Windows activity history and your privacy (2024)

Privacy Windows 11 Windows 10 Microsoft account dashboard More...Less

Activity history helps keep track of the things you do on your device, such as the apps and services you use, the files you open, and the websites you browse. Your activity history is stored locally on your device.

You canmanage activity history settingsto choose what to store.

Features that use activity history

The following Windows features use your activity history. Refer back to this page after Windows releases and updates to learn about any newservices and features that use your activity history:

Timeline. See a timeline of activities and choose whether to resume those activities from your device. For example, let’s say that you are editing a Word document on your device, but you aren't able to finish before you haveto stop working for the day. If youturn on theStore my activity history on this devicesetting on the Activity history settings page, you willsee that Word activity in your timeline the following day—and for the next several days—and from there, you can resume working on it.
Microsoft Edge. When you use Microsoft Edge Legacy, your browsing history will be included in your activity history. Activity history will not be saved when browsing with InPrivate windows.

Your Microsoft account settings don't allow you to send your activity history to Microsoft, but your activity history will be stored on your device to help keep track of the things you do.

Activity history for multiple accounts

For multiple accounts, activity history is collected and stored locally for each local account, Microsoft account, or work or school account that you have associated with your device in Settings > Accounts > Email & accounts. You can also see these accounts in Windows 10 under Settings > Privacy > Activity history and in Windows 11 under Settings > Privacy & security > Activity history, where you can filter out activities from specific accounts from showing in your timeline. Hiding an account does not delete the data on the device.

Manage activity history settings

Activity history is customizable—at any time, you can choose to stop saving activity history.

Windows 11Windows 10

Stop saving activity history locally on your device

Select Start , then select Settings > Privacy & security > Activity history.
Switch theStore my activity history on this devicesetting to Off.

Open Activity history settings

Note:The option to send activity history to Microsoft has been deprecated from Windows 11 23H2 and 22H2, January 23, 2024-KB5034204 update. Previous Windows 11 versions before this update would still have the option available on their activity history page, and if enabled, activity history data will still be sent to Microsoft. You can either turn this option off or update to the latest Windows version to get the most recent updates.

You can clear and delete the activity history stored on your device.

Clear your activity history

Select Start , then select Settings > Privacy & security> Activity history.
Next toClear activity history for this account, select Clear history.

Note:If you have previous activity history stored in the cloud before Windows 11 23H2 and 22H2, January 23, 2024-KB5034204 update, you can use the Clear activity history button to delete previously stored data in the cloud. Otherwise, your activity history will be automatically deleted within 30 days from when your data was last synced to the cloud.

Stop saving activity history locally on your device

Select Start , then select Settings > Privacy > Activity history.
Clear the Store my activity history on this device checkbox.

Open Activity history settings

Notes:

If you turn this setting off, you won’t be able to use any of the on-device features that rely on activity history, such as your timeline. You will still be able to see your browsing history in Microsoft Edge.
In previous versions of Windows, this setting was called Let Windows collect my activities from this PC.
The option to send activity history to Microsoft has been deprecated from Windows 10 22H2, January 23, 2024-KB5034203 update. Previous Windows 10 versions before this update would still have the option available on their activity history page, and if enabled, activity history data will still be sent to Microsoft. You can either turn this option off or update to the latest Windows version to get the most recent updates.

You can clear and delete the activity history stored on your device.

Clear your activity history

Select Start , then select Settings > Privacy > Activity history.
Under Clear activity history, select Clear.

Note:If you have previous activity history stored in the cloud before Windows 10 22H2, January 23, 2024-KB5034203 update, you can use the Clear activity history button to delete previously stored data in the cloud. Otherwise, your activity history will be automatically deleted within 30 days from when your data was last synced to the cloud.

In your timeline, you can clear individual activities—or all activities—from an individual day. To do so, right-click an activity and select the option you prefer.

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