--- title: "How to Delete ChatGPT Memory and Manage What It Keeps" description: "How to delete ChatGPT memory: remove single saved memories, clear everything, what deleting a chat leaves behind, and the settings that turn memory off." canonical: https://past.dev/blog/delete-chatgpt-memory date: 2026-09-03 category: Research authors: The past.dev team --- # How to Delete ChatGPT Memory and Manage What It Keeps How to delete ChatGPT memory depends on which system your account runs: the memory summary that became the default in June 2026, or the legacy saved memories list ([release notes](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/6825453-chatgpt-release-notes)). Both are managed from Settings > Personalization > Memory, item by item or wholesale ([Memory FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8590148-memory-faq)). And if you arrived asking whether ChatGPT has memory at all: yes, it has since it reached Free, Plus, Team, and Enterprise accounts in September 2024 ([OpenAI](https://openai.com/index/memory-and-new-controls-for-chatgpt/)). What the system stores and why OpenAI redesigned it is covered in [How ChatGPT Memory Works](/blog/chatgpt-memory); this page is the deletion steps and off switches, checked against OpenAI's documentation as of September 2026. ## Delete individual ChatGPT memories On the current system, corrections happen in the memory summary. Open it from Settings > Personalization > Memory, then type what you want changed into the text box at the bottom of the summary, or highlight any text to make a specific correction ([Memory FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8590148-memory-faq)). Under a response, the book icon lists the memories that shaped it, and the three dot menu on any memory there lets you correct it ([Memory FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8590148-memory-faq)). On the legacy system, saved memories are discrete entries: delete them individually in settings, or ask in chat, since ChatGPT updates, combines, or removes saved memories when asked ([Memory FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8590148-memory-faq)). ## Clear all ChatGPT memory at once On the memory summary page, open the three dot menu and select "Delete and turn off memory" ([Memory FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8590148-memory-faq)). Two caveats are documented. It does not delete your past chats, and if you re-enable memory later, ChatGPT may create new memories from chats still in your history, including older ones ([Memory FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8590148-memory-faq)). The control is on the web, with mobile rolling out ([Memory FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8590148-memory-faq)). On the legacy system, clear all saved memories in settings; OpenAI may retain a log of deleted saved memories up to 30 days for safety and debugging ([Memory FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8590148-memory-faq)). Retention windows like that one are compared across assistants in [AI data retention](/guides/ai-data-retention). ## What deleting a chat does and does not delete Memory is stored separately from chat history, and the consequences run in both directions: - Deleting a chat does not delete memories created from it ([Memory FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8590148-memory-faq)). - Deleting a memory does not remove mentions of it from past chats; you must delete the specific chat where it was shared ([Memory FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8590148-memory-faq)). - Fully deleting a fact means removing every source it appears in: past chats, archived chats, files, the memory summary, and any connected apps that contain it ([Memory FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8590148-memory-faq)). ## The memory full notice Memory full belongs to the legacy saved memories list, which has a fixed capacity OpenAI does not publish. Automatic memory management, added October 15, 2025, deprioritizes stale entries specifically to keep the list from reaching capacity ([release notes](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/6825453-chatgpt-release-notes)). Users report that once the list is full, new memories stop being saved until space is freed ([OpenAI community thread](https://community.openai.com/t/chatgpt-plus-plan-memory-issue-no-warning-when-memory-is-full-leading-to-lost-entries/1111613)). The fixes: delete entries you no longer need, clear the list, or switch to the current summary system, which updates itself and shipped with increased capacity for Plus and Pro ([release notes](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/6825453-chatgpt-release-notes)). Switch back and forth at Settings > Memory ([Memory FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8590148-memory-faq)). ## Turn off ChatGPT memory entirely - Current system: enable or disable memory at any time in Settings > Personalization > Memory ([Memory FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8590148-memory-faq)). "Delete and turn off memory" (above) wipes and disables in one step ([Memory FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8590148-memory-faq)). - Legacy system: turn off "Enable memory" in Settings > Memory ([Memory FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8590148-memory-faq)). - On Free accounts in the EEA, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein, the lightweight chat referencing is opt-in at Settings > Personalization > Memory > Reference chat history ([release notes](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/6825453-chatgpt-release-notes)). ## Temporary Chats remember nothing new To start one, open a new chat and click the pill shaped "Temporary" button in the top right corner, and choose personalized or non-personalized before the conversation begins; the choice cannot be changed afterward ([Temporary Chat FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8914046-temporary-chat-faq)). A non-personalized Temporary Chat uses no memory and no custom instructions, while a personalized one can reference existing memories but will not create or update any ([Temporary Chat FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8914046-temporary-chat-faq)). Unsaved Temporary Chats stay out of your history, though OpenAI may keep a copy up to 30 days for safety ([Temporary Chat FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8914046-temporary-chat-faq)). ## Business, Enterprise, and Healthcare workspaces - Memories are tied to each account and cannot be shared with other members of a workspace ([Memory FAQ, Business version](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/9295112-memory-faq-business-version)). - Individual members can disable memory in their own settings, and a workspace owner can turn it off workspace-wide, which deletes members' existing saved memories ([Memory FAQ, Business version](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/9295112-memory-faq-business-version)). - Deleting a workspace permanently deletes its conversations and memories; deactivation after a lapsed subscription does not ([Memory FAQ, Business version](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/9295112-memory-faq-business-version)). - In ChatGPT for Healthcare and Enterprise regulated workspaces, improved memory is off by default, and owners or admins choose which roles can use it ([Memory FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/8590148-memory-faq)). ## For builders: deletion you can implement past.dev is a memory API for assistants you build. It runs as a managed service or, on an Enterprise agreement, in your own cloud. `POST /api/v1/ingest` accepts timestamped source text, stable source metadata, an audience slug, and an author identity. Once ingestion completes, `POST /api/v1/recall` requires a query and identity and returns ranked documents with dates and source excerpts. Start with the [Memory API quickstart](/docs/memory-api/quickstart) and the [benchmarks](/benchmarks).