When we first get on the Internet, now and again you’ll see something somewhere telling you to “delete your cookies” or “delete your cache” or both! Now, of course the first thing that came to my mind was some chocolately, chewy cookies. Thankfully, if you’re looking for a good chocolate chip recipe, I know for a fact you can find a good one over at PCHsearch&win!
But these are a different kind of cookie, a tracking cookie! We’ve noticed that some of our blog readers have asked just how they clear their cache and cookies if they are asked to do so. So let’s first talk a bit about what these things are!
First, cookies are small, tiny files that your Web Browser uses to save your information about a certain site. Have you ever searched for a product, and then you saw an advertisement for that very product on another website? That’s just one example of what a cookie can do!
Your cache is the folder on your computer that stores images and Internet files that you’ve already seen. It is really helpful for visiting the same site every day. For example, if your cache has the graphics saved for the PCHgames site, then the next time you visit the site, the page will load faster than the first time! That’s because many of the graphics are already saved on your computer, which saves your Internet browser a lot of time.
Most internet browsers are set up to automatically save cookies and cache files. But in the event that you need to delete your cookies & cache because of some bug, here’s how you do it!
First, you need to figure out what browser your using. The most common browsers are Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome and Safari. Usually the name of the browser will appear on the icon you click (or double click) on to open the browser, but you can also identify the browser name by going up to the menu bar on top and clicking “Help” and then click on “About.” This will also tell you the version number of the browser you are using, so jot that down in case you need to know it later.
So here’s how you delete your cookies & cache if you’re a desktop user:
To clear cookies and cache in Internet Explorer 9, 10 or 11:
• Once your browser is open, click the gear icon in the top right corner to open the settings menu.
• In the settings menu, select “Safety” and then “Delete browsing history…” Alternatively, you may simply press the Ctrl+Shift+Delete keys on your keyboard simultaneously to open the “Delete Browsing History” window.
• In the window that appears, place a checkmark to the left of “Temporary Internet files and website files” as well as “Cookies and website data”. You will also need to remove the checkmarks from all of the other boxes, especially “Preserve Favorites website data”. This option makes Internet Explorer also delete objects from websites in your Favorites folder, which is necessary to completely clear your cookies and cache.
• Click the “Delete” button near the bottom of the window to perform the operations (i.e. clear your cache by deleting temporary files). Your computer will work for a moment, and then the process will be complete.
• Restart your browser. You’ve successfully cleared Internet Explorer’s cookies and cache!
To clear cookies and cache in Internet Explorer 8:
• Once your browser is open, click “Tools” in the menu bar located top left hand corner to open the “Tools” menu. Alternatively, you may simply press the Ctrl+Shift+Delete keys on your keyboard simultaneously to open the “Delete Browsing History” window (and skip step 2)
• Click on “Delete Browsing History…”
• In the window that appears, place a checkmark to the left of “Temporary Internet files” as well as “Cookies”. You will also need to remove the checkmarks from all of the other boxes, especially “Preserve Favorites website data”. This option makes Internet Explorer also delete objects from websites in your Favorites folder, which is necessary to completely clear your cookies and cache.
• Click the “Delete” button near the bottom of the window to perform the operations (i.e. clear your cache by deleting temporary files). Your computer will work for a moment, and then the process will be complete.
• Restart your browser. You’ve successfully cleared Internet Explorer’s cookies and cache!
To clear cookies and cache in Firefox 19.0 or higher:
• Click the Firefox menu in the top left corner. Next, select the right arrow next to “History”, and click “Clear Recent History” (or click on “History” followed by “Clear Recent History…” if you do not have the Firefox Menu). Alternatively, you may simply press the Ctrl+Shift+Delete keys on your keyboard simultaneously to open the “Clear All History” window.
• Ensure that the “Details” section is expanded by clicking on the downward arrowhead to the left of “Details” (if it isn’t already expanded). Place a checkmark to the left of “Cookies” as well as “Cache” from the list of options. Remove the checkmarks from all of the other boxes to avoid deleting data unintentionally.
• In the “Time range to clear:” drop down menu in the top right hand corner of this window, select “Everything”.
