Making search private on iPhone takes under a minute. The default engine on Safari was chosen for you, often because someone paid for the spot. Here is how to replace it with one that does not track you.

Step by step on Safari

  1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone.
  2. Scroll down and tap Safari.
  3. Tap Search Engine near the top.
  4. Choose your private search engine from the list, or use it through its own app or web shortcut if it is not shown.
good to know
On iPhone, the search engine you pick in Safari settings is the one the address bar uses for every search, so this one change covers most of your day.

What to set it to

For the switch to actually mean something, point the default at an engine that keeps no account and stores no history. Bare is built for exactly this: your query passes through our server only to fetch results, so the index sees our network rather than your address, and nothing is kept once the page loads. Set it once, and every search from Safari on your iPhone is private by default.

If you change your mind

There is no risk. Safari lets you switch back through the same menu in seconds, and nothing about your bookmarks or history is affected. Try a private default for a week, most people never switch back.