Safari Private Browsing on Mac, iPhone, and iPad
Safari's private mode is called Private Browsing on every Apple device, but the way you reach it differs: a window on the Mac, a tab group on iPhone and iPad. Since iOS 17 and macOS Sonoma, private tabs can also lock behind Face ID, Touch ID, or your password when you step away.
On a Mac
- Press ⌘+Shift+N, or choose File → New Private Window.
- Private windows show a dark address bar with a Private badge.
- To always start Safari in private mode, choose Safari → Settings → General and set Safari opens with to A new private window.
On an iPhone
- Tap the tabs button in the bottom-right corner.
- Swipe to the Private tab group and tap + to open a private tab.
- To leave, tap the tabs button and swipe back to your regular tabs.
On an iPad
- Tap the tabs button, or open the sidebar with the icon in the top-left corner.
- Choose Private, then tap + to open a private tab.
- To leave, open the sidebar or tab group menu and switch back to your regular tab group.
What Private Browsing does and doesn't do
Safari won't save your history, cookies, form entries, or open tabs once the private session is closed, and pages you visit are left out of iCloud tab syncing. It doesn't hide your IP address from websites, and your network or internet provider can still see where you connect. A VPN or iCloud Private Relay can mask your IP — but sites can still recognize you if you sign in or through fingerprinting.
FAQ
- Why is Private Browsing missing or greyed out in Safari?
- A Screen Time web-content restriction removes it. On the device, check Settings → Screen Time → Content & Privacy Restrictions → App Store, Media, Web, & Games → Web Content — any setting other than Unrestricted hides Private Browsing.
- Why does Safari ask for Face ID to open my private tabs?
- Since iOS 17 and macOS Sonoma, private tabs lock when you step away and unlock with Face ID, Touch ID, or your password. You can turn this off in Settings → Apps → Safari (or Safari → Settings → Privacy on a Mac) under Require Face ID to Unlock Private Browsing.
- Is Safari Private Browsing the same as Chrome's Incognito?
- Same idea — nothing is saved locally once the session ends. Safari layers on a few extras: private tabs can lock behind Face ID, and known trackers are blocked from loading in private tabs.