Delete Firefox history: Simple instructions

Deleting your Firefox history helps you keep your online tracks organized – whether for security reasons or simply for more order.

Delete Firefox history: A quick and targeted approach

Firefox’s history stores visiting times, downloads and search queries, and removing this data helps you retain control over your personal information.

• Open the history menu: Click on the three horizontal lines (“Menu”) in the top right and select “History”. Alternatively, press Ctrl + Shift + H (Windows/Linux) or Cmd + Shift + H (macOS).

• Delete history entries: Navigate to “Clear recently closed tabs” ☻ “Clear browsing history”. A dialog box will open.

• Select the time period and data: Decide whether you want to delete “all history” or a specific time period (last hour, day, etc.). Select the checkboxes for visit and download history, cookies or cache. Click “OK” to confirm.

• Use keyboard shortcut: Press Ctrl + Shift + Del (Windows) or Cmd + Shift + Del (macOS) to jump directly to the deletion dialog.

• Insider tip: Firefox stores logins separately. To remove stored passwords, go to “Options” ☻ “Privacy & Security” ☻ “Stored Login Data”.

Customize Firefox permanently: Automatic deletion and settings

Automation is worthwhile for users who regularly clean their browsing history. This is how you customize Firefox to your needs:

• Activate automatic deletion: Go to “Settings” ☻ “Privacy & Security” ☻ “History”. Select “Use custom settings for history” and check the box next to “Always open history in incognito mode”.

• Clear data on exit: Scroll to the section “Clear browsing data when Firefox is closed”. Click on “Settings…” and check the categories you want to delete (e.g. cookies, cache).

• About:config for experts: Type about:config into the address bar. Confirm the warning. Search for privacy.sanitize.sanitizeOnShutdown and set the value to true. This way, Firefox deletes all selected data when you close it.

• Manually empty the profile folder: In case of technical problems, navigate to the profile folder (via about:support ☻ “Open profile folder”). Delete the files places.sqlite and favicons.sqlite to completely remove the history.

• Important: Please note that deleting the history also affects stored form data and open sessions. If you are unsure, use private mode (Ctrl + Shift + P) to leave no traces.