clear history safari ipad

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How to Manage Browsing History on Safari for iPad

Protect your privacy on your mobile device

What to Know

• Open Safari . Select the Bookmarks icon.
• Choose the Clock icon to open the History pane displaying the list of sites visited during the past month.
• Select Clear and indicate which entries to delete using one of the four options: The last hour, Today, Today and yesterday, and All Time.

This article explains how to manage browsing history on Safari for iPad, including how to view and delete the iPad Safari history, cookies, and stored website data. This article applies to all iPad devices with iOS 10 or iPadOS 13 or later. The process for managing browser history in Safari on an iPhone is slightly different.

How to View and Delete Your iPad Browser History in Safari

Reviewing your iPad browser history is a straightforward process. Safari stores a log of websites you visit along with other related components, such as the cache and cookies. These elements enhance your browsing experience, but you may want to delete your browsing history for privacy reasons.

You can manage your web browsing history on the iPad in two ways. The easiest option is to do it directly in Safari:

Open the Safari web browser.

Select the Bookmarks icon (it looks like an open book) at the top of the screen. 

Select the clock icon to open the History pane. A list of sites visited over the past month appears.

To delete a single website from the browser history, swipe left on its name.

Select  Clear at the bottom of the panel to reveal four options: The last hour, Today, Today and yesterday, and All time.

Select your preferred option to remove the browsing history from your iPad and all connected iCloud devices.

How to Delete History and Cookies From the iPad Settings App

Deleting the browser history through Safari doesn't remove all the data it stores. For a thorough cleaning, go to the iPad Settings app. You can also delete the browsing history and cookies from the Settings app. Clearing the history this way deletes everything Safari saved.

Select the gear icon on the Home screen to open the iPad Settings .

Scroll down and select Safari .

Scroll through the list of settings and select  Clear History and Website Data to delete the browsing history, cookies, and other cached website data.

Select  Clear to confirm, or select Cancel to return to the Safari settings without removing any data.

How to Delete Stored Website Data on iPad

Safari sometimes stores additional website data on top of a list of web pages you visited. For example, it can save passwords and preferences for frequently visited sites. If you want to delete this data but don't want to clear the browsing history or cookies, selectively delete specific data saved by Safari using the iPad Settings app.

Open the iPad Settings app.

Scroll to the bottom of the Safari settings screen and select Advanced .

Select  Website Data to display a breakdown of the data each website currently stores on the iPad.

Select Show All Sites to display the expanded list if necessary.

Select  Remove All Website Data  at the bottom of the screen to delete the site data at once, or swipe left on individual items to clear items one at a time.

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How to clear Safari browsing history on iPhone and iPad

Clear Safari browsing history on iPhone and iPad in a few simple steps

You'll definitely want to know how to clear Safari browsing history on iPhone and iPad . Know how to delete browsing history is part of basic user operation on all your devices, and is especially if you share devices with others. 

Luckily, deleting browsing history on Safari is easy and can be done in just a few taps, and is the same on iOS and iPadOS, so whether you're using an iPhone 15 Pro or an iPad Air , these steps will apply.

Remember, though, that deleting your browsing history only stops your activity being visible on that device. Your Internet Service Provider (ISP) will still be able to see the webpages you have visited. If you want to stop that, for ultimate privacy, you'll need to use one of the best VPN services .

The following screenshots were taken on an iPhone running iOS 17 . If you aren't running the latest version of your device's OS, we can show you how to update an iPhone or how to update an iPad .

• In Safari, tap the book icon
• Go to the history tab (clock)
• Select how far back to clear

Read on to see full illustrated instructions.

1. In Safari, tap the book icon

Firstly, open Safari and tap the book icon in the bottom bar.

2. Select the history tab (clock icon) and tap Clear

Now select the history tab (clock icon) and tap Clear at the bottom.

3. Select how far back to clear and tap Delete

Now choose how far back you'd like to delete : last hour, today, today and yesterday, or all time.

