What’s the point of regularly clearing the browser cache

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By Isa Kabakci | September 23, 2023, 8:08 am

There are a few reasons why clearing the cache can be very useful. TECHBOOK explains to you what advantages it brings and how you can do it on your laptop and smartphone or in the various browsers.

The browser cache is a buffer in which parts of websites are stored for later access. Basically, this is quite clever, as the cached data is used when loading or accessing a website, thus reducing the loading time. In simple terms, this means that the cache recognizes directly whether a file has already been accessed and downloaded. If this is the case, it loads the selected file or website directly from the cache and the smartphone or laptop is spared because it “has to put in less effort”. That actually sounds very good. But why should you empty the browser cache regularly?

That’s why it’s important to clear the cache

Depending on how many websites are stored in the browser cache, overfilling can slow down your laptop or smartphone. The cache is not a buffer storage in the true sense, as we know it from hard drives or RAM. Instead, browsers store website data directly on memory. This can quickly fill up, especially on smartphones with smaller memory.

Also, a caching issue can sometimes occur where a browser does not call up new website information when loading a page, but instead calls up the cached data. Then the only thing that helps is to clear the cache. Below you will find out how this works for the individual browsers on laptops and smartphones.

Also interesting: What are cookies on the Internet and what are they used for?

Laptop or PC: Clear cache at…

Google Chrome

  1. Open the Chrome browser and click on the three-dot menu at the top right.
  2. Then go to “More tools” and click on “Clear browsing data…” in the drop-down menu.
  3. Now you need to check the box that says “Cached images and files”.
  4. You can also delete cookies and history at the same time if you want.
  5. Once all the boxes have been filled, you must finally click on the “Delete data” button.

Microsoft Edge

  1. Open the Edge browser and click on the three-dot menu in the top right.
  2. Then go to “Settings” and select “Privacy, Search and Service” from the list on the left.
  3. Scroll down a little to “Clear browsing data” and click the “Select items to delete” button.
  4. Check the box that says “Cached images and files” and then click “Delete now.”

Mozilla Firefox

  1. Open the Firefox browser and go to the three-line menu in the top right corner.
  2. Then select “Settings” and click on “Privacy & Security” in the list on the left.
  3. Then scroll down a little to “Cookies and website data”.
  4. Click on the “Remove data” button.
  5. Select the box that says “Cached Web Content/Cache.”
  6. Finally, you have to click on “Empty”.

Opera

  1. First, open the Opera browser.
  2. Click on the three-dot menu at the bottom left and select the icon (“Open in new tab”) next to “Settings” in the sidebar.
  3. Scroll down to “Privacy and Security” and click on “Clear browsing data”.
  4. Check the box that says “Cached images and files” and then click “Clear data”.

safari

  1. Open the Safari browser.
  2. Then click on “Safari” at the top of the list and then on “Settings” in the drop-down menu.
  3. Then go to “Advanced” and check the box next to “Show developer menu in menu bar”.
  4. Then go back to the menu bar at the top and click on “Developer”.
  5. Then select “Clear cache” from the drop-down menu.

Also interesting: 5 tips to free up storage space on your iPhone

Smartphone: clear cache on…

Google Chrome

  1. Open the Chrome app on your smartphone and click on the three-dot menu at the top right.
  2. Then go to “History”.
  3. “Delete browser data…” then appears at the top left.
  4. Check the box that says “Cached images and files” and then tap “Clear data”.

Microsoft Edge

  1. Open the Edge app and click on the three-dash menu at the bottom right.
  2. Tap the “Settings” icon.
  3. Then go to “Privacy and Security”.
  4. In the next step, tap “Clear browsing data”.
  5. Select the “Cached images and files” box and then tap “Clear data”.

Mozilla Firefox

  1. First, open the Firefox app.
  2. Tap the three-dot menu in the top right corner and select “Settings.”
  3. Then scroll to “Clear browser data”.
  4. Check the box that says “Cached graphics and files.”
  5. Finally, tap the “Delete browser data” button.

Opera

  1. Open the Opera app on your smartphone.
  2. Tap your profile (picture) at the bottom right.
  3. In the menu that opens, you need to tap on the Settings icon at the top right.
  4. Scroll down a little and tap on “Privacy & Security”.
  5. At the bottom you will find “Delete data…”. Tap on it.
  6. Now you have to tap on “Advanced” to see more options.
  7. At the bottom you will find the item “Cache images and files”.
  8. Check the box and then finish with “Delete data”.

safari

  1. Go to your iPhone’s settings.
  2. Scroll until you find “Safari” and tap on it.
  3. Now you have to tap on the “Delete history and website data” button.
  4. Finally, confirm the whole thing with “Delete history and data”.

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Shortcuts for the shorter route

If you don’t want to click through on your laptop or PC, there is also an easier way to clear the cache.

  • Windows users: If you use Chrome, Firefox, Opera or Edge, you can press the key combination “CTRL + SHIFT + DEL” and a window will then open. Here you can tick the relevant boxes again and empty the cache.
  • Mac users: If you are a Mac user and use Chrome, Firefox, Opera or Edge, then use the shortcut “CMD + SHIFT + DEL”. A window will open and you just have to tick the box correctly. To clear the cache in Safari, you first have to check the “Show developer menu in the menu bar” box and then use the key combination “CMD + OPTION + E” to clear the cache.

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