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To limit Microsoft’s personalized advertising, change two separate settings. In the Microsoft Privacy Dashboard, open Ad settings and turn off See ads that interest you. In Edge, go to Settings and more (…) > Settings > Privacy, search, and services > Privacy and turn off the setting beginning Allow Microsoft to save your browsing activity….
The first switch stops Microsoft from using account data, including browsing history, for personalized advertising across Microsoft services and devices. The Edge switch is broader: it prevents Edge activity from being collected and used to personalize ads, Bing search results, shopping, and news. Turning off the ad switch alone does not disable every kind of personalization or erase history already stored on your devices.
What the two switches actually control
Microsoft separates advertising personalization from the use of Edge activity to tailor other experiences. That is why changing one setting may not produce the result you expect.
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| Privacy Dashboard > See ads that interest you | Personalized advertising across Microsoft services and devices | Microsoft account data, including browsing history associated with the account | For signed-in users, the account choice remains until you change it or delete the account | General account setting |
| Edge > Allow Microsoft to save your browsing activity… | Use of Edge activity for personalized ads, search, shopping, and news | Browsing activity collected through Edge and associated Microsoft services | Applies to future collection and use while the setting is off | Edge privacy setting; wording can vary slightly by version |
| Clear Privacy Dashboard activity | Deletes browsing activity stored in your Microsoft account | Microsoft’s cloud copy of activity | Deletion affects the account copy; it does not remove local browser history | Available to signed-in users |
| Edge Clear browsing data | Removes history and other data saved on the device | Local Edge profile | Depends on the data types and time range you select | Available in Edge settings |
| Intrusive ads | Blocks ads on sites identified as intrusive or misleading | Local Edge blocking behavior and its downloaded list | Applies while the control is enabled | Separate from Microsoft account ad personalization |
Use both primary switches if your goal is the broadest reduction in Microsoft personalization. The dashboard switch is the decisive control for targeted advertising; the Edge activity switch covers additional personalized experiences.
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Step 1: Turn off personalized advertising in the Microsoft Privacy Dashboard
This account-level setting tells Microsoft not to use your data for personalized advertising, including browsing history. It applies across supported Microsoft services and devices where you use the account.
- Sign in to your Microsoft account and open the Microsoft Privacy Dashboard.
- Open Ad settings.
- Find See ads that interest you.
- Turn the setting Off.
- Confirm that the control remains off after the page saves or refreshes.
Microsoft states that when See ads that interest you is off, it will not use your data for personalized advertising, including browsing history, regardless of whether Edge’s separate personalized-advertising and experiences control is on or off. This is the setting to change when the specific problem is targeted ads based on Bing searches or activity tied to your Microsoft account.
What this setting does not do
- It does not remove advertisements entirely. You can still see contextual or non-personalized ads.
- It does not automatically turn off personalization of Bing search results, shopping recommendations, or news.
- It does not delete local history saved in Edge on a computer or phone.
- It does not erase cloud activity that you have not deleted separately.
Step 2: Stop Edge from using browsing activity for personalization
The second control limits the collection and use of Edge browsing activity for several Microsoft experiences, not just advertising.
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- Select Settings.
- Open Privacy, search, and services.
- Scroll to the Privacy section.
- Turn off the toggle whose label begins Allow Microsoft to save your browsing activity including history, usage, favorites, web content, and other browsing data to personalize Microsoft Edge and Microsoft services like ads, search, shopping and news.
With this switch off, Microsoft says it stops future collection and use of Edge activity for personalized ads and the listed Edge and Microsoft experiences. The exact line may wrap across several lines, so look for the opening words rather than a short label such as “personalized experiences.”
Why you need this switch for Bing results and news
Ad personalization and content personalization are separate. Turning off See ads that interest you addresses targeted advertising, but Microsoft can still use permitted activity signals to tailor search results, shopping, or news unless the Edge browsing-activity control is also off. If your concern is “Bing still seems to know what I am interested in,” this second setting is the relevant one.
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Step 3: Delete activity Microsoft already has
Disabling future use does not automatically remove historical data. If you are signed in, review the browsing-activity section of the Microsoft Privacy Dashboard and delete the entries you do not want retained in your account.
- Return to the Microsoft Privacy Dashboard while signed in.
- Open the browsing-activity or activity-history area.
- Review the categories and dates shown.
- Delete individual records or use the available clear option for a larger range.
- Allow time for the dashboard to update, then verify that the selected activity is gone.
Microsoft’s current Edge privacy documentation says shared browsing history used for personalization is stored on secure Microsoft servers for up to 180 days. That retention period describes the cloud activity used for the relevant personalization feature; it is not a promise that every type of Microsoft account data disappears after 180 days.
Cloud activity and local history are different copies
Clearing the dashboard removes the account copy, not the history saved in each Edge profile. To remove local records, open Edge’s browsing-data controls:
- Select Settings and more (…) > Settings.
- Choose Privacy, search, and services.
- Under Delete browsing data, select Choose what to clear.
