To open a private browsing tab in Microsoft Edge on an iPhone, tap the menu (…) and choose New InPrivate tab. Or tap the numbered square (tabs) icon, tap InPrivate, and tap the + icon. Edge calls its private mode InPrivate, so you will not see the words “private browsing” or “incognito” anywhere in the app.
These steps follow Microsoft’s Edge for mobile FAQ (the iOS section), and the wider privacy details come from Microsoft’s InPrivate guide, both checked in October 2026. The same steps work on an iPad.
Before You Start
- You need the Edge app. Microsoft Edge is a free download from the App Store. Safari’s Private Browsing and Edge’s InPrivate are separate features in separate apps.
- You do not need to sign in. Microsoft’s instructions for opening an InPrivate tab do not require a Microsoft account.
- Labels can shift between versions. Microsoft shows the menu button as three dots (…). If your version of Edge draws the menu button differently, look for the same option name, New InPrivate tab.
- An InPrivate tab is a tab, not a setting. Nothing is switched on permanently. You open a private tab when you want one, and your regular tabs stay where they are. To go back and forth, see how to switch between regular and InPrivate mode in Edge on an iPhone.
How to Open an InPrivate Tab in Edge on iPhone
Microsoft documents two ways to do this. Both end in the same place, so use whichever is closer to your thumb.
Method 1: From the Menu
- Open Microsoft Edge on your iPhone. The browser opens to your last page or the new tab page.
- Tap the menu button (…). A panel of options opens.
- Tap New InPrivate tab. A new, empty private tab opens and is ready for a search or a web address.
This is the shortest route, and it works from any page without visiting the tabs window first.
Method 2: From the Tabs Window
- Tap the numbered square icon on the menu bar. The number shows how many tabs you have open, and tapping it shows all of them.
- Tap InPrivate. The view changes from your regular tabs to your InPrivate tabs. It is empty if you have none open yet.
- Tap the plus icon (+). A new InPrivate tab opens.
Use this method when you also want to see or return to private tabs you already have open.
How to Tell You Are in an InPrivate Tab
The reliable check is the tabs window. Tap the numbered square icon and look at which list is selected: Tabs holds your regular tabs and InPrivate holds your private ones. If the page you were just on is listed under InPrivate, it is a private tab.
Edge also styles InPrivate tabs differently from regular ones, but the exact look can change with app updates and Microsoft does not describe it in its mobile help, so use the tabs window when it matters.
How to Switch Between Regular and InPrivate Tabs
- Tap the numbered square icon to open the tabs window.
- Tap Tabs to see your regular tabs, or InPrivate to see your private ones.
- Tap the tab you want to return to.
Opening an InPrivate tab does not close your regular tabs, and going back to a regular tab does not close your InPrivate tabs. They wait in the background until you close them yourself. That matters on a shared phone: anyone who opens the tabs window and taps InPrivate can see private tabs that are still open.
What InPrivate Browsing Does on an iPhone
Microsoft describes the iPhone and iPad behavior specifically. On iOS, Edge does not save history or form data for an InPrivate tab. Cookies (small files a site uses to remember you, such as a sign-in) are kept only as temporary data for that tab and are deleted when the tab is closed. Microsoft also says no data from InPrivate browsing is written to the iOS file system.
| Item | In an InPrivate tab on iPhone |
|---|---|
| Browsing and search history | Not saved or tracked |
| Form data you type | Not saved |
| Cookies | Temporary for that tab, deleted when the tab is closed |
| New passwords you enter | Not saved |
| Passwords you saved earlier | Edge still offers to fill them in |
| What your network can see | Unchanged: a school, workplace, or internet provider might still see your activity |
A few points need extra care:
- Signing in still identifies you. If you sign in to a website in an InPrivate tab, that site knows it is you for as long as the tab is open.
- Favorites and downloads: in its desktop guide, Microsoft says favorites you add and files you download while InPrivate are kept. Its mobile help does not repeat that for iPhone, so assume that anything you deliberately save stays saved. See where favorites and the old Reading list are in the Edge iPhone app.
- It is not a security tool. Microsoft says InPrivate does not make you safer from malicious websites and does not add ad blocking. For that, see how to block ads in Microsoft Edge on an iPhone.
- It does not hide your location. Microsoft says InPrivate does not stop websites from asking for your precise location; your normal location permissions apply.
How to Close InPrivate Tabs
Closing the tab is what ends the private session, so do this when you are finished rather than just switching back to a regular tab.
- Tap the numbered square icon to open the tabs window.
- Tap InPrivate to show your private tabs.
- Tap the close icon (X) on a tab, or swipe the tab left or right. The tab disappears from the list.
- Repeat for each remaining InPrivate tab.
You have finished when the InPrivate list is empty. There is no undo for this. Because Edge does not keep history for InPrivate tabs, a closed private tab will not appear in your history to reopen, so copy or save any address you still need before you close it.
