital landscape with confidence and efficiency.

Viewing and Managing Safari History

Upon accessing your Safari browsing history, you are presented with a wealth of digital information that offers insights into your online activities. However, the value of your browsing history extends beyond mere observation; it encompasses the ability to manage and leverage this information to enhance your browsing experience. Viewing and managing your Safari history on Mac allows you to delve deeper into your online interactions, organize your browsing patterns, and optimize your digital journey.

Viewing Safari History

When viewing your Safari history, you are greeted with a chronological list of websites you have visited, meticulously organized by date and time. This comprehensive overview enables you to retrace your digital footsteps, revisit previously explored web pages, and gain a holistic understanding of your browsing habits. Whether you are seeking to recall a specific website, track your online research, or analyze your browsing patterns, the ability to view your Safari history provides a window into your digital endeavors.

Managing Safari History

In addition to viewing your Safari history, the browser offers tools to manage this wealth of digital data. By leveraging the features provided, you can effectively organize and optimize your browsing history to suit your preferences and privacy needs. Safari allows you to manage your browsing history through the following methods:

Search Functionality : Safari incorporates a search bar within the History window, enabling you to swiftly locate specific websites or keywords within your browsing history. This feature streamlines the process of navigating through extensive browsing records, allowing you to pinpoint relevant information with ease.

Organizing by Date : Safari enables you to organize your browsing history by date, facilitating the categorization of your online activities based on specific timeframes. This functionality empowers you to gain a clearer overview of your browsing patterns and easily identify websites visited during specific periods.

Deleting Individual Entries : Should the need arise to remove specific entries from your browsing history, Safari offers the option to delete individual items. This feature grants you control over the content of your browsing history, allowing for the selective removal of entries while retaining others.

Clearing Entire History : For a comprehensive approach to managing your browsing history, Safari provides the option to clear your entire history. This action effectively removes all recorded browsing data, offering a clean slate for your future online endeavors.

By actively managing your Safari history, you can curate a personalized browsing experience that aligns with your preferences and privacy requirements. Whether it involves organizing your browsing patterns, selectively removing specific entries, or clearing your entire history, the ability to manage your Safari history empowers you to navigate the digital landscape with confidence and efficiency.

Leveraging Safari History

Beyond the realm of management, your Safari history holds the potential to enhance your browsing efficiency and productivity. By leveraging the insights gleaned from your browsing history, you can:

Revisit Valuable Resources : Your browsing history serves as a repository of valuable resources and information encountered during your online activities. By revisiting previously viewed websites, you can access pertinent content, reference essential materials, and build upon your digital knowledge base.

Understand Browsing Patterns : Analyzing your browsing history provides insights into your online habits and preferences. This understanding can guide you in optimizing your browsing experience, discovering new interests, and streamlining your digital interactions.

Enhance Privacy : Actively managing your browsing history allows you to maintain privacy and control over your digital footprint. By selectively removing entries or clearing your history, you can safeguard sensitive information and maintain a clutter-free browsing environment.

In essence, viewing and managing your Safari history on Mac transcends the simple act of observing past online activities. It encompasses the ability to curate and leverage this digital repository to enrich your browsing experience, gain insights into your online interactions, and maintain control over your digital footprint. By embracing the functionalities offered by Safari and harnessing the potential of your browsing history, you are poised to navigate the digital landscape with finesse and purpose.

Clearing Safari History

Clearing your Safari history is a pivotal aspect of managing your digital footprint and maintaining privacy within the digital realm. Whether you seek to declutter your browsing experience, safeguard sensitive information, or ensure a fresh start for your online activities, the ability to clear your Safari history empowers you to take control of your browsing data.

To clear your Safari history on Mac, follow these simple steps:

Open Safari Preferences : Launch Safari and navigate to the "Safari" menu located in the top-left corner of the screen. From the dropdown menu, select "Preferences" to access the Safari Preferences window.

Access Privacy Settings : Within the Safari Preferences window, click on the "Privacy" tab. This section houses various privacy-related settings, including options for managing website data and clearing browsing history.

Clear Browsing History : Under the Privacy tab, locate the "Remove All Website Data" button. Clicking on this button will prompt a confirmation dialog, offering the option to remove all website data, including your browsing history, cookies, and cached files.

Confirm Clearing History : Upon selecting the "Remove All Website Data" button, Safari will present a confirmation dialog to verify your intent. You can choose to proceed with clearing your browsing history and website data by clicking "Remove Now."

