How To Clear Recent Files History In Windows 11

Windows 11 keeps a list of all recently opened files and shows the most recent files in the File Explorer Home and the Recommended section of the Start menu.

The feature helps users quickly view and access recently saved and opened files without navigating to their original location.

Before letting someone access your PC, you might want to clear the recent files history. Luckily, Windows 11 offers multiple ways to clear the recent files history.

Method 1 of 3

Clear recent files history in Windows 11

Step 1: Open File Explorer Options using search in the taskbar or Start menu.

Step 2: Under the General tab, deselect the Show recently used files option.

Step 3: Click the Apply button. This will immediately clear the recent files history from the Start menu and File Explorer Home.

Step 4: Lastly, select the Show recently used files option, then click the Apply button. However, the Recent files folder (which shows all recent files) will continue showing all recent files.

Method 2 of 3

Clear all recent files history from your Windows 11 PC

Windows 11 saves a list of recent files in a folder called Recent. Deleting all the entries from the Recent folder will clear the all recent files history.

Step 1: Open the Run command box by right-clicking the Start button and then clicking the Run option.

Step 2: In the Run dialog, copy and paste the following path before hitting the Enter key.

%APPDATA%\Microsoft\Windows\Recent

Step 3: The Recent folder includes shortcuts to all recently opened files. To clear the recent files history, select all entries and then delete them. This will only delete the file shortcuts in the Recent folder and not the actual files.

Method 3 of 3

Clear full File Explorer history, including recent files history in Windows 11

This method is helpful if you wish to clear the full history of the File Explorer, such as recent files, recent folders, address bar entries, and search history.

Step 1: Open File Explorer Options. To do that, click the three dots in the File Explorer toolbar and then click Options. Alternatively, you can also use the Start menu or taskbar search to open it.

Step 2: In the File Explorer Options dialog, under the General tab, click the Clear button next to the Clear File Explorer history option to clear all File Explorer history, including recent files history.