Clear the Cache in Chrome

Your cache is a collection of temporary Internet files maintained by your Internet browser. The purpose of these files is to store website data, allowing websites to load faster upon revisiting them. Under certain circumstances, however, you may find that you need or want to clear space by clearing your cache. Here's how to do it if you use Google Chrome as your default browser.

Steps

Versions 10 and Up, Short Form[1]

  1. Click on the Chrome menu icon. The Chrome menu icon is located next to your address bar and is positioned to the far right.
    • The icon itself looks like three horizontal lines stacked on one another.
    • From this icon, you can access a variety of tools, settings, bookmarks, and nearly any other information pertaining to Google Chrome.
  2. Select "Tools" from the drop-down menu. This option is listed in the middle of the Chrome menu that pops up from the menu button.
    • "Tools" is located eleventh from the top, at the bottom of the fourth section. It has a right-pointing arrow next to the word.
  3. Choose "Clear browsing data..." This is a setting option that appears from the "Tools" side menu.
    • "Clear browsing data..." is located at the bottom of the second divided section of the "Tools" sub-menu. It is the fourth option overall.
    • Once you select this option, the “Clear browsing data” dialogue box should pop up.
  4. Check "Empty the cache." The "Clear browsing data" dialogue box has a number of checkboxes for you to check, and each will clear a certain type of Internet data when selected. If you only want to clear the cache, only select the tickbox next to "Empty the cache."
    • This checkbox should be third from the top.
    • You can also select other options if you want to clear more than your cache.
    • "Clear browsing history" will erase any record of the websites you have visited and "clear download history" will erase any record of the downloads you have made.
    • "Delete cookies and other site and plug-in data" will wipe out all data sent to your browser from a website. Likewise, "Clear data from hosted apps" will wipe out any information saved to your computer from various third-party applications, and "Deauthorize content licenses" will revoke any permissions granted to third-party sources.
    • "Clear saved passwords" will erase any passwords saved to your personalized Chrome settings and "Clear saved Autofill form data" will erase any information, such as contact information, that you saved to your personalized account for the purpose of quickly filling out Internet forms.
  5. Select "beginning of time." Above the tickboxes is a sentence beginning, "Obliterate the following items from." In order to erase your entire cache, you should select "the beginning of time" from the drop-down menu next to this sentence.
    • Other options include "the past hour," "the past day," "the past week," and "the last 4 weeks." Selecting any of these other options will only erase your cache from within that window of time. Anything prior to that time period will still be retained.
  6. Click on "Clear browsing data." A button stating "Clear browsing data" should be located in the lower right corner of the dialogue box. Click on this button to finish clearing your cache.
    • Note that this step is final. There is no “undo” feature to return your cache to how it was prior to clearing it.

Versions 10 and Up, Long Form[2]

  1. Click on the Chrome menu icon. This icon is locked into your Google taskbar and positioned to the far right of your address bar.
    • The icon looks like three horizontal bars stacked one on top of the next.
    • Clicking on the icon will give you access to a variety of settings, bookmarks, and other browser information.
  2. Choose "Settings." The "Settings" option is listed toward the bottom of the drop-down menu.
    • "Settings" is located in the seventh divided section from the top. The option is fourteenth from the top.
    • Selection "Settings" will cause a separate tab to open. This tab will list a variety of setting-related features for you to change to your liking.
  3. Scroll to the bottom and click "Show advanced settings..." The initial “Settings” page only includes the most basic setting-related options. At the bottom of this page is the option to “Show advanced settings.” Click on this to expand the “Settings” page further.
  4. Click "Clear browsing data..." Continue scrolling until you see the "Privacy" subheading. Click on the "Clear browsing data..." button to option the corresponding dialogue box.
    • Clicking on this button will open up a separate dialogue box. The box will pop up rather than opening in the same tab or in a new tab.
  5. Check the "Empty the cache" box. The "Empty the cache" checkbox is located third from the top. If you only want to clear your cache and nothing else, check the box next to this option while making sure that none of the other boxes are checked.
    • If you want to clear other Internet browsing data simultaneously, select some of the other boxes, as well.
    • "Clear browsing history" erases all records of any websites you have visited, while "Clear download history" erases all record of the data you have downloaded.
    • "Delete cookies and other site and plug-in data" will clear out your Internet cookies, which consist of data sent to your browser from various websites.
    • "Clear saved passwords" will erase passwords saved to your personalized Google account. Similarly, "Clear saved Autofill form data" will pre-set form information saved to your account.
    • "Clear data from hosted apps" will erase information sent to your computer from third-party applications. "Deauthorize content licenses" will revoke any permissions granted to third-party sources.
  6. Select "the beginning of time" to erase everything. Above the checkboxes is an option that allows you to specify the time frame you want to clear the information from. This option is introduced with the phrase "Obliterate the following information from." Selecting "the beginning of time" will clear your entire cache.
    • The drop-down menu will also offer you the options of "the past hour," "the past day," "the past week," and "the last 4 weeks."
  7. Click on "Clear browsing data." This button is located in the lower right corner of the dialogue box and will finalize the clearing of your cache.
    • Note that this step is final. You will not be given an "undo" option if you are dissatisfied with the results.