By following these steps, you can effectively clear your Safari history and reset your browsing environment. This action ensures that your past online activities are removed from the browser, offering a clean slate for your future browsing endeavors.

Clearing your Safari history holds several benefits, including:

Privacy Protection : By clearing your browsing history, you can safeguard sensitive information and maintain privacy within your digital interactions. This action prevents others from accessing a detailed record of your online activities.

Decluttered Browsing Experience : Clearing your history eliminates the clutter of past browsing data, providing a streamlined and organized browsing environment. This can enhance the efficiency and speed of your browsing experience.

Fresh Start : Clearing your browsing history offers a fresh start for your online activities. Whether you are embarking on new research, conducting confidential tasks, or simply seeking a clean slate, clearing your history sets the stage for a renewed digital journey.

In essence, the ability to clear your Safari history on Mac empowers you to maintain privacy, declutter your browsing environment, and embark on new digital endeavors with confidence. By understanding and leveraging the functionality to clear your browsing history, you can curate a personalized and secure browsing experience that aligns with your preferences and privacy requirements.

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Why Can’t I Clear My History on Safari? Solutions and Answers

• Safari allows you to clear your history for a certain length of time, or you can clear the whole thing.
• You may just need to restart your device to clear your history.
• Remember that the steps for iPhone and iPad will be roughly the same. 

If you’re having issues because you can’t clear your Safari history, know that a solution isn’t too far behind. I love using Safari for a great browsing experience, but I was recently unable to clear my history, which was giving me some problems. Fortunately, I discovered a solution to my problem. Let’s take a look at some troubleshooting steps and solutions. 

Why Is My Clear History Button Grey?

If your Clear History button is grey, the most likely reason is that you do not have any History to clear. However, you may also be experiencing a grey Clear History button due to certain Content & Privacy Restrictions within Screen Time being enabled. You can check on iPhone via Settings > Screen Time > Content & Privacy Restrictions > Allowed Apps and ensure that Safari is enabled. Note, however, that this will require your password.

On Mac, you can disable Screen Time via System Settings > Screen Time>  Content & Privacy > Content Restrictions . Ensure Access to Web Content is set to  Unrestricted.  Of course, if you didn’t set up Screen Time in the first place, this likely isn’t your issue. Keep reading for further solutions.

How Do I Clear My Safari History and Cache?

1. how to clear your safari browser history.

If you need to clear your Safari history, you can check out our full guide here . However, note that on iOS, clearing your history is as easy as going to Settings >  Safari > Clear History and Website Data . For Mac, all you need to do is open Safari and select History > Clear History from the menu bar. With both Mac and iOS you are able to choose how much of your history you delete based on time. 

2. Disable iCloud Sync for Safari

If you’re still having issues clearing your Safari browsing history, it may just be that you need to disable iCloud sync for Safari. This default option shares your history and your reading lists across all your Apple devices. It may be the case that some history or content did not sync properly. 

Disable iCloud Sync iOS

Time needed:  2 minutes

If you need to disable iCloud Sync on iOS, follow these steps.

Disable iCloud Sync macOS

• From the Apple Menu, go to System Settings .
• Select [Your Name] .

3. Reset Network Settings (iOS Only)

If you are still looking for an effective solution to your clear history issue, you may want to consider resetting your network settings. 

• Go to the Settings app. 

4. Delete History Manually (Mac Only)

If you need to clear your Safari history on Mac and are having problems, remember you can delete your history manually. 

• While holding down the Command key, select the following items: History.db , History.db-lock , History.db.shm and History.db.wal . 

• Empty your Trash. 

Why Can’t I Clear History in Safari?

The most likely reason that you’re unable to clear your Safari history is that there is no history left to clear. However, if you’re having issues, look at basic things, such as restarting your Apple device or ensuring that Screen Time restrictions are not preventing you from clearing your history. You may also want to consider that iCloud Sync may prevent you from properly clearing your history. 

Being able to clear your entire history from Safari is incredibly useful. However, it’s only useful if it’s working correctly. Fortunately, solutions for your history clearing problems are rather easy, so there’s little to worry about. Not clearing your history can be a common issue for many users. However, a comprehensive solution is available.

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• Nick deCourville

How to Clear Safari History on a Mac in 4 Simple Steps

When you visit a website, your browser records your visit in the browser history. It also saves elements like the page’s URL, text, images, and lists of IP addresses in the browser cache.

This speeds up the loading time for that website the next time you visit it. What’s more, if you ever need to find that site again, you can just look in your browser history rather than searching for it on Google.

