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

iPhone 13 mini in hand
(Image credit: Future)

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.

How to find your web-browsing history

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

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

To search for bookmarks, tap the Bookmarks button in the toolbar at the bottom of the app, then select the Bookmark icon. (Image credit: iMore)
  1. Use the History search bar to find previously viewed pages.

To find History, tap the History menu. Then use the search to find previously viewed information. (Image credit: iMore)

How to clear your web browsing history

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.

  1. In Safari, tap the Bookmarks button.
  2. Select the History icon in the upper right corner.
  3. 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.

To clear History, tap the Bookmarks button, then choose the History icon. Tap Clear than select how much history you'd like to erase. (Image credit: Future / Apple)

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. 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 Baxter
Features Editor

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.

With contributions from