Versions 1 through 9[3]

  1. Click on the "Customize" button. This button is also referred to as the "Tools" button, and it is located to the far right of the address bar at the top of your browser.
    • The graphic for the button looks like a small wrench.
  2. Select "Options" from the drop-down menu. This choice should be located near the bottom of the "Tools" or "Customize" drop-down menu.
    • The "Options" option is located at the top of the sixth section and is the thirteenth option overall.
    • If using a Mac instead of a PC, look for the word "Preferences" instead of "Options."
  3. Switch to the "Under the Hood" tab. The "Options" or "Preferences" dialogue box should pop up. Click on the final tab in this dialogue box, labelled "Under the Hood" or "Under the Bonnet."
    • Note the two subsections of this tab: "Privacy" and "Network."
  4. Click on "Clear browsing data..." This is the second of two buttons located directly beneath the "Privacy" subheading of the "Options" dialogue box.
    • Clicking on the "Clear browsing data..." button should open up yet another dialogue box.
  5. Check the "Empty the cache" option. Underneath the heading "Obliterate the following items," select the box next to the "Empty the cache" button.
    • Do not select any of the other checkboxes unless you also want to clear those other options.
    • Note that options vary slightly in older versions of Chrome when compared to newer versions. The only other options you have are "Clear browsing history," "Clear download history," "Delete cookies and other site data," "Clear saved passwords," and "Clear saved form data."
  6. Clear "Everything." Beneath the checkboxes is the statement, "Clear data from this period." Select "Everything" from the drop-down menu next to this statement in order to clear your entire cache.
    • Other options include "Last day," "Last week," and "Last 4 weeks."
  7. Click on "Clear browsing data." This button is located in the lower right corner of the "Clear Browsing Data" dialogue box. Clicking it will finalize the process.
    • As with newer versions, there is no "undo" option. In other words, this step is final.



Tips

  • You should clear your cache if your browser starts showing older page content and ignoring new content from a given website. You should also clear your cache if you suspect that the information stored is incomplete or corrupt.
  • A large cache may slow down your computer. Since your cache is composed of temporary Internet files stored inside your computer, keeping them indefinitely could limit your disk space and cause your computer to slow down.
  • To check which version of Google Chrome you use, click on the Google Chrome menu icon and select "About Google Chrome." A page should pop up, and on that page your version number should be listed.
  • You can open the "Clear browsing data" dialogue box even faster in versions 10 and up by using a keyboard shortcut. If using a PC, hit Control+Shift+Delete. For a Mac, hit Shift+Command+Delete. From there, check the "Empty the cache" option as normal. [4]

Warnings

  • Clearing your cache can also clear a large amount of information from the browser memory. Usernames and passwords stored with a website may disappear after clearing your cache.
  • Cache also holds downloaded content, and clearing it may cause frequently visited websites to load slower the first time you visit them after clearing the cache.

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ http://support.google.com/chrome/bin/answer.py?hl=en-GB&answer=95582
  2. ↑ http://www.technipages.com/google-chrome-clear-cache.html
  3. ↑ http://www.refreshyourcache.com/en/chrome/
  4. ↑ http://www.guidingtech.com/1662/clearing-cache-in-google-chrome/
Retrieved from "https://kipkis.com/index.php?title=Clear_the_Cache_in_Chrome&oldid=352066"