Apple makes it easy to retrieve links from your history with Safari — if you use iCloud on your devices, you can access your history from any device signed in to your iCloud account.

Similarly, deleting your Safari history will make it disappear on all of your connected devices. You can clear the whole of your Safari history or specific parts of it for a selected period of time or for all time.

However, clearing your Safari history still leaves the cache taking up precious disk space. You need to delete your Safari cache separately on each device.

You can find out how to delete your Safari search history, cookies, and cache from a Mac with the detailed guide below. We’ll cover:

• Clearing your entire Safari history
• Deleting specific pages from your history
• Removing the cookies and cache from your Mac
• Browsing privately in Safari

Before we start   One of the most popular reasons for clearing your history in browsers is that your Mac is running slow. However, it’s more effective to clean up your entire Mac with dedicated cleaning software. Download MacKeeper to remove all junk, useless apps, and duplicate files in just a couple of clicks.

• How to clear all your Safari history

You can remove your Safari history for a range of dates starting from the last hour and going up to your complete browsing history.

Here are simple steps:

1. Launch Safari . If you keep it in the Dock, simply click on the browser icon. Otherwise, go to Launchpad and find it there

2. In the menu at the top of the screen, click History

3. A drop-down menu will open. At the bottom of the menu, click Clear History

4. In the pop-up window, select the period of time for which you want to clear your Safari history

5. Click Clear History

• How to delete specific pages from your Safari history

What if you only need to delete one link from your Safari history? Luckily, there is an option on your Mac to erase particular pages rather than everything.

Here is your step-by-step guide:

• Launch Safari
• Open the History menu at the top of the screen
• Select Show All History from the drop-down menu
• Right-click on the desired page from the list that appears
• Click on Delete in the drop-down menu
• You can search for the website’s name by typing it into the search bar in the top-right corner of the pop-up window
• How to clear the cookies and cache in Safari

Cookies and cache files are essential for the optimal functioning of most websites. They allow pages to load much faster when you revisit them in the future.

Unfortunately, they can also contain a lot of personal information such as your location, username and password, language preferences, email, and other data. In this way, cookies in particular make your internet usage easily traceable.

How to delete cookies and cache in Safari:

1. Open Safari

2. Open the Safari menu at the top of the screen

3. Click Preferences

4. Go to the Privacy tab

5. Click on the Manage Website Data button

6. A window appears listing all the websites Safari is storing your cookies, cache, and other types of data for. You can delete all of them by clicking on the Remove All button, or you can select specific websites and click on the Remove button instead

Bear in mind that your browser will slow down when you delete your cache. If you’re not sure about the results, we suggest creating a backup before you start the cleanup.

How to clear the cache automatically with MacKeeper

When you visit websites, pieces of text, images, and other data downloads to your Mac. This information is called the cache and its purpose is to speed up the loading of a website on future visits.

Similarly, apps on your Mac and the system as a whole generate a cache, too.

With time, the cache piles up and starts taking up too much of your storage space, rather than just helping you browse or load apps faster.

With Safe Cleanup in MacKeeper, you can remove all types of cache data in just a few clicks, along with other junk files — leaving your Mac clean and free of junk.

We’ve created a separate article in case you want to learn more about clearing the cache on your Mac.

• How to browse privately

When you use Safari in Private mode, the usual data acquired when you visit a website isn’t saved in your browser history. Therefore, it won’t be synchronised with your other Apple devices that use the same iCloud account.

This is useful when you don’t want the history and cookies for your browsing session recorded but don’t have time to delete them manually afterwards. Take a look at our guide to learn more about how to browse in Safari Private mode .

For an even more private connection, use MacKeeper’s VPN Private Connect. This tool will help you hide your online activity and conceal what you browse while keeping your identity a secret from the websites you visit.

• How to clear history on Chrome on a Mac
• How to delete Firefox history
• Safari bookmarks disappeared: what to do
• How to remove unwanted browser toolbars

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• Data Recovery

3 Simple Ways to Recover Deleted Safari History on Mac

At Macgasm, we’re dedicated to bringing you insightful Apple-centric content that adheres to our comprehensive editorial guidelines whose purpose is to maintain the utmost accuracy, relevance, and impartiality in everything we publish. This commitment to preserving the integrity of our content is shared across our team, from expert writers to seasoned editors.

When most Mac users delete their Safari browser history, the last thing they want is for it to ever come back. But from time to time, users clear their browsing history on accident or realize that it contained an important website whose address they don’t remember anymore.

