How to Remove a Google Account From Chrome

Google Chrome works best with a Google account. With this, you can activate Chrome Sync to synchronize your browsing data on all devices and enjoy transparent access to a range of Google services (Gmail, Docs, Calendar, etc.). But if you no longer plan to use your Google account with Chrome on a certain device, it’s best to delete that account from Chrome and prevent it from synchronizing (or overwriting) the data.

For example, suppose you signed in to Chrome with your Google Account on a shared computer or mobile. Once browsing is complete, you should delete it to prevent others from accessing your sensitive browsing data such as passwords and bookmarks. Let’s review what you need to do to remove a Google Account from the desktop, Android and iOS versions of Chrome.

Note: It’s best to check Chrome’s sync settings and back up any unsynchronized data to your Google account before continuing. Otherwise, you may permanently lose all navigation data stored locally during the deletion process.

Google Chrome – Windows and macOS

On Windows and macOS versions of Chrome, you can quickly delete a Google Account by going to the corresponding profile and disabling the Chrome Sync feature.

Point: Click the profile icon in the upper right corner of the Chrome window. You can then switch between profiles via the profile drop-down menu.

Step 1: Open the Google Chrome menu, then click Settings.

2nd step: Under the You and Google section, click Disable.

Step 3: Check the box next to “Erase bookmarks, history, passwords and more from this device”. Then click Deactivate to delete your Google account and the associated Chrome profile.

Note: If you don’t select the “Clear bookmarks, history, passwords and more from this device” checkbox, Chrome will continue to store your profile and browsing data locally despite the removal of your account. Only do this if you want to log out of the browser.

As long as you’ve synced your browsing data to the Google account, you can sign in to Chrome on any device to access it again.

If you were the only Chrome user on the desktop, you might also consider resetting the Chrome browser. This should ensure that no navigation data remains locally on the device.

Google Chrome – Android

Unlike the desktop and iOS, deleting a Google account from Chrome on Android can be problematic: Google accounts are deeply integrated with Android at the system level.

Therefore, choosing to delete the primary Google account associated with your Android device can also log you out from anywhere, preventing you from using all of the Google apps and many device-specific services. Deleting Google Accounts that you later added to Chrome may not cause problems.

For an in-depth explanation, check out this guide on what happens when deleting a Google account from Android.

Note: Some settings on your Android device may appear differently from the screenshots shown in step 3 and step 4.

Step 1: Open Chrome settings on your Android device.

2nd step: Tap the Google account at the top of the Settings screen, then choose the account you want to delete.

Note: If you only want to sign out of Chrome, use the “Sign out and turn off sync” option in the Google Account selection screen.

Step 3: Select Google, and then choose the Google account you want to delete again.

Step 4: Take the time to review your Google Account synchronization settings. Make sure to sync your data for any Google services you may be using.

After that tap on the Delete icon. Press Delete again to confirm.

This will delete the Google account from Chrome, other Google apps, and the rest of the Android device.

Bottom Line

Deleting a Google account from Chrome is fairly simple, but can lead to complications, especially on Android, given the way Google accounts work on the platform. But as long as you synchronize your data with your Google account first, you can simply reconnect, even if there is a problem.