Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (2024)

You can check your browsing history in Chrome. You can also continue browsing what you’ve already started on a desktop or laptop computer, and find related searches.

If you don’t want a record of pages you visited in Chrome, you can delete all or some of your browsing history. If you delete your browsing history, it takes effect on all devices where you're signed in to Chrome and sync your history to your Google Account.

Separately, you can also delete your Google search history from your account.

What your History lists

Your History lists the pages you've visited on Chrome in the last 90 days. It doesn't store:

  • Chrome pages like chrome://settings
  • Pages you’ve visited in private browsing
  • Deleted pages from your browsing history

Tip: If you’re signed in to Chrome and sync your history, then your History also shows pages you’ve visited on your synced devices.

Find your history

  1. On your computer, open Chrome.
  2. At the top right, click More Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (1).
  3. Click HistoryCheck & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (2) History.

Find a page from your history

  1. On your computer, open Chrome.
  2. In the address bar, enter @history.
  3. Press tab or space. You can also click Search History Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (3) in the suggestions.
  4. Enter keywords for the page you previously visited.
  5. Select the page from the list.

Delete your history

  1. On your computer, open Chrome.
  2. At the top right, select More Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (4).
  3. Select History Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (5) History.
  4. On the left, select Delete browsing data.
  5. Select how much history you want to delete.
    • To delete everything, select All time.
  6. Check the boxes for the info you want Chrome to delete, including Browsing history. Learn more about the types of browsing data you can delete.
  7. Select Delete data.

Learn how to delete your search history.

Delete an itemfrom your history

  1. On your computer, open Chrome.
  2. At the top right, click More Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (6).
  3. ClickHistoryCheck & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (7)History.
  4. Check the box next to each item that you want to remove from your History.
  5. At the top right, clickDelete.
  6. ClickRemove.

Tip: To search for something specific, use the search bar at the top.

Remove a shortcut image from the New Tab page

To find the sites you visit most, open a new tab.

To remove a shortcut image:

  1. Point to the image you want to remove.
  2. At the top right of the image, click More Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (8)Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (9) Remove Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (10).

Find your history by group

In the "By group" tab of your History page, Chrome organizes your browsing and search history into groups.Here, you can easily find your previous browsing activity and continue your research with related searches.

  1. On your computer, open Chrome.
  2. In the address bar, enter your search terms.
  3. Below your address bar, click Resume browsing.

You can also access the “by group” view directly from the "Chrome History" page:

  1. On your computer, open Chrome.
  2. At the top right, click More Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (11) Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (12) History Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (13) History.
  3. In the “by group” tab, you can select the group you want to review.

Tips:

  • To open all pages within a group into a new tab group, next to the searched item, select More Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (14) Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (15) Open all in new tab group.
  • At the bottom of the page, you can find suggested searches.

Remove items from your history by groups

Sensitive browsing history may automatically be hidden. You can find these pages through the search box on the History page. For example, if you searched for a health topic and want to revisit it, type the health topic into the search box.

You can manually delete a page in a group or all pages in a group.

  • To delete a page in a group: Next to the searched item, click More Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (16) Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (17) Remove from history.
  • To delete all pages in a group: Next to the group, click More Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (18) Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (19) Remove all from history.

Learn more about managing cards for Resume browsing on the New Tab page.

Browse privately

If you don’t want Chrome to save your browsing history at all, you can browse in private with Incognito mode.

If you use a Chromebook at work or school, your network administrator can turn off browsing history. If history is off, your History won't list pages you've visited. Learn about using a managed Chrome device.

Related resources

  • Search the web on Chrome
  • Set your default search engine

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Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer (2024)

FAQs

Check & delete your Chrome browsing history - Computer? ›

On your computer, open Chrome. History. On the left, click Clear browsing data. Select how much history you want to delete.

How do I clear Chrome history on my computer? ›

On your computer, open Chrome. History. On the left, click Clear browsing data. Select how much history you want to delete.

How do I find my Chrome history on my computer? ›

On your computer, open Chrome. At the top right, click More . Click History.

Where is Chrome browser history stored? ›

Chrome history is stored in an SQLite database, the filename is History and can be found in the following locations: Microsoft Windows Vista, 7, 8, 10, 11. C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default. Linux/Unix.

Is it better to delete or clear history? ›

If you want to keep your device more private and keep your browser running smoothly, quickly clearing your device's browser history can help. There's no fixed or recommended time for deleting your browsing history, cache, and cookies. It's all relative to your system's storage space and personal preferences.

Can I delete all my history? ›

Go to Google's My Activity page (make sure you're logged into your Google account). Click the Delete button below the “Search your activity” field. Choose the time period you'd like to delete your data. All time will delete all your Google history.

How can I see my full history? ›

Find activity​

Go to your Google Account. On the left navigation panel, click Data & privacy. Under "History settings," click My Activity.

Can Chrome history be deleted permanently? ›

Delete your search history in Chrome and Chromium

In a Chrome browser, click the three vertical dots (⋮) in the top-right of the screen. In the drop-down menu, click Settings. Scroll down to Privacy and security, click Clear browsing data. From the time range drop-down menu, select All time.

Who can see my deleted browsing history? ›

Once you delete your search history from your device, it's typically no longer accessible to the police. However, if they obtain a warrant, they may be able to access records of your search engine and browser history from your internet provider or another third-party source.

Does Chrome save all history? ›

The first thing you should know is that Chrome only stores your history for 90 days, after which it is automatically deleted and overwritten. TO SEE HISTORY EXCEEDING 90 DAYS: As your name has appeared as a Google Profile and I am able to view it, you clearly have a Google Account.

How long does Google keep deleted history? ›

Search history FAQ. How long does Google retain Google Workspace search history data? By default, Google deletes this data after 18 months. However, your users can change the deletion period to 3, 18, or 36 months, or to never delete data.

Can I download my Chrome browser history? ›

Export your Chrome History as an Excel-readable CSV file or as a JSON file. To use this extension, click the puzzle piece in the top right, then click on Export Chrome History.

How do I clear my Chrome history automatically? ›

On the left or at the top, click Controls. On the "Web & App Activity" card, click Auto-delete (Off). If you find “Auto-delete (On),” Google automatically deletes your Web & App Activity, which includes your Search history, after a specific time period. To change the time period or turn it off, click Auto-delete (On).

Why can't I delete my Chrome history? ›

Why can't I delete Google search history? If you're having trouble deleting your Google search history, it could be because you're using an older version of Chrome. If so, update to the latest version and try again. If you're already using the latest version, try refreshing the page and logging out.

Does deleting Chrome history delete everything? ›

Does clearing history delete everything? A lot of data is generated as you browse the internet, and clearing your history only deletes the record of addresses you've visited that are stored locally on your device. It doesn't remove your Google search history, or other data stored on remote servers.

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