How to turn on incognito mode on your computer and phone to browse the web privately

 

Incognito mode is an essential part of any web browser. 

  • Incognito mode, also known as private browsing mode, stops your web browser from saving data about you as you browse.
  • While incognito mode is on, your internet history, search history, autofill information, and cookies will be disabled.
  • Incognito mode is available in every major web browser, and is perfect for doing work that needs to be kept private.


How to activate incognito mode or private browsing on your Mac or PC

Incognito mode is a feature in every major browser, although each browser tends to give it a different name. When you activate a private session, a new window will open — this is your incognito window.

When you're done, just close the window to exit incognito mode.


Google Chrome

  1. Open Google Chrome.
  2. Click the three dot icon in the upper-right corner.
  3. Click on "New Incognito Window" from the drop-down menu. A window will open, darker colored than normal, and you'll see a page explaining how incognito mode works.

Google Chrome is where most users get the name "incognito mode" from. 


Microsoft Edge

  1. Open Microsoft Edge.
  2. Click on the three dot icon in the upper-right corner.
  3. Click on "New InPrivate Window" from the drop-down menu. A window will open, with information about how "InPrivate Browsing" works.
     
  4. Edge calls this mode "InPrivate." 


Safari

  1. Open Safari.
  2. Click "File" at the top-left corner of your screen.
  3. Click "New Private Window" from the drop-down menu. The window that opens will look almost exactly the same as a regular window, but the URL bar will be colored a dark gray, and there will be a note underneath it explaining how private browsing works.

Private browsing is available in the Safari app for PC, as well. 


Firefox

  1. Open Firefox.
  2. Click the three lines in the upper-right corner.
  3. Click "New Private Window" from the drop-down menu. 

Firefox focuses heavily on privacy and security. 


How to activate incognito mode or private browsing on your phone or tablet

The browser on your phone also comes with private browsing options. We'll explain how to activate it using the default browsers for iPhones, iPads, and Android devices.


Safari on iPhone and iPad

  1. Open Safari.
  2. Tap the tabs icon — the two overlapping squares in the bottom-right corner on an iPhone, or top-right on an iPad.

Tabs are called "pages" in the Safari mobile app. 

  1. Tap "Private" in the bottom-left (iPhone) or top-right (iPad) to enter Private Browsing Mode. You can exit it in the same way.

You can keep an entirely separate set of pages open in Private mode. 


Chrome on Android phones and tablets

  1. Open Chrome.
  2. Tap the three dot icon in the top-right corner.
  3. Tap "New incognito tab."

Just like Safari, incognito tabs will be kept separate from the rest.