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How to Use Incognito Mode in the Google Search App

Google documents Search app Incognito on iPhone and iPad through the profile menu. Here’s how to switch it on, what it protects, and what Android users can do in Chrome instead.
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On an iPhone or iPad, open the Google app, tap your profile picture, and turn on Incognito mode. Google documents this control for Search on iOS. The similarly named Chrome feature is separate; Google’s Android Google app settings guidance does not document an equivalent Incognito control in the Search app.

Turn on Incognito mode in the Google app on iPhone or iPad

  1. Open the Google app.
  2. Tap your profile picture.
  3. In the account menu, turn on Incognito mode.

To leave Incognito mode, tap your profile picture and turn it off from that menu. Google confirms that the profile-picture control turns Search on iOS Incognito on or off, though its guidance does not specify every menu label for every app version. Google Safety Centre: Incognito in Search on iOS

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Lock a returning Incognito session with Face ID

On iPhone or iPad, you can enable an optional Face ID confirmation for returning to an open Incognito session after 15 minutes away. This adds a barrier if someone else picks up your device; it does not prevent websites or network operators from observing activity. Google app settings for iPhone and iPad

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What to do on Android

Google’s Android Google app settings guidance does not document an Incognito control for the Search app. That means the documented iOS steps should not be assumed to apply on Android. Google does document Incognito in Chrome for Android, but Chrome is a different app and its session is not the Google Search app’s Incognito mode. Google app settings on Android

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Open an Incognito window in Chrome for Android

  1. Open Chrome.
  2. Tap More.
  3. Choose “Open in a new Incognito window.” On tablets, the option may appear as “New Incognito window.”
  4. To end the session, close all Incognito tabs.

These steps apply to Chrome, not the Google Search app. Google Chrome Help: browse in Incognito mode

What Google Search app Incognito does—and does not—hide

Google says Search history is not saved to your Google Account when you search and browse in Incognito mode. This is about account history; it is not a promise that all activity disappears from your device. Google distinguishes account history from on-device Search history and browser history, and says visited pages may be saved in Chrome history when using the Google app. Google Search Help: manage Search history

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For Chrome, Google explains that Incognito limits information retained on the device after the session, but does not make browsing invisible. Websites and people or organizations managing the network—such as an employer, school, or internet provider—may still observe activity. Bookmarks and downloaded files can remain on the device. Those details describe Chrome’s behavior, not a complete inventory of what the Google Search app stores. Google Chrome Help: browse in Incognito mode

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Keep similarly named Google features separate

Google Go is a different app. Its “New Chrome Incognito tab” option opens a Chrome tab and is unavailable if Chrome is not installed; it is not the Google Search app’s own Incognito mode. Google Go Help

Google’s help pages note that Search history settings are being updated and may not match every current experience. Menu wording and availability can therefore vary by app release; use the platform-specific guidance above rather than assuming the same control exists on every device. Google Search Help

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