Most people worldwide use Google’s browser Chrome to surf the internet. Chrome has earned this popularity due to the ease of use and the familiarity of the user interface, along with the constant feature and security updates. An application as largely used as Google Chrome is bound to have its errors.
Some users have reported an error where they see Chrome history not deleting from their computer. The reports say that Chrome won’t clear history, and the process is stuck in a continuous loop where repeating the process does absolutely nothing.
Here I shall discuss how you can fix if you cannot clear history from Google Chrome.
Also read: How To Clear Google Chrome App Data And Hosted App Data?
Why Can’t I Clear My History In Google Chrome?
The Chrome history error is actually a bug in the source code of the Chrome application itself. This is the reason that when you try to clear the history in Google Chrome, the Clear data button actually does nothing. If you urgently need to clear the Chrome browsing data, you can follow the solutions provided here and wait while the developers fix the app.
Easy Fixes If Chrome Browsing history won’t clear!
If you want to urgently clear Chrome browsing history and cannot wait for the new update of the browser, here are some easy fixes that you can try. Learn more about browser cache here.
Method 1: Use Third-Party Junk Cleaners
There are many junk file cleaners available for Windows 10 that you can use for clearing residual data. You can make use of these junk file cleaners to delete the residual files and the browsing session as well.
If you are using CCleaner, follow these steps:
- Open the CCleaner application, and click on Custom Clean from the left pane.
- Click on Applications from the top pane.
- Here, locate the Chrome application, and select all the checkboxes under this app.
- Click on Analyze to scan for the browsing history files.
- Click on the Run cleaner button to clear the browsing history.
Method 2: Use File Explorer
Alternatively, you can also use the File explorer to clear Google Chrome history files. To do so, follow these steps:
- End all Google Chrome tasks from the Task Manager.
- Open a Run dialog by pressing Win + R.
- Type %localappdata%\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default
This will open the Default folder in the AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data folder. - In this folder, locate and select the following files:
Cache (folder)
History (File) - Delete these items from your computer.
Restarting your PC will clear all the cache files for the Chrome browser from your computer.
Method 3: Visit Google Activity Page
If you wish to clear all the Google activity, you can actually do so from the Activities page of your Google account.
Visit My Activity to see all the data Google has regarding your browsing activity, and delete the data accordingly.
Method 4: Reinstall The Browser
If the solutions above failed to help you, there might be something wrong with the browser installation files. If this is the case, you will need to reinstall the browser. Also, remember to clear the residual files as well.
You can choose from third party batch uninstallers if you wish to remove the residual files while uninstalling the browser.
Next, visit the Google Chrome website and download a fresh copy of the browser from the website. Install the browser, and check if the error persists. Your error should now be resolved.
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Wrapping Up
So, there you have it. Now you know how to fix if Chrome won’t clear history on your computer using the solutions provided above. Comment below if you found this useful, and to discuss further the same.
Kim Wesley says
Thank you so much for your different alternatives to delete my history. For a newbie I understood what you explained and it was very simple and effective !!! Thanks again and have a great night! 😀