If you like, you can toggle on Close All Tabs , which will close every open tab that isn't in a tab group (we can show you how to use tab groups if you aren't sure).

Finally, when you're happy, hit Delete .

As you can see in the screenshot above, if you now go back to the history tab, your history will have been deleted.

For more iPhone tutorials, check out our guides on how to transfer data from iPhone to iPhone , how to clear RAM on iPhone , how to delete multiple contacts on iPhone and how to rearrange the iOS 17 Messages '+' menu .

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Peter is Reviews Editor at Tom's Guide. As a writer, he covers topics including tech, photography, gaming, hardware, motoring and food & drink. Outside of work, he's an avid photographer, specialising in architectural and portrait photography. When he's not snapping away on his beloved Fujifilm camera, he can usually be found telling everyone about his greyhounds, riding his motorcycle, squeezing as many FPS as possible out of PC games, and perfecting his espresso shots. 

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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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Pocket-lint

How to delete your safari history on a mac, iphone, or ipad.

Want to scrub your searches? Here's how to delete your history in the Safari browser, whether you're using it to surf the web on iPhone, iPad, or Mac.

Key Takeaways

• Clearing your Safari history removes cookies and reduces online tracking.
• The process for deleting web history is different for Mac, iPhone, and iPad.
• You can use Private Browsing Mode to prevent web history from being saved.

From accessing your bank account on a shared computer to Googling embarrassing queries, there are a number of reasons to want to clear out your search history. Deleting your history on Safari removes your trail of web browsing, but the process also does more than clear out potentially embarrassing websites.

Clearing your history will also remove associated cookies from the web browser, reducing the number of ways you are being tracked online. While clearing your web history only removes cookies from Safari and not third-party websites that already have your data, it can still be helpful to reduce online tracking. Clearing the related cache can also sometimes fix bugs.

Deleting a web history from Safari isn't a terribly complicated process, but the steps are a bit different if you are using a MacBook , iPad , or iPhone . The steps for clearing several web pages and a single website are also different. Some privacy settings can also prevent you from deleting any web history, leaving the buttons you need grayed out.

There are also a few tricks that can make the process simpler. For example, if you turn on iCloud for Safari, when you delete the history from your Mac, it will automatically be deleted from your phone and tablet too. If you know you want to delete your web history before you make a single click, you can use Private Browsing Mode instead.

Whether you are a murder mystery writer looking to eliminate search queries that would raise the eyebrows of any detective, or you want to reduce the number of cookies tracking you, this guide will tell you how to delete Safari history in a few simple steps.

Too many Safari tabs open on your iPhone? Close them all with this trick

How to delete safari history on a mac, click on history in the toolbar.

Safari allows you to delete a lot of web history from a Mac or MacBook at once by allowing you to choose the dates for which you would like to erase. If you want to clear websites from the last hour, last day, last two days or all of your web history, this is the process to use.

• Open Safari
• From the top toolbar, click on History , then click Clear History.
• In the pop-up window, use the drop-down menu to select the time period you want to clear from your history.
• Click Clear History .

14 Safari tips and tricks you absolutely need to know

How to delete safari history on an iphone or ipad, open settings app and go to safari.

The steps for clearing out your Safari history on an iPhone is quite different from using a Safari browser on a Mac. But, the process is the same across both iPhones and iPads, so these steps below work for both your phone and tablet.

• Open the Settings app.
• Select Safari.
• Scroll down to the Privacy & Security section and select Clear History and Website Data.
• On the next page, tap the time frame that you would like to delete the history for.
• Optional: If you also want to close out of all open websites, tap the toggle for Close All Tabs.
• Tap Clear History.

How to delete a single website from Safari history

Safari allows you to easily delete websites from the last hour, day, two days, or your entire web history easily. But, if you only want to remove a single website, you'll instead have to access your history, and then select the individual page to remove.

