Let’s face it — almost everything we do online today is being tracked. Every time you search something on Google, watch a video on YouTube, or even just use Google Maps to get around, your actions are recorded and saved. Most of us don’t even realize how much of our activity is quietly stored behind the scenes.
If you’ve ever visited myactivity.google.com, you might have been surprised to see just how much Google knows about your daily habits. And while some of that data can be helpful — like remembering where you parked or giving you better YouTube recommendations — it also feels a little invasive. For people who care about their privacy (and honestly, we all should), learning how to delete that activity permanently is a smart move.
In this updated 2025 guide, I’ll walk you through everything you need to know about erasing your Google activity history for good — and making sure it doesn’t build up again.
Why You Might Want to Delete Your Google Activity
Before we jump into the “how,” it’s important to understand the “why.” Everyone’s reason will be a little different, but here are some of the most common:
- You don’t want Google to track everything you do.
- You’re using a shared device and don’t want your activity visible.
- You’re cleaning up sensitive searches or locations.
- You just don’t feel comfortable with how much data is stored.
- You’re trying to reset your recommendations and browsing history.
Whatever your reason is, just know you’re not alone. More and more people are paying attention to their digital footprint now, and taking control of your data is a big step toward online privacy.
Step-by-Step Guide: How to Delete Google Activity History (For Good)
Let’s start with the actual process. I’ll break it down in a simple, non-technical way. You don’t need to be a tech expert — just follow along.
Step 1: Go to Google My Activity
Open your browser and head to https://myactivity.google.com
Make sure you’re logged in with the Google account you want to clean up. If you have more than one account, double-check — you don’t want to delete activity from the wrong one.
Step 2: Click on “Delete Activity By”
Once you’re on the dashboard, you’ll see a menu on the left. Click on “Delete activity by”. If you’re using a phone, you might need to tap the three-line menu icon to find it.
This is where Google lets you choose how much of your activity to delete.
Step 3: Select “All Time”
You’ll get a few options here:
- Last hour
- Last day
- Custom range
- All time
If you’re looking to wipe everything, go ahead and pick “All time.”
After that, you’ll be asked to select which types of activity to delete. For a full cleanup, select all categories — things like YouTube, search, Maps, etc.
Once you confirm, Google will start deleting everything you selected. It usually happens instantly.
Step 4: Stop Google From Tracking You (Optional but Important)
Deleting your history is one thing — but stopping it from being collected in the first place is even better. Otherwise, you’ll just be doing this over and over again.
Here’s how to turn off activity tracking:
- Go to https://myaccount.google.com/activitycontrols
- You’ll see several toggles:
- Web & App Activity
- Location History
- YouTube History
- Switch all of them off if you don’t want Google storing your data going forward.
Google might show you warnings like “You’ll lose personalized experiences,” but if your priority is privacy, it’s a small trade-off.
Bonus Tip: Set Auto-Delete for Ongoing Privacy
If you’re not ready to fully disable tracking but still want to limit how much data is stored, Google offers an auto-delete option.
Here’s how to set it up:
- Go to the same Activity Controls page.
- Under each section (Web & App Activity, Location History, YouTube History), click on Auto-delete.
- Choose how often you want your data to be erased:
- Every 3 months
- Every 18 months
- Every 36 months
Pick what feels right for you and save the settings.
What Exactly Gets Deleted?
This is a fair question. When you delete your activity, here’s what goes away:
- Your Google search history
- YouTube watch and search history
- Maps routes and directions
- Voice commands from Google Assistant
- Ads you’ve interacted with
- Website visits (if synced through Chrome and you’re logged in)
However, it does not delete things like:
- Emails in Gmail
- Photos stored in Google Photos
- Google Docs or Drive files
So don’t worry — you’re not wiping out your entire Google account. Just the activity logs.
Will It Be Gone Forever?
Google says that once you delete your activity, it’s removed from your account and their servers. But as with most things online, there’s always a tiny chance that some data may exist in system backups or logs for a short time — usually for legal or technical reasons.
For the average user, though, it’s safe to say the data is effectively gone once you delete it from My Activity.
How to Do This from a Mobile Phone
Don’t want to use a laptop? No problem — here’s how to delete your activity directly from your smartphone:
On Android:
- Open the Google app
- Tap your profile picture
- Select Manage your Google Account
- Go to the Data & Privacy tab
- Tap on My Activity
- Follow the same steps to delete “All Time” data
On iPhone:
Use your browser to go to myactivity.google.com and follow the desktop steps. The process is the same.
How to Remove Voice Recordings from Google Assistant
Many people forget that Google stores recordings of what you say to Assistant. Here’s how to delete those too:
- On myactivity.google.com, use the search bar and type “Assistant.”
- You’ll see a list of voice interactions.
- You can delete them one by one, or filter by date and bulk-delete.
If you’d rather not have your voice saved at all, go back to Activity Controls and toggle off the setting for voice/audio saving.
Final Thoughts
Deleting your Google My Activity history is a small but powerful way to reclaim a bit of privacy in an online world that constantly monitors our every move. Whether you’re concerned about your data being used for ads, or you just don’t like the idea of a digital paper trail, the tools to clean it up are there — you just need to use them.
As someone who’s helped friends and family set this up over the years, I can say it’s one of those things people usually ignore until they see just how much data is collected. Then it clicks. Once you get into the habit of managing your online history, it becomes a natural part of staying safe and in control online.
So don’t wait until your account is cluttered with years of searches, maps, videos, and voice commands. Take ten minutes today and clean it up. Your digital self will thank you later.
Quick Summary:
- Go to myactivity.google.com
- Click “Delete activity by”
- Choose “All time” and confirm deletion
- Turn off tracking under Activity Controls
- Set up auto-delete if needed
- Clean up voice/audio data separately