browsingData

Enables extensions to clear the data that is accumulated while the user is browsing.

In the browsingData API, browsing data is divided into types:

browser cache
cookies
downloads
history
local storage
plugin data
saved form data
saved passwords

You can use the browsingData.remove() function to remove any combination of these types. There are also dedicated functions to remove each particular type of data, such as removePasswords(), removeHistory() and so on.

All the browsingData.remove[X]() functions take a browsingData.RemovalOptions object, which you can use to control two further aspects of data removal:

how far back in time to remove data
whether to remove data only from normal web pages, or also from hosted web apps and add-ons. Note that this option is not yet supported in Firefox.

Finally, this API gives you a browsingData.settings() function that gives you the current value of the settings for the browser's built-in "Clear History" feature.

To use this API you must have the "browsingData" API permission.

Types

browsingData.DataTypeSet: Object used to specify the type of data to remove: for example, history, downloads, passwords, and so on.
browsingData.RemovalOptions: Object used to specify how far back in time to remove data, and whether to remove data added through normal web browsing, by hosted apps, or by add-ons.

Methods

browsingData.remove(): Removes browsing data for the data types specified.
browsingData.removeCache(): Clears the browser's cache.
browsingData.removeCookies(): Removes cookies.
browsingData.removeDownloads(): Removes the list of downloaded files.
browsingData.removeFormData(): Clears saved form data.
browsingData.removeHistory(): Clears the browser's history.
browsingData.removeLocalStorage(): Clears any local storage created by websites.
browsingData.removePasswords(): Clears saved passwords.
browsingData.removePluginData(): Clears data associated with plugins.
browsingData.settings(): Gets the current value of settings in the browser's "Clear History" feature.

Browser compatibility

	Desktop						Mobile
	Chrome	Edge	Firefox	Internet Explorer	Opera	Safari	WebView Android	Chrome Android	Firefox for Android	Opera Android	Safari on IOS	Samsung Internet
`remove`	Yes	79	53 Specifying `dataTypes.history` will also remove download history and service workers.	?	Yes	No	?	?	85 Specifying `dataTypes.history` will also remove download history and service workers. 57–79 Specifying `dataTypes.history` will also remove download history and service workers.	?	No	?
`removeCache`	Yes	79	53 `removalOptions.since` is not supported.	?	Yes	No	?	?	85 `removalOptions.since` is not supported. 57–79 `removalOptions.since` is not supported.	?	No	?
`removeCookies`	Yes	79	53	?	Yes	No	?	?	8556–79	?	No	?
`removeDownloads`	Yes	79	53	?	Yes	No	?	?	57–79	?	No	?
`removeFormData`	Yes	79	53	?	Yes	No	?	?	57–79	?	No	?
`removeHistory`	Yes	79	53 This function also removes download history and service workers.	?	Yes	No	?	?	85	?	No	?
`removeLocalStorage`	Yes	79	57 `removalOptions.since` is not supported.	?	Yes	No	?	?	85 `removalOptions.since` is not supported.	?	No	?
`removePasswords`	Yes	79	53	?	Yes	No	?	?	85	?	?	?
`removePluginData`	Yes	79	53	?	Yes	No	?	?	85	?	No	?
`settings`	Yes	79	53	?	Yes	No	?	?	8556–79	?	No	?

Example extensions

forget-it

Note: This API is based on Chromium's chrome.browsingData API.

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Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License v2.5 or later.
https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Mozilla/Add-ons/WebExtensions/API/browsingData