You're browsing as a guest: Chrome Guest mode explained
"You're browsing as a guest" is the notice Google Chrome shows when a window runs in Guest mode, a temporary profile with no access to anyone's bookmarks, passwords, history or extensions. Pages you open are not added to history, and cookies and site data are deleted when you close all Guest windows. On a Chromebook the same notice appears in a guest session, which also wipes downloaded files when you sign out.
This guide explains both versions of the message, how to open and close a guest profile in Chrome, how Guest mode differs from Incognito, and why the option is sometimes missing.
What "You're browsing as a guest" means
The "You're browsing as a guest" message means Chrome opened a blank, temporary profile that is separate from every signed-in or local profile on the device. The guest cannot see or change the owner's bookmarks, saved passwords, autofill data, history or settings, and nothing the guest does is written into those profiles.
Two wordings of the notice exist, and the difference matters for downloads:
| Where you see it | When data is removed | Downloads and bookmarks |
|---|---|---|
| Chrome on Windows, Mac or Linux | After you close all open Guest windows | Downloaded files stay on the computer |
| Chromebook guest session | After you sign out (Exit guest) | Downloaded files and bookmarks you create are not kept |
In both cases Guest mode only hides activity on the device itself. Google notes that websites you visit, sites you sign in to, your employer, school or network operator, your internet provider and search engines can still see the activity. If you download a file in a desktop guest window, delete it from the Downloads folder yourself before you hand the computer back.
How to open a guest profile in Chrome
To open a guest profile in Chrome on a computer, select the Profile icon at the top right of the window and choose Guest profile. A new window opens with the "You're browsing as a guest" notice on its new tab page, and the profile shows a generic guest picture instead of an account avatar.
- Open Chrome on Windows, macOS or Linux.
- Select the Profile icon (your account picture or initial) at the top right.
- Select Guest profile.
- Use the new window as normal. Every tab or window you open from it belongs to the same guest session.
Older versions of Chrome needed an "Enable guest browsing" checkbox in the People section of Settings before the option appeared. That checkbox is gone: Guest mode is available by default unless an administrator has turned it off.
Google's Guest mode instructions cover Chrome on computers. On a phone, an Incognito tab is the closest equivalent for short private sessions.
How to exit Guest mode in Chrome
To exit Guest mode, close the guest window: select the Close (X) icon at the top right on Windows and Linux, or at the top left on a Mac. You can also select the Profile icon in the guest window and choose Close guest, which is the faster route when the guest opened several windows.
Closing the last guest window deletes the session's browsing history, cookies and site data. Your own profile windows stay open and are not affected.
The old Ctrl+Shift+Q shortcut that quit all of Chrome, guest windows included, was retired by Google in 2018, so use Close guest or the window controls instead.
On a Chromebook, a guest session ends differently: click the time at the bottom right and select Exit guest. This signs the guest out and deletes the session's files, cookies, website data and browsing activity.
Guest mode vs Incognito in Chrome
Guest mode is meant for someone else using your computer, while Incognito is meant for you browsing privately in your own profile. Both stop Chrome from saving history, but they differ in what the window can reach.
| Feature | Guest mode | Incognito |
|---|---|---|
| Intended user | A visitor on a shared or borrowed computer | The profile owner |
| Access to bookmarks and settings | None, the profile starts empty | Yes, your profile's bookmarks and settings stay available |
| Browsing history saved | No | No |
| Cookies and site data | Deleted when all Guest windows close | Deleted when all Incognito windows close |
| Visible to sites, networks and ISP | Yes | Yes |
If a person uses your computer regularly, a separate profile works better than repeated guest sessions, because it keeps their bookmarks and logins apart from yours. Our guide to using multiple Chrome profiles shows how to set one up. To remove traces from your own profile after the fact, clear Chrome's browsing data instead.
Why the Guest profile option is missing
The Guest profile option is usually missing because a policy has turned Guest mode off. On Windows, Mac and Linux this is the Chrome policy BrowserGuestModeEnabled ("Enable guest mode in browser" in Group Policy). When it is unset, guest sessions are allowed; when it is set to disabled, the Guest profile entry disappears from the Profile menu.
- Check the policy: open chrome://policy and look for BrowserGuestModeEnabled. If it is listed with the value false, Guest mode was disabled on purpose. A "Your browser is managed by your organization" notice in the Chrome menu means policies are active.
- Work or school devices: only the administrator can change the setting. Ask them rather than editing it.
- Your own PC: on Windows the value lives under HKLM\Software\Policies\Google\Chrome. A value of 0 disables Guest mode; removing it restores the default. Restart Chrome and select Reload policies on chrome://policy afterwards.
- Supervised profiles: Guest mode is not available when all non-supervised profiles on the computer are locked.
- Chromebooks: the owner can turn it on in Settings, under Privacy and security, Manage other people, Guest browsing. On managed Chromebooks only the administrator can do this.
A related policy, BrowserGuestModeEnforced, makes Chrome always start in a guest session instead of an existing profile, which is useful for kiosks and shared library PCs.
FAQ
Can a guest see my passwords or bookmarks in Chrome?
No. A guest profile starts empty and cannot see or change any other Chrome profile's passwords, bookmarks, history or settings.
Can the computer owner see what a guest did?
Chrome does not keep the guest's history, but Google warns that the device owner may still be able to access some data, such as activity and location, and the network or employer can see traffic. Treat Guest mode as protection between profiles, not as anonymity.
Can I install extensions in a Chrome guest window?
The guest profile does not load your extensions, and anything a guest changes is discarded with the session. On a Chromebook guest session, apps cannot be installed and the Play Store is not available.
Related: Chrome profiles for every user, internal chrome:// pages and what they do
Am a little confused as I have the guest icon in the top right hand corner of my screen, but have never ‘enabled’ this feature or downloaded anything :/ Does this mean that someone or ‘something’ is in my computer :/ tried deleting it, but it sill keeps appearing…
Google enabled it recently on stable versions of Chrome. Check out this guide if you want to remove it: https://www.ghacks.net/2014/08/22/how-to-remove-google-chromes-you-menu/
Or use the Windows guest account so you get privacy for everything. :)
While that is better, or another Windows account for that matter, it also means that you have to log out for that to happen.
If you switch the user from the Start screen, you don’t even have to visit the logon screen. :)
Why would you allow ANYONE on your computer account???
IMO this is a stupid feature, that’s what a guest User ID is for!
Ubuntu 12.04: “Sorry, this feature is not available on your platform.” Version 31.0.1650.57, same as Thu Ya. S’OK, I can deal with that using logon. Next time I boot to Win7 I’ll try guest user, though. Good tip.
Superb piece of info. Thanks. Should be much useful. :)
You will be updated to this one eventually then, as I’m running Canary.
The core difference is — likely — that you are running a different Chrome version. Google is still working on user management. Are you running Chrome Stable or Beta?