• Open a Safari browser.
• From the top toolbar, select History > Show All History. Or, you can use the keyboard shortcut Command + Y.
• Select the website entry that you wish to delete. If that site was not visited today, you will need to tap on the date that you visited the website to find it or use the search bar at the top.
• Right-click on the website entry and select delete.

On an iPhone or iPad:

• Tap the Bookmark icon on the bottom (it looks like an open book).
• Tap the Clock or History icon at the top of the page.
• Locate the website that you wish to delete from your history -- your history is organized by the date you visited.
• On the website you wish to delete, swipe left, then tap on the red trash icon.

How to use Bing Chat on Safari

How to use private mode in safari.

If you know that you'll want to delete the website that you are about to visit from your history, try using Private Browsing Mode instead. This mode does not save any website history, including search history and autofill information. That means you can do your online banking without going back and deleting your web history when you are done.

To use Private Browsing Mode on a Mac:

• Open Safari.
• On the top toolbar, go to File > New Private Window.
• Use this new private window for browsing. You can quickly see if a Safari browser is Private because the field to type in the URL is dark gray instead of white.

To use Private Browsing Mode on iOS:

• Tap the tab icon in the bottom left corner.
• At the bottom of the screen, tap Private (swipe to see all the toppings in this toolbar if you do not see the Private option.)
• Private browsing will have a dark gray URL field instead of white. To return to regular browsing, repeat the steps but this time swipe back to your open tabs.

How to use picture-in-picture mode in Safari on Mac

Q: how to instantly clear your web history from multiple devices.

With iCloud , Safari can save your web browsing across all the devices that you use with your Apple ID. While that's helpful for quickly recalling a website no matter what device you first opened it with, it also syncs any deletions to the web history across your devices . That means if you delete a web page from your history on a Mac, it will automatically be deleted from your iPhone too -- as long as both devices are logged into the same Apple ID and iCloud for Safari is enabled.

iCloud for Safari can be enabled during the setup process for a new device, but it can also be turned on and off from the Settings app:

• Tap on your Apple ID or name at the top.
• Tap on iCloud.
• Under Apps Using iCloud, select Show All . (If you are running iOS 15 or earlier, you may not see the full list already instead of the Show All option, in which case you can jump to the next step.)
• Toggle on Safari from the list.

Q: Why can't I clear my Safari history?

In some cases, the buttons that you need to tap to clear your Safari history are gray. But why can't you delete your Safari history, and how do you fix it? Here are a few common reasons why the Safari history options are grayed out:

• You've already deleted your history and there are no more websites to clear out.
• Web content restrictions are turned on. Some parental control settings prevent kids and teens from deleting their web history, while other content restrictions can also prevent you from deleting. To access the content restriction options, open the Settings app and go to Screen Time > Content & Privacy Restrictions.
• You are using Private Browsing Mode. This mode does not save your web history, so you have nothing to delete.

Q: Can you permanently delete Safari history?

Deleting your Safari history makes it difficult for the average person to recover the past websites that you have visited. However, if you are connected to your work or school network, in some cases the network administrator can still see your website access. Deleting your website history also may not fool a trained digital forensics expert during an investigation.

How-To Geek

How to delete specific website history from safari on iphone or ipad.

Forgot to enable Private Browsing mode on Safari? Don't nuke your entire history, prune specific sites instead.

Quick Links

How to remove websites from safari history, how to delete specific website data, don't forget about private browsing mode.

It's not always convenient to delete your entire history, but you can instead choose to delete specific websites from your history (and the data they leave behind on your device). Here's how to do it in Safari for iPhone and iPad.

Safari will record any websites you visit unless you use Private Browsing . Once a website is in your history it will appear in the URL bar when you start typing a related term. There are all sorts of reasons you may want to prune specific websites, and it's easy to do so.

Open Safari and tap on the "Bookmarks" icon at the bottom of the screen (it looks like an open book).

A pop-up will appear with three tabs for your Bookmarks, Reading List , and History. Tap on the clock icon to see your history.

You can now swipe left on any entry in your history and tap "Delete" to remove it for good.

