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Google or Google Search logo on smartphone, with colorful background stock photo (1)

Credit: Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority

TL;DR

  • Google is working on adding a new incognito search mode to its Android app.
  • The feature will work by turning off the history for your current search.
  • This is the equivalent of Google’s incognito mode on its iOS app.

There are many ways to perform an incognito search on your Android phone, but Google is working on adding another one that is both more intuitive and easier to remember. The option might have the less obvious name of “History Off Search” instead of a simpler “Incognito” and will appear straight in the main Google app. This will finally allow the Google app on Android to catch up to the iOS app, which has had an incognito mode for many years.

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Although this change isn’t live yet, we spotted signs of it in the Google app (v16.42.61.sa.arm64 beta). When typing in words for a new search, a new History Off Search toggle should appear right above the keyboard. If you turn it on and perform a search, the results won’t appear inside the Google app, but will open in a new Chrome Custom Tab (these are the “pop-up” Chrome tabs you get inside other apps) with one interesting addition: this tab is already in Incognito mode.