If you’re currently in the same situation, then this article will help you solve it because it describes the top 3 ways to recover deleted Safari history on Mac. But before we get to them, we need to briefly explain what Safari browser history actually is and where you can find it.

Table of Contents

What Is Safari History and How to Find It?

Safari history is a database containing previously visited websites. Just like most other web browsers, Safari keeps it automatically to make it easier for users to revisit familiar websites without having to enter their addresses over and over again.

To view Safari history: 

• Open Safari on your Mac.
• Choose the History option.
• Click Show All History

You should see a table with two columns and multiple rows. The first column from the left shows the names of previously visited websites, while the second column shows their addresses. Individual entries are grouped by date, so you can easily go back in time and view history on Safari Mac from a specific date. Alternatively, you can use the search bar in the top-right corner to find all history entries that contain specified keywords.

All the information that you can see when you click the Show All History button is stored on your hard drive, inside a file called History.db. This file is located in the ~/Library/Safari/ folder.

To find and open the History.db file: 

• Open Finder.
• Choose the Go option.
• Click Go to Folder.
• Enter the path to the Safari history file location in the textbox and click OK.
• Open History.db with TextEdit.

You will see a long text file that’s anything but easy to decipher. That’s because History.db is actually an SQLite database file, and it’s not intended to be viewed in a regular text editor. Instead, you should open it using a database browser like DB Browser for SQLite , which you can download for free right from its official website.

After installing DB Browser for SQLite, launch the app and click Open Database. Select the History.db file and switch to the Browse Data tab. Finally, select the history_items table.

How Can Safari History Be Deleted and When It Can Be Recovered?

Let’s take a look at some common reasons for deleting Safari history and whether it can be recovered:

• 🎯 Intentional deletion: Many Safari users like to keep their browsing history squeaky clean to prevent others from examining their online activity. That’s all fine and good until you need the address of a website you’ve visited a long time ago and can’t remember it.
• 🩹 Accidental deletion: All you need to do to delete your Safari history is click the Clear History button and confirm your decision. By default, Safari deletes only the last hour of browsing history, but you can also tell it delete all history in one go. What often happens is that users want to delete only the last hour but don’t notice that the option to delete all history is selected, causing their entire browsing history to disappear immediately.
• 🔐 Private Browsing: Safari allows you to open a Private Window (Command+Shift+N) that prevents your browsing history from being recorded. Safari users sometimes don’t realize that they’re browsing the web in the Private Window and wonder why their browsing history hasn’t been recorded.
• 🗃️ Formatting: When reinstalling macOS, it’s sometimes a good idea to first format the system drive to start with a clean slate. It goes without saying that formatting doesn’t erase just Safari history but also all other files stored on the hard drive.
• 👾 Hackers: Mac users are relatively safe from malware since most cybercriminals target Windows computers, but that doesn’t mean they are completely immune. From ransomware to remote desktop hacks, there are multiple cyber-threats that can cause Mac users to lose their entire Safari browsing history in the blink of an eye.

How to Perform Safari History Recovery?

There are three main methods for recovering Safari history on Mac, and we describe all of them in the same order we recommend you try them.

Method 1: Use Disk Drill

To restore deleted history of Safari browsing with Disk Drill: 

• Launch Disk Drill and select your main hard drive.

• Type “history.db” into the search field in the top-right corner and hit Return.

• Choose a safe recovery destination and click OK.

You can then view deleted Safari history in your favorite text editor or database browser. To view it in Safari, you need to copy the recovered History.db file to ~/Library/Safari and overwrite the file that’s currently in the location.

Method 2: Restore from iCloud backup

Here’s what you need to do: 

• Tap on your name.
• Select iCloud.
• Locate Safari and toggle the switch next to it until you’re prompted to merge your data.

This way, you force your iPhone to overwrite Safari browsing history in iCloud, which, in turn, allows you to recover deleted Safari history on Mac just by turning on the Safari option in iCloud settings (see the last section of this article for a step-by-step guide).

Method 3: Restore from Time Machine backup

To restore deleted history of Safari browsing using Time Machine: 

• Close Safari
• Open Finder and select Go -> Go to Folder.

• Scroll down until you find the History.db file and select it.

• Go back in time until you see a version of the History.db file that contains your lost Safari browsing history.

The next time you open Safari, your browsing history should be back. That’s how easy it is to retrieve deleted history of Safari browsing using Time Machine.