For more on managing tabs in this app, see how to close a tab in Microsoft Edge on an iPhone. For Safari and Chrome, see how to turn off private browsing on iPhone.
If You Forgot to Use an InPrivate Tab
Pages you visited in a regular tab are in your Edge history. Microsoft’s iOS instructions for removing them are: tap the menu (…), then Settings > Privacy > Clear browsing data. In some versions of the app the middle step is labeled Privacy and security.
Warning: clearing browsing data cannot be undone, and depending on what you select it can also sign you out of websites. Read the list of data types before you confirm, and clear only what you need to. Our guide on how to view your history in the Edge iPhone app shows how to check what is saved first.
Troubleshooting: New InPrivate Tab Is Missing or Blocked
- You cannot find the option in the menu. Use the second method instead: numbered square icon, InPrivate, then +. Microsoft also lets you rearrange the icons in the Edge menu, so the option may not be where you expect it.
- The app looks different from these steps. Update Edge from the App Store, then look again. Microsoft’s instructions describe the current version.
- The phone uses a work or school account. Microsoft’s Intune documentation for Edge on iOS and Android shows that an organization can disable InPrivate browsing in the app. If that policy applies to you, the option is removed on purpose and only your IT administrator can change it.
- The Edge profile belongs to a child in a Microsoft family group. Microsoft’s mobile FAQ says InPrivate can be blocked as a family feature, and its InPrivate guide says children with activity reporting or web filtering turned on cannot browse InPrivate. Microsoft’s family group description names Windows, Xbox, and Android, so behavior on iPhone may differ. The family organizer manages those settings.
- Screen Time is set up on the iPhone. Apple’s parental controls guide explains its web content filters. Apple documents their effect on Safari; neither Apple nor Microsoft documents whether they remove InPrivate in Edge, so treat this as a possible cause rather than a confirmed one. For the Safari version of this problem, see why you cannot create a private browsing tab in Safari.
If InPrivate is blocked by a parent, school, or employer, that is a decision made by whoever manages the device or account. The right fix is to ask them, not to look for a way around it.
Edge on Other Devices
- iPad: same steps and same option names as iPhone.
- Android: same two methods. The storage details differ: Microsoft says Edge on Android keeps InPrivate data in a temporary profile and deletes that profile after you close all InPrivate tabs.
- Windows or Mac: private browsing opens in a separate window instead of a tab. Select Settings and more > New InPrivate window.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is InPrivate the same as incognito?
Yes, it is the same idea under a different name. Edge calls it InPrivate, Chrome calls it Incognito, and Safari and Firefox call it Private Browsing. On an iPhone, each browser keeps its own private tabs, so an InPrivate tab in Edge has nothing to do with a private tab in Safari. For Firefox, see how to use private browsing in Firefox on iPhone.
Are my passwords saved when I browse InPrivate on iPhone?
No. Microsoft says Edge does not save any passwords you enter while browsing InPrivate. It will still offer to fill in passwords you saved earlier in Edge, so signing in to your usual sites remains quick.
Can my employer, school, or internet provider see what I do in InPrivate?
They might. Microsoft says other people who use the device will not see your browsing activity, but your school, workplace, and internet service provider might still be able to access it. InPrivate changes what is stored on your iPhone, not what travels over the network.
Does InPrivate hide my location?
No. Microsoft says InPrivate does not stop websites from asking for your precise location; it uses your normal location permission settings.
Do I have to close InPrivate tabs, or is leaving the app enough?
Close them. On iOS, Microsoft ties the cleanup to closing the tab: cookies for an InPrivate tab are deleted when that tab is closed. Open InPrivate tabs also stay visible in the tabs window to anyone who picks up the unlocked phone.
Can I make Edge on iPhone always open in InPrivate?
Microsoft’s mobile help does not describe a setting that makes every new tab an InPrivate tab for personal use, so plan on choosing New InPrivate tab each time. On managed work devices, administrators have their own policies that control when InPrivate is used.
Why can I not open a private tab?
The usual documented reasons are a work or school policy that disables InPrivate, or a child account in a Microsoft family group. Start with the tabs window method and an app update, then check with whoever manages the account.
Next Step
Open Edge, tap the menu (…), and tap New InPrivate tab once so you know where it is. When you are done, open the tabs window, tap InPrivate, and close every tab in the list to end the session. To tidy up the regular new tab page as well, learn how to remove a site icon from the new tab page in the Edge iPhone app.
Matthew Burleigh has been writing tech tutorials since 2008. His writing has appeared on dozens of different websites and been read hundreds of millions of times.
After receiving his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Computer Science he spent several years working in IT management for small businesses. However, he now works full time writing content online and creating websites.
His main writing topics include iPhones, Microsoft Office, Google Apps, Android, and Photoshop, but he has also written about many other tech topics as well.