Rather than scrolling through your entire history of visited websites, you can also search for specific terms or URLs using the on-screen search box . But that's not the only evidence a website may have left behind on your device.

Related: How to Change the Default Search Engine in Safari on iPhone or iPad

Websites leave all sorts of data on your device including cached images and cookies . If you want to remove all signs of a website, it's important to remove website data as well.

Launch Settings and tap on Safari > Advanced > Website Data. This menu may take a little while to load as Safari fetches a full list of website data and estimates how much storage each entry takes up on your device.

You can now follow the same procedure as above by swiping left on any websites you would like to forget about and tapping the "Delete" button that appears.

You can also search for specific websites using the search bar at the top of the screen, or nuke everything using the "Remove All Website Data" button at the bottom of the list.

Note that if you do remove website data (or wipe everything) that there may be some drawbacks like having to log in again or having your shopping cart emptied.

Related: Clearing Your Cookies All the Time Makes the Web More Annoying

You can use Private Browsing mode in Safari at any point to visit a website without it being recorded to your device. To do this, tap on the tab icon in the lower right corner of the screen followed by the number of tabs you have open at the bottom of the screen. From here tap "Private" to switch to a private browsing session.

Note that all tabs in your private browsing session will remain open until you close them , so make sure you close anything that may compromise your privacy.

To get a better handle on your iPhone or iPad's privacy settings, we recommend a periodic iOS privacy check-up .

Related: How to Check and Tighten All Your iPhone's Privacy Settings

• Clear Safari cache on Mac
• Clear Safari cache on iPhone or iPad
• How to save passwords when clearing your cache

How to clear your Safari browser cache on a Mac, iPhone, or iPad

• You can clear your cache on Safari in just a few steps on a Mac, iPhone, or iPad.
• Clearing your cache, as well as history and cookies, can help resolve your device's performance issues.
• Clearing your cookies will clear your passwords as well, unless you save them with keychain.

A cache is a store of data. When you visit a website on your Mac, iPhone, or iPad, the Safari browser keeps a snapshot of the pages you view.

If you go back to that website, Safari loads the cached page in an instant, instead of taking the time to retrieve the page from the internet again.

But an overloaded cache can take up storage space and cause your device to run inefficiently — and it could use a periodic clearing.

Here's what you need to know to clear your cache on Safari, as well as your cookies and browsing history.

How to clear Safari cache on Mac

You can either clear just your cache or your cache, history, and cookies. 

Clear your cache

1. Click on the Safari tab at the top left of your screen and choose Preferences from the dropdown menu.

2.  Click the Advanced tab of the menu that pops up.

3.  At the end of the tab, select the Show Develop menu in menu bar box and close the Preferences menu.

4. Click the Develop tab from the Safari menu at the top of the page.

5. Click Empty Caches from the dropdown menu.

Clear your cache, history, and cookies

You may also want to clear your browsing history and cookies in addition to emptying your cache. Here's how to do that.

1. Choose the History tab at the top of your screen.

2. At the very bottom of the dropdown menu, choose Clear History.

3.  A box pops up with a choice to clear the last hour, today, today and yesterday, or all history. Choose your time frame and click the Clear History button.  

Once you clear the history, it will also clear the cache and cookies associated with that time period.

How to clear Safari cache on iPhone or iPad

To clear your cache and browsing history:

1. Open the Settings app.

2. Tap Safari .

3. Tap Clear History and Website Data .

4. On the screen that pops up, choose Clear History and Data .

To clear your cache but not your browsing history:

3. Tap Advanced .

4. Tap Website Data .

5. Choose Remove All Website Data .

What happens to saved passwords when you clear your cache

When you clear your cache, history, and cookies, you may discover that Safari has logged you out of your favorite websites.

While clearing Safari's cache alone will not delete your passwords, clearing your history and cookies can. That's because when you empty your cookies, you will lose their password data saved in Safari as well. And keep in mind that clearing your history also clears its associated cookies.

