YouTube is a great resource for entertainment, news, and education. But if you're not careful, it can also be a source of embarrassment. That's because YouTube keeps track of everything you search for on the site. So, if you've ever searched for something embarrassing or controversial, there's a good chance it's still stored in your YouTube search history.
In this article, we'll show you how to delete your YouTube search history so that no one can see what you've been looking up.
Pros and Cons of Deleting Your YouTube Search History
Before we get into the instructions, it's worth taking a moment to consider the pros and cons of deleting your YouTube search history.
Pros:
It's a good way to protect your privacy. If you're worried about someone seeing what you've been looking up, deleting your search history is a good way to cover your tracks.
It can also help improve your YouTube recommendations. YouTube uses your search history to personalize the content it shows you. So, if you're not interested in seeing certain types of videos, deleting your search history can help YouTube show you more relevant content.
Cons:
It can make it harder to find videos that you've previously watched. If you often watch the same videos, deleting your search history can make it difficult to find them.
It can make YouTube less personalized. As we mentioned, YouTube uses your search history to personalize the content it shows you. So, if you delete your search history, YouTube won't be able to show you as much relevant content.
How to Clear Your YouTube Search History on Mobile
Ready to get rid of your YouTube search history? The process is pretty simple. Here's how to do it:
- Launch the YouTube app.
- Tap on your profile icon in the top right corner of the main screen.
- Select Your data in YouTube from the resulting menu.
- Scroll down and tap on Manage your YouTube Search History under YouTube Search History.
- Tap Delete and select your preferred delete duration (Delete today, Delete custom range, and Delete all time).
The steps are similar if you're using a computer; simply look out for the corresponding prompts.
That's all it takes to delete your YouTube search history. If you're worried about someone snooping through your YouTube account, you can go one step further and delete your YouTube history.
Should You Delete Your YouTube Search History?
Only you can decide whether or not you want to delete your YouTube search history. If you're worried about privacy, then it's probably a good idea to delete your search history regularly. But if you find that YouTube is less personalized without your search history, you may want to keep it around.