The only problem with this method is that it will work only if Time Machine was enabled prior to the data loss incident. If it wasn’t, then you won’t have any backup of the History.db file to recover.

How to Prevent Safari History Loss?

The best way to prevent Safari history loss is to turn on Safari in iCloud preferences. That way, iCloud will automatically back up your Safari data to the cloud, allowing you to keep it synchronized across your devices and easily retrieve it should anything happen to your Mac.

To back up your Safari browsing history with iCloud: 

• Open the System Preferences app on your Mac.

Your Safari browsing history will be automatically synchronized across all Apple devices that use the same Apple ID.

How can I recover deleted Safari tabs on iPhone?

Use this simple procedure to recover closed or deleted Safari tabs on an iPhone.

• Open Safari and tap the Tabs button in the bottom-right corner. (It’s two overlapping squares)
• Tap and hold the Plus (+) button at the bottom of the screen.
• A list of the recently closed tabs is displayed. Tap an item to open it in a new tab.
• Save the tab as a bookmark to ensure it never gets lost.

How do I recover deleted Safari history on iPad?

You can use the following procedure if you have backed up your iPad to iCloud.

• Select Settings > General > Reset on your iPad.
• Choose Erase All Content and Settings .
• Follow the setup prompts and select the Restore from iCloud Backup option in the Apps & Data screen.
• Sign in to iCloud and select a backup that has your deleted Safari history and use it to restore your device.

How to recover deleted Google Chrome history on iPhone?

You can use data recovery software like Disk Drill to recover your deleted Google Chrome history with the following procedure.

• Install Disk Drill on your Mac.
• Connect the iPhone to your computer.
• Launch Disk Drill and select the iPhone from the disk list.
• Click the Search for lost data button to scan the device.
• Preview the found files and look for a Google Chrome History and Preferences file.
• Select the file to be restored and click the Recover button.

Personal Safety User Guide for Apple devices

• Personal safety at a glance
• What’s new in personal safety
• Use Safety Check to stop sharing
• How Safety Check works
• Additional considerations when using Safety Check
• Intro to review and take action
• Secure AirDrop and NameDrop
• Securely control whom you share content with from iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch
• Securely control whom you share content with from Mac
• Share or stop sharing your location
• Manage automatic ETA sharing in Maps
• Manage Location Services settings
• Stop and remove location metadata in Photos
• Stay safe with AirTag
• Safely manage how you forward content
• Reject unknown sign-in attempts
• Record suspicious activity
• Store your data securely in iCloud
• Delete suspicious content
• Manage Family Sharing settings
• Avoid fraudulent requests to share info
• Securely control your Home accessories
• How to erase all content and settings
• Restore the data you backed up
• Intro to privacy and safety tools
• Update your Apple software
• Set a unique passcode or password
• Secure your iPhone or iPad with Face ID
• Secure your devices with Touch ID
• Delete unknown fingerprints from iPhone or iPad
• Add or delete fingerprints on your Mac
• Keep your Apple ID secure
• Use two-factor authentication
• Help prevent being locked out of your device
• Keep your device, app, and website passwords secure on iPhone and iPad
• Manage shared password and passkeys
• App privacy features in Apple products
• Harden your devices against mercenary spyware
• Manage safety settings in Messages
• Use Check In for Messages
• Block calls and messages
• Receive warnings about sensitive images and videos on iPhone, iPad, and Mac
• Keep your browsing history private
• Make an emergency call or text on iPhone or Apple Watch
• Obtain evidence related to another person’s account
• See who has access to your iPhone or iPad
• How to stop sharing your iPhone or iPad content
• How to stop sharing your iPhone or iPad location

Keep your browsing history private in Safari and Maps

Reviewing and clearing search history and caches for browsers and other apps may be a good practice if you’re concerned someone has access to your device. Many apps store information about what you’ve searched for and what you’ve looked at so that it’s easy for you to rediscover it in the future. For example, when you use the Maps app, having a history of locations you’ve searched for or navigated to can make it easier to navigate back to a place you recently visited.

If you’re in an unsafe personal situation and need to look up safety strategies online but don’t want Safari to keep a record of what you’ve viewed, you can open a Private Browsing window on iPhone , iPad , and Mac . When you use Private Browsing, the details of your browsing aren’t saved, and they aren’t shared across your devices. Additionally, if you’ve updated your devices to iOS 17 , iPadOS 17 , or macOS Sonoma 14 , Safari locks Private Browsing tabs after a period of inactivity so that they can be opened only with your password, passcode, Face ID or Touch ID , protecting your privacy when you’re away from your device. You can clear your browsing history and open a Private Browsing window on iPhone, iPad, and Mac.