Luckily, Apple has a solution to this problem. If you use iCloud, check your iCloud settings on your phone or computer.

Make sure that you've checked the box for Safari. As long as this box is checked, any passwords you save through your browser will stay safe in your keychain .

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Clear the history, cache and cookies from Safari on your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch

Find out how to delete your history, cookies and cache in Settings.

Delete the history, cache and cookies

Clear your cookies and the cache, but keep your history

Delete a website from your history, block cookies, use content blockers, delete history, cache and cookies.

Go to Settings > Safari.

Tap Clear History and Website Data.

Clearing your history, cookies and browsing data from Safari won't change your AutoFill information.

When there’s no history or website data to be cleared, the button to clear it will turn grey. The button might also be grey if you have web content restrictions set up under Content & Privacy Restrictions in Screen Time .

To visit sites without leaving history, turn Private Browsing on .

Go to Settings > Safari > Advanced > Website Data.

Tap Remove All Website Data.

When there’s no website data to be cleared, the button to clear it will turn grey. The button might also be grey if you have web content restrictions set up under Content & Privacy Restrictions in Screen Time .

Open the Safari app.

Tap the Edit button, then select the website(s) you want to delete from your history.

Tap the Delete button.

A cookie is a piece of data that a site puts on your device so that site can remember you when you visit again.

To block cookies:

Go to Settings > Safari > Advanced.

Turn on Block All Cookies.

If you block cookies, some web pages may not work. Here are some examples:

You'll likely not be able to sign in to a site even when using your correct user name and password.

You may see a message that cookies are required or that your browser's cookies are turned off.

Some features on a site may not work.

Content blockers are third-party apps and extensions that let Safari block cookies, images, resources, pop-ups and other content.

To get a content blocker:

Download a content blocking app from the App Store.

Tap Settings > Safari > Extensions.

Tap to turn on a listed content blocker.

You can use more than one content blocker. If you need help, contact the app developer .

Information about products not manufactured by Apple, or independent websites not controlled or tested by Apple, is provided without recommendation or endorsement. Apple assumes no responsibility with regard to the selection, performance or use of third-party websites or products. Apple makes no representations regarding third-party website accuracy or reliability. Contact the vendor for additional information.

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How to clear your browser history on iPhone and iPad

Maybe you have been using the iPad you share with your wife to shop for an anniversary present. Maybe you are afraid your boyfriend will pick up your iPhone and see you’ve been looking at unsavory websites. There are plenty of good reasons to want to clear your Safari browsing history. On iPad and iPhone, it’s very easy to do.

Clear only some history items

If you don’t want to wipe out your entire web browsing history, you can delete just the last hour, day, or two days. You can even selectively delete individual history records.

1. In Safari, tap the Bookmarks button at the bottom of the screen. (On iPad, it’s in the upper left).

2. Then select the History tab at the top of the list to see your browsing history.

3. You can swipe left on any single history item to delete just that item.

4. Or, tap Clear at the bottom of the screen to be presented with four time periods to eras: The last hour , Today , Today and yesterday , or All time .

Safari allows you to remove individual history items, or select from four different time periods.

This is the best way to clear some of your browsing history without getting rid of everything. Note that if you sync browsing data with iCloud, this will affect your browsing history on all devices that use the same iCloud account.

Clear all browser history, cookies, and other browser data

Want to get rid of  everything: all your history, cookies, the works? You can jump into Settings to wipe out all traces of your Internet activity.

1. Open Settings, then scroll down and tap on Safari .

2. Scroll down to the Privacy and Security section and tap on Clear History and Website Data .

3. You’ll get a pop-up warning you that you’re about to clear all your website data. Tap Clear History and Website Data again.

If you want to clear out everything, hop over to the Settings app.

This is the best way to get rid of all traces of your internet activity in Safari on iOS. Note that your history will be erased from Safari on other devices logged into the same iCloud account, if you have iCloud sync enabled for Safari.

