Is Perplexity private?

Perplexity saves your threads to your account by default and offers an AI Data Retention toggle in settings that stops your data being used to improve its models. Threads remain stored and searchable in your library either way, and public or shared threads are visible to anyone with the link.

Short answer

Perplexity saves your threads to your account by default and offers an AI Data Retention toggle in settings that stops your data being used to improve its models. Threads remain stored and searchable in your library either way, and public or shared threads are visible to anyone with the link.

Step by step

  1. Turn off AI data retention: Settings, Account, AI Data Retention. Switching it off prevents your queries being used for model improvement.
  2. Audit your shared threads: Check your library for threads marked Public or Shared. Shared links are accessible to anyone who has them and can be discoverable.
  3. Use Incognito threads for sensitive research: Incognito threads are not saved to your library, which is the right mode for anything you would not want listed.
  4. Export what matters: Save the threads you actually rely on and convert them into documents, since Perplexity's library is not a durable archive.

The sharing problem

Perplexity's biggest privacy issue is not retention, it is sharing. The product actively encourages publishing threads, and a shared link is a public URL. People have published threads containing personal details, business plans, and internal data without registering that "share" meant "publish to the open web."

Go through your library and check the visibility on anything older than a few months.

What is stored

Your account holds your threads, queries, uploaded files, and collections. Perplexity's AI Data Retention setting governs whether that data feeds model improvement, not whether it is stored.

Research is worth keeping

Perplexity's real value is cited, sourced answers, which is exactly the kind of output you want to keep. A thread with fifteen citations is a research artifact, and leaving it inside a web app you do not control is a poor archive strategy.

Save the thread text and run it through the ChatExports converter to get Word, PDF, or Markdown files with the structure intact. Everything happens in your browser, so no research leaves your machine, and the citations survive into the document.

Frequently asked questions

Are Perplexity threads public by default?

No, but sharing a thread creates a publicly accessible link. Review your library for anything shared.

Does Perplexity train on my searches?

Turning off AI Data Retention in settings stops your data being used for model improvement.

Can I delete Perplexity threads?

Yes, individually from your library, or by deleting your account for everything.

Does Incognito mode hide threads from Perplexity?

Incognito threads are not saved to your library, though normal service logging still applies.

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