How to Delete Browsing History on Android

Browsing history can be a treasure trove of personal information. Most of us think we have nothing to hide and therefore don’t care who sees the sites we visit online. But you might want to be a little more discreet.

If you’ve been shopping for your partner’s birthday, researching a mysterious illness, watching something you don’t want the kids to find out about, or asking the kinds of questions you’d feel stupid asking a real human on a shared Android phone or tablet, know that anyone with access to that device can see what you’ve been watching, too.

If you want to delete your browsing history on an Android device, follow these steps for different popular browsers.

Google Chrome

Google Chrome is one of the most used browsers on Android and deleting your browsing history is a simple process.

If you want to remove specific items:

1. Open Google Chrome.
2. Tap the three-dot menu icon in the top right corner.
3. Select “History” from the drop-down menu.
4. Tap the “X” next to the entry you want to delete.

If you want to clear all your browsing data:

1. Tap “Clear browsing data…” at the top of the “History” page.
2. Choose the desired time range (e.g. last hour, last 24 hours, all time).
3. Check the boxes next to the types of data you want to delete (browsing history, cookies, cached images and files, etc.).
4. Tap “Clear Data”.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Samsung Internet

Samsung Internet is the default browser on Samsung Galaxy phones and tablets. It is known for its smooth performance and robust features. However, you can still use it on any other Android phone.

If you want to remove specific items:

1. Open the Samsung Internet Browser.
2. Access your history by tapping the three-line menu icon in the lower right corner and selecting “History.”
3. Long press the entry you want to delete, then tap “Delete” when the option appears.

If you want to clear all your browsing data:

1. Tap the three-line menu icon again and select “Settings.”
2. Go to “Personal browsing data” and then to “Delete browsing data”.
3. Select the data you want to delete and tap “Delete Data”.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Opera

Opera is another feature-rich browser with a built-in ad blocker and a free VPN.

If you want to remove specific items:

1. Open Opera.
2. Tap the Opera icon in the lower right corner and select “History”.
3. Long press the entry you want to delete, then tap the trash can icon when it appears.

If you want to clear all your browsing data:

1. Tap the Opera icon again and go to “Settings”.
2. Scroll down and tap “Privacy and Security”.
3. Tap “Clear data…”
4. Choose the data you want to clear, then tap “Clear Data”.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Mozilla Fiferox

Mozilla Firefox is known for its powerful privacy features and customization options. Here’s how to delete your browsing history.

If you want to remove specific items:

1. Open Firefox.
2. Access your history by tapping the three-dot menu icon in the top right corner.
3. Select “History” from the drop-down menu.
4. Long press the entry you want to delete, then tap “Delete” when the option appears.

If you want to clear all your browsing data:

1. Tap the three-dot menu icon again and select “Settings”.
2. Scroll down to “Privacy and security” and select “Clear browsing data”.
3. Choose which data you want to clear (browsing history, cookies, cached images and files, etc.).
4. Tap “Clear browsing data”.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Microsoft Edge

Microsoft Edge offers seamless integration with Windows and other Microsoft services. If you use Edge on your Android device, follow these steps to delete your browsing history.

If you want to remove specific items:

1. Open Microsoft Edge.
2. Tap the three-line menu icon at the bottom of the screen and select “History” from the menu.
3. Long press the entry you want to delete, then tap “Delete” when the option appears.

If you want to clear all your browsing data:

1. Tap the three-dot menu icon again and navigate to “Settings”.
2. Scroll down and select “Privacy and security”, then tap “Clear browsing data”.
3. Choose the types of data you want to erase and tap “Delete Data”.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

If you really want to master your browser, be sure to check out our guide on how to close tabs on Android.