Author: Jason Cross , Senior Editor

I have written about technology for my entire professional life - over 25 years. I enjoy learning about how complicated technology works and explaining it in a way anyone can understand.

Recent stories by Jason Cross:

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2 Simple Ways to Clear History in Safari

Last Updated: January 4, 2024

This article was co-authored by Luigi Oppido . Luigi Oppido is the Owner and Operator of Pleasure Point Computers in Santa Cruz, California. Luigi has over 25 years of experience in general computer repair, data recovery, virus removal, and upgrades. He is also the host of the Computer Man Show! broadcasted on KSQD covering central California for over two years. This article has been viewed 124,462 times.

You can delete all of your web browsing history or specific entries on both the OS X and the iOS versions of Safari. This can come in handy if you're on a public computer, or need to remove a certain website from your browsing history. No matter what system you're using, it will only take a few moments.

OS X (All History)

• If you're using an older version of Safari, click the "History" menu instead and select "Clear History".

• Note that this will delete history across all devices connected to your iCloud account.

OS X (Single Entries)

iOS (All History)

• If you want to delete a single entry, click here .

iOS (Single Entries)

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• ↑ http://osxdaily.com/2014/11/28/clear-recent-web-history-safari-mac-os-x/
• ↑ http://osxdaily.com/2014/11/21/delete-specific-history-safari-ios/

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Safari Clear History and Data grayed out on iPhone? 4 Fixes!

You’ve been surfing Safari for a while, and you want to clear your history. In many cases, clearing your history data helps fix loading issues with certain websites.

But if the option “Clear History and Website Data” is grayed out in Safari, here are a few quick solutions to the problem.

Before you begin: Note that this option will be gray if there’s no current browsing history or web data. After you visit a site, the option will become blue and usable. If you regularly use Safari and still find the delete history option unusable, on the other hand, take a look at the solutions in this guide.

Why is Clear History grayed out on my iPhone?

There are a number of reasons this option may be grayed out for you. As we previously mentioned, if you haven’t browsed any sites yet, or recently cleared your data and forgot, the option will be gray.

The culprit can also be hidden somewhere in your settings, like Screen Time Restrictions. If this sounds like it may apply to you, read on for the solution.

Safari’s Clear History and Website Data may also simply be grayed out due to a bug. Go through the other main solutions first; if they don’t yield any results, it’s likely a software hiccup. If that’s the case, we have a fix ready and waiting.

Now, let’s get into the solutions.

• Disable Screen Time Restrictions
• Restart your iPhone

Other workarounds to fix Safari Clear History option grayed out

• Reset All Settings on iPhone

1. Disable Screen Time Restrictions

If you use Screen Time to enable limited web access, the option for Clear History and Website Data will be grayed out. Here’s how to disable it.

• Open Settings and tap Screen Time . Enter your passcode if asked.

• Or tap Content Restrictions .

Now, go back to the first Settings screen, tap Safari , and you will find that Clear History and Website Data is no longer grayed out. It’ll be blue, and you can tap it.

2. Restart your iPhone

The above solution fixes this issue in almost all cases. But in the rare situation, it doesn’t, and Safari’s clear history button is still grayed out (or if you didn’t have Screen Time enabled in the first place), restarting your iPhone or iPad is the next go-to fix.

Use the physical buttons on your device to turn it off. You can also do the same via Settings → General → Shut Down . After a few seconds, turn your iPhone back on.

Note : If a simple restart fails, consider force restarting the device .

Is Clear History and Website Data still grayed out? Time to move on to other workarounds.

Apart from the above two sure-fire fixes, some additional tips have worked for a small subset of iPhone users. Let’s look over them briefly, then, check if Clear History and Website Data is still grayed out. Once you’re done, you can re-enable these options.

