If you’re using Google Chrome for the first time, you may be wondering how to view, edit, and clear your browsing history. Read on, because that’s exactly what this tutorial will show you how to do—step by step and using screenshots.
Google Chrome stores your browsing history for 90 days. If an item in your browsing history becomes older than 90 days, it’s automatically deleted from Chrome on this device and all other devices synced with your Google account.
Once deleted, whether automatically by Google Chrome or manually by the user, the browsing history cannot be recovered.
How to View Your Browsing History
On Your Computer
To view your browsing history in Google Chrome, click the icon with the three dots in the upper right corner and then hover over History. Alternatively, you can open the History page by pressing Cmd + Y on macOS and Control + H on Windows.
We’ve shared the exact steps to clear browsing history in the Google Chome browser, regardless of your computer’s operating system, below.
How to clear browsing history in Google Chrome:
Step 1: Fire up Google Chrome on your computer.
Step 2: Click on the icon with the three dots in the upper right corner.
Step 3: Hover over History and Google Chrome will display the last few tabs you have closed recently.
Step 4: To go to the History page, which has your full browsing history, click on History, or use the Cmd + Y shortcut on macOS and Control + H shortcut on Windows.
From the History page, you can view your browsing history. Use the search bar to find any pages you might be looking for.
If you click the icon with three dots next to an item in your browsing history, you can erase it from that history by clicking “Remove from history.” You can also choose to view all other pages that you’ve visited on this website by clicking “More from this site.”
On Your Phone
Step 1: Unlock your phone and open the Google Chrome app.
Step 2: Tap on “History.”
How to Clear Your Browsing History
On Your Computer
Step 1: Fire up Google Chrome.
Step 2: Click the icon with the three dots in the upper right corner.
Step 3: Go to Settings.
Step 4: Navigate to the “Privacy and security” tab from the left sidebar.
Step 5: Click on “Clear browsing data.”
Step 6: Make sure “Browsing history” under Basic is selected, then click the blue “Clear data” button.
Bonus Tip:
If you type chrome://settings/clearBrowserData into the address bar and hit the Enter key on your keyboard, Google Chrome will take you straight to the “Clear browsing data page” from Step 5.
On Your Phone
Step 1: Unlock your phone and open the Google Chrome app.
Step 2: Tap on the icon with the three dots in the lower right corner.
Step 3: Go to Settings.
Step 4: Scroll down and tap on Privacy.
Step 5: Tap on “Clear Browsing Data.”
Step 6: Select the time range you want to clear your browsing data for and whether you’d also like to clear cookies and cache with it. Then tap on “Clear Browsing Data” on the bottom of the screen.
Final Words
Google Chrome deletes your browsing history every 90 days. So, every day, items in your browsing history older than this period are automatically deleted.
If you want to return to a page you have visited—or manually remove it from your history—during this time, follow this guide and you will be able to do so without hassle.