- Select a time range and the data types you want to remove, such as browsing history.
- Select Clear now.
Repeat the local cleanup on other devices if you use Edge on more than one device. Deleting local history does not change the Privacy Dashboard setting, and changing the dashboard setting does not delete local files.
Step 4: Block particularly intrusive website ads
Edge has an Intrusive ads control that can block ads on sites included on Microsoft’s locally downloaded list of intrusive or misleading advertising. This can make pages less disruptive, but it is not an opt-out from personalized Bing advertising.
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- Open Settings and more (…) > Settings in Edge.
- Select Cookies and site permissions.
- Open Intrusive ads.
- Enable the option to block ads on sites that show intrusive or misleading ads.
The feature targets the format or behavior of ads on qualifying websites. It does not determine whether Microsoft uses your account data for ad selection, so keep the Privacy Dashboard switch off for that purpose.
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How the controls affect common situations
“I want Bing to stop using my searches for targeted ads.”
Turn off See ads that interest you in the Privacy Dashboard. If you also want to reduce personalization of Bing results, shopping, and news, turn off the Edge browsing-activity setting as well.
“I turned off personalized ads, but I still see ads.”
Turning off personalization does not remove advertising inventory. You may continue to receive ads selected by page context, location, language, device, or other non-personalized factors. The expected change is that Microsoft should not use your account data, including browsing history, to make the ads personally relevant.
“Bing results still look tailored.”
Check the Edge browsing-activity toggle. The ad setting alone does not automatically disable personalized search results or news. Also check whether you are signed in to a different Microsoft account in Edge or Bing.
“My old searches are still visible in Edge.”
Use Edge’s local Clear browsing data controls. If activity is also shown in the Privacy Dashboard, delete the cloud copy there. These are separate stores and must be cleared separately.
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“The setting is missing or cannot be changed.”
Microsoft says personalization depends on several conditions: you must be using a signed-in, non-child account; you must have given permission; an organization policy must allow the feature; and the session must not be Guest or InPrivate. A work or school administrator can therefore restrict or determine what appears in Edge. Check the account and device policy before assuming the control failed.
InPrivate and Guest sessions: what they do and do not protect
InPrivate and Guest sessions avoid the normal persistent personalization path because they do not use a regular signed-in profile in the same way. They are useful for reducing local traces and keeping a temporary session separate from your everyday profile.
They are not anonymity tools. Microsoft’s guidance makes clear that InPrivate does not hide activity from an employer, school, or internet service provider. Those parties may still observe traffic through network logs, security systems, DNS records, or other controls. InPrivate also does not override account, network, or organization policies.
For routine browsing, use the two privacy settings described above. Use InPrivate or Guest when you need a temporary session that should not add normal history and profile signals, while understanding the network visibility limits.
Interest groups and privacy-preserving ads
Some Edge versions expose an interest-groups area associated with privacy-preserving advertising. It lets you inspect groups assigned to the browser and delete individual groups or all groups.
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Microsoft describes this capability as under development and says it is not available to every user or market. Its presence or absence does not indicate whether the main Privacy Dashboard ad setting is working. If you see it, use it as an additional cleanup option; do not treat it as a replacement for turning off See ads that interest you.
Account, cookie, and session persistence
The opt-out behaves differently depending on whether you are signed in.
- Signed-in account: The ad-personalization choice is stored with the account and remains until you change it or delete the account.
- Signed-out browser: Microsoft says the opt-out is kept in a cookie for six months unless you clear cookies sooner.
- Cleared cookies: Removing cookies can remove the signed-out preference, so you may need to set it again.
- InPrivate or Guest: These temporary sessions do not provide the normal persistent profile path and should not be confused with an account-level opt-out.
If several people use the same computer, check each Edge profile and each Microsoft account. A setting changed in one profile does not automatically change another profile’s account or local data.
A practical verification checklist
After changing the settings, use this checklist to confirm that the intended controls are in place:
- In the Privacy Dashboard, See ads that interest you is visibly Off.
- In Edge, the Allow Microsoft to save your browsing activity… toggle is off.
- You have deleted cloud activity from the Privacy Dashboard if historical records should be removed.
- You have cleared local Edge history on each device where it matters.
- You understand that non-personalized ads can still appear.
- You have checked the correct Microsoft account and Edge profile.
- You are not relying on InPrivate to conceal activity from an employer, school, or ISP.
- You have treated the Intrusive ads setting as a separate website-ad blocking feature.
The privacy trade-off
Disabling these settings reduces the data Microsoft can use to tailor ads and, when the Edge activity control is off, to tailor search, shopping, and news. The trade-off is less personalized relevance: recommendations and results may be less aligned with your interests, and you may see more general advertising.
The controls do not make browsing data disappear from every place it can exist. Local history, cloud activity, network records, and data held by websites are governed by different systems. A complete privacy routine therefore combines account settings, browser-data cleanup, profile discipline, and an accurate understanding of what your network operator or organization can see.
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