Clear your browsing history in Safari

If you’ve been looking up information about safety strategies online and are concerned someone may see your browsing history, you can remove all records that Safari keeps about where you’ve browsed.

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

A history of the webpages you visited

The back and forward list for open webpages

A list of frequently visited sites

Recent searches

Icons for webpages

Snapshots saved for open webpages

A list of items you downloaded (downloaded files aren’t removed)

Websites you added for a Quick Website Search

Websites that asked to use your location

Websites that asked to send you notifications

Clear recent directions and favorites in Maps on iPhone and iPad

Do one of the following:

Swipe a recent route left.

Tap More directly above the list, then swipe a recent route left; or to delete a group of routes, tap Clear above the group.

Clear recent directions and favorites in Maps on Mac

Below Recents, click Clear Recents.

If you want to remove a Favorite location, Control-click a location (in the sidebar below Favorites), then choose Remove from Favorites.

Open a Private Browsing window on iPhone

Open the Safari app.

The tab is automatically added to a Tab Group called Private. You can open multiple private tabs in the group.

You can easily confirm that you’re in Private Browsing Mode by checking that the search field bar is gray or that it displays the word Private.

Open a Private Browsing window on iPad

While Private Browsing Mode is on, the search field background is black instead of white and sites you visit don’t appear in History on iPad or in the list of tabs on your other devices. You can open multiple private tabs in the Private Tab Group.

Open a Private Browsing window on Mac

A window using Private Browsing has a dark Smart Search field with white text.

Browse as you normally would.

If you want to always open windows with Private Browsing on Mac

Click the “Safari opens with” pop-up menu, then choose “A new private window.”

If you don’t see this option, do one of the following:

To further enhance Safari privacy

In your Downloads folder, delete any items that were downloaded while you were using Private Browsing windows.

Close any other Private Browsing windows that are still open, to prevent other people from using the Back and Forward buttons to see pages you visited.

Download this guide as a PDF

Looks like no one’s replied in a while. To start the conversation again, simply ask a new question.

I can’t clear my history on Safari!

I can’t clear my history on Safari. It is very irritating because I know how to but the “clear” button is grayed out and I cant push it. I cleared everything in settings, but when i search things that I accidentally searched before pop up. I don’t understand why I cannot clear history when I push the bookmark button, and it is really annoying that it is grayed out. I tried looking it up, everything all the websites say to do are from a long time ago and they do not work, like when you go to General in Settings, there is supposed to be a button that says “Restrictions”, but there isn’t anymore. Please help me!

iPhone 7, iOS 12

Posted on Mar 20, 2019 5:03 PM

Posted on Mar 23, 2019 7:17 PM

Turn off Screen Time Restrictions.

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Mar 23, 2019 7:17 PM in response to cherry_ontop

Mar 20, 2019 5:07 PM in response to cherry_ontop

On iOS 12, the restrictions has moved to a new location:

Settings > Screen Time > Content and Privacy Restrictions > here

Mar 23, 2019 3:39 PM in response to ckuan

what do i do after that to make it so the clear button in history is not grayed out?

Mar 23, 2019 3:47 PM in response to cherry_ontop

Then it will only grated out after you tap the button.

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Apple Releases Safari Technology Preview 193 With Bug Fixes and Performance Improvements

Apple today released a new update for Safari Technology Preview , the experimental browser Apple first introduced in March 2016. Apple designed the ‌Safari Technology Preview‌ to test features that may be introduced into future release versions of Safari.

The current ‌Safari Technology Preview‌ release is compatible with machines running macOS Ventura and macOS Sonoma , the latest version of macOS that Apple released in September 2023.

The ‌Safari Technology Preview‌ update is available through the Software Update mechanism in System Preferences or System Settings to anyone who has downloaded the browser . Full release notes for the update are available on the Safari Technology Preview website .

Apple's aim with ‌Safari Technology Preview‌ is to gather feedback from developers and users on its browser development process. ‌Safari Technology Preview‌ can run side-by-side with the existing Safari browser and while designed for developers, it does not require a developer account to download.

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Top Rated Comments

I'm always curious about these Safari Tech Preview posts. Are they just a quick way to add another headline? I suspect so, as I don't see many people trusting these builds as their daily driver. I've tried that in the past, but it never stuck.

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