How to Clear the Search Box of Sites You Have Viewed Online

An easy-to-follow guide to keep your search history private and cleared

Co-authored by Luigi Oppido and Jack Lloyd

Last Updated: September 27, 2024 Tested

This wikiHow teaches you how to prevent your web browser from showing matching results when you type something into the address bar. Keep in mind that Safari for both Mac and iPhone platforms does not retain form data, so you don't need to do this if you use Safari. If you want to remove entire websites from your browsing history, you'll need to clear your browsing history instead.

Method 1

Method 1 of 8:

Using Chrome on iPhone

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Tap the Chrome app icon, which resembles a red, yellow, green, and blue sphere.
It's in the top-right corner of the screen. A drop-down menu will appear.

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This is in the drop-down menu. Doing so opens your iPhone's Chrome history page.
You'll find it in the lower-left corner of the screen.
5
Tap Autofill Data . It's in the middle of the page. Doing so will place a checkmark next to Autofill Data .
- If Autofill Data already has a checkmark next to it, skip this step.
- You can uncheck every other item on the page, but the Autofill Data option must be checked.
This option is at the bottom of the page.
Doing so will clear your search box data for Google Chrome on your iPhone.

Method 2

Method 2 of 8:

Using Chrome on Android

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Tap the Chrome app icon, which resembles a red, yellow, green, and blue sphere.
It's in the top-right corner of the screen. A drop-down menu will appear.
This option is in the drop-down menu.
It's at the top of the History page.
This tab is in the top-right corner of the screen.
6
Check the "Autofill form data" box. It's in the middle of the screen.
- You can uncheck every other box on the ADVANCED tab, but the "Autofill form data" box must be checked in order to clear the search box contents.
- If the "Autofill form data" box is already checked, skip this step.
You'll find this in the upper-right side of the page. A drop-down menu will appear.
It's in the drop-down menu.
This is at the bottom of the screen.
Doing so clears all of your search box data for Google Chrome on your Android.

Method 3

Method 3 of 8:

Using Chrome on Desktop

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Click or double-click the Chrome app icon, which resembles a red, yellow, green, and blue sphere.
It's in the top-right corner of the Chrome window. A drop-down menu will appear.
This option is in the middle of the drop-down menu. An additional menu should pop out.
It's in the pop-out menu. A new window will appear.
This is in the top-right corner of the pop-up window.
6
Scroll down and check the "Autofill form data" box. It's near the bottom of the pop-up window.
- You can uncheck every other box on the Advanced tab, but the "Autofill form data" box must be checked in order to clear the search box contents.
- If the "Autofill form data" box is already checked, skip this step.
This is at the top of the pop-up window. A drop-down menu will appear.
It's in the drop-down menu.
This blue button is at the bottom of the window. Doing so clears your search box data for Google Chrome on your computer.

Method 4

Method 4 of 8:

Using Firefox on iPhone

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Tap the Firefox app icon, which resembles an orange fox on a blue globe.
It's in the bottom-right corner of the screen. A pop-up menu will appear.
This option is in the pop-up menu.
You'll find it near the middle of the page.
5
Tap the white "Browsing History" switch

. Doing so turns on the switch, thus indicating that you want to clear your Firefox browsing history.
- You can turn off every other switch on this page.
- Unfortunately, Firefox for the iPhone doesn't include an "Autofill" option, so you'll have to clear your whole browser's history in order to clear the search box contents.
- If the "Browsing History" switch is blue, skip this step.
It's at the bottom of the screen.
Doing so will clear your iPhone's Firefox search box history.

Method 5

Method 5 of 8:

Using Firefox on Android

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Tap the Firefox app icon, which resembles an orange fox on a blue globe.
It's in the top-right corner of the screen. A drop-down menu will appear.
This option is in the middle of the drop-down menu.
You'll find this in the middle of the screen.
5
Check the "Form history" box. Doing so indicates that you want to clear your Firefox search box history.
- If this box is already checked, skip this step.
- You can uncheck every other box on this page, but the "Form history" box must be checked.
It's at the bottom of the screen. Doing so will clear your Android's Firefox search box history.

Method 6

Method 6 of 8:

Using Firefox on Desktop

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Click or double-click the Firefox app icon, which resembles an orange fox on a blue globe.
It's in the top-right corner of the Firefox window. A drop-down menu will appear.
This option is near the top of the drop-down menu.
It's near the top of the menu.
This is near the top of the menu. Doing so opens a pop-up window.
It's at the top of the pop-up window. Clicking it prompts a drop-down menu.
You'll find this at the bottom of the drop-down menu.
8
Check the "Form & Search History" box. It's in the middle of the pop-up window.
- You can uncheck every other box in this form, but the "Form & Search History" box must be checked.
- If this box is already checked, skip this step.
This is at the bottom of the pop-up window. Doing so will clear your computer's Firefox search box history.

Method 7

Method 7 of 8:

Using Microsoft Edge

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Click or double-click the Microsoft Edge app icon, which is either a dark-blue "e" or a white "e" on a dark-blue background.
It's in the top-right corner of the Edge window. A drop-down menu will appear.
This option is near the bottom of the drop-down menu. A pop-out menu will appear on the right side of the window.
It's in the middle of the pop-out menu.
5
Check the "Form data" box. This option is in the middle of the menu.
- You can uncheck every other box here, but the "Form data" box must be checked.
- If this box is already checked, skip this step.
It's at the bottom of the menu. Doing so will clear your Microsoft Edge search box history.

Method 8

Method 8 of 8:

Using Internet Explorer

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Click or double-click the Internet Explorer app icon, which resembles a light blue "e" with a gold band wrapped around it.
It's in the top-right corner of the window. A drop-down menu will appear.
This option is at the top of the drop-down menu. Clicking it opens the Internet Options window.
4
Click Delete… . You'll find it near the middle-right side of the window below the "Browsing history" heading.
- If you don't see this option, first click the General tab near the top of the window.
5
Check the "Form data" box. It's in the middle of the page.
- You can uncheck every other box here, but the "Form data" box must be checked.
- If this box is already checked, skip this step.
This is at the bottom of the window. The window will close.
It's at the bottom of the Internet Options window. Doing so signifies that your Internet Explorer search box history has successfully been erased.

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Tips

If you don't want to clear all of your search box data, try selecting a less permanent time range (e.g., Yesterday ) in the "Time range" or "Time range to clear" drop-down box. This isn't an option on Microsoft Edge or Internet Explorer.

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Warnings

Clearing your browser's search bar data won't remove results for sites you've visited. If you want to remove websites as well, you'll need to delete your browser's history .

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