How to prevent Chrome or Edge from saving Browsing History and Data

If you want to prevent Chrome or Edge from saving browser history on your Windows 11 or Windows 10 computers, this article will help you go through the process. You can ask Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge not to save the browsing data even if you use the normal browsing mode. It is possible to set things up with the help of the Local Group Policy Editor and the Registry Editor.

Normally, if you browse websites in the normal browsing window, it stores all the data on your computer. The same thing doesn’t happen when you use the Private or Incognito mode. However, let’s assume that you want to browse the internet in the normal browsing mode but do not want to save any data. In such situations, you can follow this step-by-step guide.

Prevent Chrome from saving Browsing History and Data using Group Policy

To prevent Chrome from saving browser history using Group Policy, follow these steps:

1. Search for gpedit.msc and hit click on individual search result.
2. Go to Google Chrome in Computer Configuration.
3. Double-click on the Disable saving browser history setting.
4. Select the Enabled option.
5. Click the OK button.

To learn more about these steps, continue reading.

First, click on the Taskbar search icon and search for gpedit.msc. Once you get the search result, click on the individual result to open the Local Group Policy Editor. After that, navigate to the following path:

Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Google > Google Chrome

Here you can find a setting named Disable saving browser history. You need to double-click on it and select the Enabled option.

Click the OK button to save the change.

In case you want to allow Chrome to save the browser history, you need to open the same setting and choose the Not Configured option.

How to prevent Chrome from saving Browsing History and Data using Registry

To prevent Chrome from saving browser history using Registry, follow these steps:

1. Press Win+R > type regedit > hit the Enter button.
2. Click the Yes button.
3. Navigate to Policies in HKLM.
4. Right-click on Policies > New > Key.
5. Set the name as Google.
6. Right-click on Google > New > Key.
7. Name it as Chrome.
8. Right-click on Chrome > New > DWORD (32-bit) Value.
9. Set the name as SavingBrowserHistoryDisabled.
10. Double-click on it to set the Value data as 1.
11. Click the OK button and restart your computer.

Let’s check out these steps in more detail.

At first, you need to open the Registry Editor on your computer. For that, press Win+R > type regedit > hit the Enter button and click on the Yes option in the UAC prompt.

Then, you need to navigate to the following path:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies

Right-click on Policies > New > Key, and set the name as Google. Then, right-click on the Google key > New > Key and name it as Chrome.

After that, you need to create a REG_DWORD value. For that, right-click on the Chrome key > New > DWORD (32-bit) Value and name it as SavingBrowserHistoryDisabled.

Next, double-click on the REG_DWORD value to set the value data as 1.

Click the OK button and restart your computer. However, if you want to revert the change, double-click on the same REG_DWORD value and set the Value data as 0. Alternatively, you can also delete the REG_DWORD value. To do that, right-click on it, select the Delete option, and click on the Yes button.

Stop Edge from saving Browsing History and Data using Group Policy

To prevent Edge from saving browser history using Group Policy, follow these steps:

1. Press Win+R to open the Run dialog.
2. Type gpedit.msc and press the Enter button.
3. Navigate to Microsoft Edge in Computer Configuration.
4. Double-click on the Disable saving browser history setting.
5. Select the Enabled option.
6. Click the OK button.

Let’s delve into steps in detail.

To get started, you must open the Local Group Policy Editor. To do that, press Win+R > type gpedit.msc and press the Enter button. Once it is opened, navigate to the following path:

Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Microsoft Edge

Find the Disable saving browser history setting on the right-hand side and select the Enabled option.

Click the OK button to save the change. As usual, if you want to set the factory setting, you need to open the same setting in the Local Group Policy Editor and select either the Not Configured or Disabled option.

How to stop Edge from saving Browsing History and Data using Registry

To prevent Edge from saving browser history using Registry, follow these steps:

1. Search for regedit in the Taskbar search box.
2. Click on the individual search result.
3. Click on the Yes button.
4. Navigate to Microsoft in HKLM.
5. Right-click on Microsoft > New > Key.
6. Name it as Edge.
7. Right-click on Edge > New > DWORD (32-bit) Value.
8. Set the name as SavingBrowserHistoryDisabled.
9. Double-click on it to set the Value data as 1.
10. Click the OK button and restart your PC.

To learn more about these steps, continue reading.

First, you need to open the Registry Editor on your PC. For that, search for regedit in the Taskbar search box, click on the individual search result and click on the Yes button in the UAC prompt.

Next, navigate to this path:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft

However, if you cannot find the Microsoft key, you need to create it manually. For that, right-click on Policies > New > Key, and name it Microsoft.

Then, right-click on the Microsoft > New > Key and set the name as Edge.

After that, you need to create a REG_DWORD value. To do that, right-click on Edge > New > DWORD (32-bit) Value.

Name it as SavingBrowserHistoryDisabled and double-click on it to set the Value data. You need to enter 1 as the Value data.

Once done, click the OK button and restart your computer to save the change.

If you want to allow Edge to save the browsing history, you have two options in hand. First, you can set the value data of SavingBrowserHistoryDisabled as 0. Second, you can delete this REG_DWORD value. To do that, open the Registry Editor, navigate to the same path as mentioned earlier, and right-click on the SavingBrowserHistoryDisabled REG_DWORD value. Then, select the Delete option from the context menu and click on the Yes button in the confirmation window.

Note: If you cannot find the Group policy path, that is because you haven’t installed the respective templates. In order to use the above-mentioned Group Policy guides, you must install the Group Policy templates for Edge and Google Chrome.

How do I stop Microsoft Edge from saving browsing history?

To stop Microsoft Edge from saving browsing history on Windows 11 or Windows 10, you need to follow the aforementioned guides. You can set things up via Group Policy and Registry Editor. In the Group Policy, go to Microsoft Edge in Computer Configuration. Double-click on the Disable saving browser history setting and select the Enabled option. Then, click the OK button to save the change.

Does Microsoft Edge save search history?

Yes, like any other browsers, such as Google Chrome, Firefox, Safari, etc., Microsoft Edge also saves search history. However, things are not the same if you use the Private window to browse the internet. It is possible to get rid of this setting by following this tutorial. For that, you need to install the Group Policy templates for Edge. Alternatively, you can also use the Registry Editor.

That’s all! Hope this guide helped.

Read: Prevent deleting browser history and download history in Microsoft Edge.