• Click the “Clear Now” button near the bottom of the window to perform the operations (i.e. clear your cache by deleting temporary files). Your computer will work for a moment, and the process will be complete.
• Restart your browser. You’ve successfully cleared Firefox’s cookies and cache!
To clear cookies and cache in Chrome:
• Once your browser is open, click the icon that appears as three horizontal lines stacked on top of each other (the Customise and control Google Chrome menu, located in the upper-right corner).
• Select “Tools”, and in the new menu that appears, click on “Clear browsing data…”; Alternatively, you can also access the “Clear browsing data” window by pressing the Ctrl+Shift+Delete keys on your keyboard simultaneously, or by typing “chrome://settings/clearBrowserData” into your address bar (omnibox).
• Place a checkmark to the left of “Delete cookies and other site and plug-in data” as well as “Empty the cache”. Remove the checkmarks from all other boxes to avoid deleting data unintentionally.
• In the “Obliterate the following items from” dropdown menu at the top of this window, select “the beginning of time”.
• Click the “Clear browsing data” button near the bottom right of the window to perform the operations (i.e. clear your cache by deleting temporary files). Your computer will work for a moment, and then the process will be complete.
• Restart your browser. You’ve successfully cleared Chrome’s cookies and cache!
To clear cookies and cache in Safari 5:
• Once your browser is open, click on the Safari menu in the top left hand corner and select “Reset Safari…”
• Place a checkmark to the left of “Remove all website data” (or “Remove all cookies” if the “Remove all website data” option is not present) and remove the checkmarks from all other boxes to avoid deleting data unintentionally.
• Click the “Reset” button near the bottom of the window to clear your cookies. Your computer will work for a moment, and then the process will be complete.
• Click on the Safari menu in the top left hand corner and select “Empty Cache…”
• Click on the “Empty” button in the window that appears to clear your cache.
• Restart your browser. You’ve successfully cleared Safari’s cookies and cache!
To clear cookies and cache in Safari 6 or higher:
• Once your browser is open, click on the Safari menu in the top left hand corner and select “Reset Safari…”
• Place a checkmark to the left of “Remove all website data” as well as “Clear history”. Remove the checkmarks from all other boxes to avoid deleting data unintentionally.
• Click the “Reset” button near the bottom of the window to perform the operations (i.e. clear your cache by deleting temporary files). Your computer will work for a moment, and then the process will be complete.
• Restart your browser. You’ve successfully cleared Safari’s cookies and cache!
For browsers that are not listed here or for additional help, please contact your Web Browser’s manufacturer.
You might also be on a mobile device, but we’ve got you covered! Here’s how you do it there as well:
Clearing Cache & Cookies on an IOS Device (iPhone®/iPod®/iPad®)
1. Click the “Home” button (round button on the bottom of your device) to go to your “Home” Screen.
2. Tap the “Settings” button.
3. Scroll down to “Safari”.
4. Tap on “Clear Cookies and Data”. You will receive a warning message. Tap on “Clear Cookies and Data” to confirm.
5. Tap on “Clear History”. You will receive a warning message. Tap on “Clear History” to confirm.
6. Click the “Home” button to go back to your “Home” Screen.
7. Restart your device by turning it off and then on again.
Clearing Cache & Cookies on an Android Device
1. Open your “Home” screen.
2. Tap your web browser icon.
3. Tap the “Menu” button (it will look like 3 horizontal bars next to the website address).
4. Tap the “Settings” option.
5. Your device will either take you to a menu of available settings OR it will have one of the three following options. Tap on the option you have:
– Privacy & Security
– Privacy
– Security
6. Tap on “Clear Cache”.
7. Tap “OK” to confirm.
8. Tap “Clear all cookie data”.
9. Tap “OK” to confirm.
10. Click the “Home” button to go back to your “Home” Screen.
11. Restart your device by turning it off and then on again.
We hope that this answers all your questions about clearing your cookies & cache! Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a recipe to follow! Just kidding 
Matt K.
PCH Creative
P.S. – What was one of the first things you looked up when you first got on the Internet? Tell us in the comments below!