A Complete Guide to Taking Control of Your YouTube History

Hey there! Have you ever felt uneasy about how much of your online activity YouTube tracks? Or found videos in your history you know you watched years ago but have zero recollection of today?

You‘re not alone. YouTube logs an incredible amount of behind-the-scenes user data that can feel outright invasive at times.

In this comprehensive guide, I‘ll walk you step-by-step through how to view, clear, and manage your YouTube search and watch history. You‘ll learn:

• Exactly what gets tracked in YouTube history and why it matters
• Detailed deletion instructions for desktop and mobile
• When you may want to manage vs fully clear history
• Expert YouTube privacy tips

Let‘s dive in and take back control of your YouTube data!

What‘s in Your YouTube History?

Before we delete anything, it helps to understand exactly what YouTube tracks in background and why…

Your Full Search & Watch History

Any time you search for a video or watch something while signed into your Google account, YouTube adds it to your search and watch history.

This applies sitewide – it doesn‘t matter if you explicitly "like" a video. If you watch it long enough for data to load, it gets tracked.

I recently checked my own years-old history and found a startling level of detail:

• Niche hobby videos I‘d completely forgotten about
• Old cringy videos I watched back in middle school
• Hyper-specific troubleshooting searches for products I no longer own

![A screenshot showing extensive personalized YouTube history.]

YouTube stores this nearly endless history indefinitely, using it to tune recommendations to your tastes.

Why This Matters

On one hand, robust user data is why YouTube can serve up eerily relevant videos after just a few watches. Their recommendation algorithm is the best in the business.

On the other…that level of behind-the-scenes tracking has raised privacy concerns for years:

• In 2019, Google and YouTube paid a record $170 million fine after allegations they illegally tracked viewing data on children under 13.
• Watch history can reveal personal health issues, political affiliations, religious beliefs, and more that users may not feel comfortable storing forever in Google‘s databases.

And according to researchers, embarrassing videos and niche searches in your history can cause issues if:

• You make YouTube activity public
• Your account gets hacked
• Google comes under fire for data practices again

The point being – for privacy, security, or just peace of mind, taking control of your YouTube history is advised.

Next let‘s get into exactly how to view and clear that search/watch data.

Step 1: Sign Into YouTube Desktop Site

First we‘ll cover how to clear history right from a desktop web browser. I‘ll use Google Chrome in my examples, but the process works the same on Mac, Windows, or Linux machines and across browsers.

To get started:

1. Pull up YouTube.com in your web browser of choice
2. Click your account icon in the top right corner
3. Choose the account with history you wish to manage

This ensures you have the proper account selected before we begin.

![YouTube homepage with user signed into account.]

Step 2: Access Video Watch History

Now that you‘re signed in, it‘s time to view your private watch history:

1. Click on your account icon again to open the left sidebar menu
2. Choose History from menu

This page chronologically displays every video you‘ve watched and search you‘ve made while signed into that account. Mine goes back years!

Take a moment to scroll through and see what YouTube has tracked for your account specifically. It‘s often more than people expect…

![YouTube history page displaying years of video watches and searches.]

Now let‘s clear this out.

Step 3: Choose Watch History Filter

Since video watch history and search history are stored separately, we can be selective about what data gets deleted.

On the history page, underneath your video watch chronology, toggle the filter to Watch history:

![Watch history filter activated on YouTube history page.]

This way we know upcoming deletion will only apply to videos. We can repeat the process for search history afterwards.

Step 4: Click "Clear All Watch History" Button

We‘re now all set to delete your YouTube watch history in one click!

On the watch history filter page, click the large blue Clear all watch history button.

![YouTube watch history page with clear all watch history button highlighted.]

A popup will ask you to confirm that choice.

Step 5: Confirm Watch History Deletion

The confirmation popup explains that clearing watch history removes data across all signed-in devices – phones, tablets, gaming consoles, etc.

If you‘re sure, click the Clear watch history button:

![Youtube clear watch history confirmation popup window.]

It‘s instant – years of YouTube watch tracking, gone!

To delete search history as well, simply repeat those steps but choose the Search history filter instead.

And that‘s all it takes to fully clear your desktop YouTube history! Let‘s shift gears and go over mobile deletion too.

How to Delete YouTube History on Android & iPhone

Thankfully, you don‘t need a PC to take control of YouTube data tracking on mobile. The process works very similarly in the Android and iOS apps:

To get started:

1. Launch the YouTube app on your phone or tablet
2. Tap your profile icon in the top right corner
3. Choose Settings from the menu

This opens the customization menu we‘ll dig through next.

Access History & Privacy Settings

From Settings:

1. Scroll down and select History & privacy
2. Choose History to view tracking data

You should now see your search & watch history specifically on that mobile device.

![YouTube app History & privacy settings menu expanded to show watch history.]

Let‘s clear things out.

Delete Mobile YouTube Watch History

While viewing your History & privacy settings:

1. Under Watch History, tap Clear watch history
2. Confirm your choice in the popup

That instantly wipes this device‘s video watch tracking!

Repeat those steps choosing Search history to delete mobile search history as well.

![Youtube app History & privacy settings showing options to clear watch and search histories.]

And that‘s all there is to it! Your mobile YouTube history has now vanished.

For some, completely erasing search & watch history is overkill – losing those tailored recommendations isn‘t always ideal.

Here are 5 quick ways to clean up history without nuking everything:

Taking advantage of tools like auto-delete and restricted data gives you cleaner privacy without losing YouTube‘s vaunted algorithm.

The choice comes down to personal preference – delete everything or judiciously manage history with settings tweaks. Either puts you back in control.

Phew – that was a lot! To quickly recap how to clear YouTube history:

On desktop:

• Sign into YouTube account
• Access history manager via sidebar menu
• Toggle to watch or search history
• Click "clear all" button
• Confirm deletion

On mobile:

• Open YouTube app
• Go to account settings
• Choose History & privacy
• Select watch or search history
• Tap "clear" button

I invite you to take a few minutes exploring your own YouTube history dashboard and consider clearing or restricting any data you‘re uncomfortable lingering.

As use of streaming sites continues soaring year after year, understanding how that data gets used and taking steps to manage it has never been more important.

Let me know if any questions come up! Happy to help walk through any hiccups or confusion about controlling your YouTube privacy settings.