• Turn off Safari iCloud Sync : Open Settings → your name from the top → iCloud → switch off the toggle for Safari.
• Clear Safari Reading List : We’ve covered how to clear your Safari Reading List here .
• Block Cookies : Inside Settings, tap Safari and turn on the toggle for Block All Cookies. Note : Many websites won’t work as intended when this is enabled. Make sure to turn it back off after you check the clear history button.
• Delete Website Data from Advanced pane : You can also choose to delete website history by launching Settings → Safari → Advanced → Website Data → Remove All Website Data. (Or, tap Edit and delete the data for any desired websites.)

If nothing has worked so far, it’s time to move to more involved measures.

4. Reset All Settings on iPhone

This will erase all the settings you have altered or added. This includes Wi-Fi networks, Bluetooth devices, Keyboard settings, VPN configurations, etc.

However, personal data like applications, music, images, videos, etc., will remain as is. Still, it’s always wise to back up your iPhone first before a reset of this nature.

Open Settings → General → Reset → Reset All Settings → enter your iPhone passcode if asked and confirm. To read a more involved guide, see our article on the topic .

After the process completes, there’s a very good chance you’ll be able to clear your Safari history and web data.

These are the most effective ways to clear Safari History and Website Data successfully. Did any of the solutions work for you? Let us know in the comments.

In case you’re interested, we’ve put together a list of some other third-party browsers that you may want to use in place of Safari. Or, you can even look into changing the default browser on iPhone and iPad .

• How to Add Credit Cards to Safari AutoFill on iPhone, iPad, and Mac
• Safari Slow on iPhone and iPad? Here are 8 Solutions to Fix It
• How to Close All Safari Tabs at Once on iPhone and iPad
• Disappearing Safari tabs on iPhone and iPad? 10 Working fixes

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iOS System Data bug stealing your iPhone storage? Here are 5 solutions

There’s been an iOS bug for years that gobbles up a big percentage of an iPhone’s available storage. The issue persists in iOS 17.4 and 17.5 but fortunately, there are solutions that don’t involve wiping your iPhone. Here’s how to fix the iPhone System Data storage bug.

Across Apple’s Community forums , Reddit , and more, iOS users have complained about the iPhone System Data storage bug for years (some reports date back to iOS 13). I haven’t had trouble with the bug until iOS 17.3-17.5 where I’ve seen up to 60 GB of storage eaten up by iOS System Data.

And it’s not just a reporting bug, the storage used by System Data is unusable. Unlike the cache in individual iOS apps or Apple apps like Safari, there’s no button to quickly empty System Data. Here’s how Apple describes what it’s used for:

System Data includes caches, logs and other resources currently in use by the system. This value will fluctuate according to system needs.

Apple hasn’t offered an official solution to the problem, but there are several ways to resolve the issue. We’ll start from the simplest and quickest option to more involved tactics.

How to fix the iPhone System Data storage bug

You can see how much storage System Data is using on your iPhone by heading to Settings > General > iPhone Storage > Go to the very bottom > System Data

• Head back to iPhone Storage > System Data to see if that’s helped
• This alone has worked to reduce my System Data by over 50 GB (but sometimes in days or weeks it will inflate again with further restarts helping)
• Head to Settings > Messages > Keep Messages > 1 year or 30 Days
• Some users report having success with deleting and reinstalling Apple TV to clear the cache and doing the same with apps like Instagram, TikTok, Discord, Slack, etc.
• Settings > Safari > Clear History and Website Data (note: this impacts any sites you were logged into, etc.)
• Via Reddit user Vertsix , there is a more complex “date trick” that seems to work reliably to purge iOS System Data – make sure to follow the steps as described to avoid losing iMessages in the process

Above is my before and after power cycling my iPhone – 60.58 GB to 8GB usage for System Data.

Have you seen this issue? Just notice it for the first time after checking your settings? Share your experience in the comments!

More 9to5Mac tutorials:

• Here’s how to protect against iPhone password reset attacks
• Best USB-C and Thunderbolt displays for Mac
• iPhone 13 vs 15: Time to upgrade?
• How to catch iMessage impersonators with Contact Key Verification

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