Your browser has a lot of your information stored: the websites you visit, your passwords, browsing history, data you’ve downloaded, and much more. This data keeps piling up on your PC over time and slows down your computer. It is always a good idea to regularly clear your browser’s cache, cookies, and history. This also clears up some space on your PC, protects your personal data, removes unnecessary data, and improves your computer’s performance.
What are cookies, cache and history?
You may have seen cookie pop-ups asking you to accept cookies when you visit websites. While you often blindly accept these prompts and quickly move on to the next task, these cookies are files created by websites you visit. They identify and track files that make your online experience easier by storing information as you browse or revisit a site.
The browser cache remembers parts of pages, such as images, to help the browser load a web page faster on your next visit.
Your browsing history is the list of websites you’ve visited in the past. If you want to keep them private, you can clear your history. This will help you protect your personal information.
Let’s take a look at how to clear your browser’s cache, cookies, and history.
On Google Chrome
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Open Chrome on your PC and click the button with the three dots in the top right corner.
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Select More tools and Delete browsing history.
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Check all of these boxes: browsing history, download history, cookies, and other site data.
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You can also go to Basic settings to check again and click the time frame drop down menu. You can choose the one according to your preference, but in case of clearing your cache, select Always.
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Finally, click on the clear data knob.
It’s Safari
- If you are using Safari, go to the main menu and select History > Clear history.
- Now select the time period you want to delete and click Clear history.
- All your browsing history and cache will be deleted.
In Mozilla Firefox
- For Firefox, click the hamburger menu in the upper right corner.
- Then select Privacy and Security option in the left pane. And then scroll below to Cookies and Site Data.
- Check the box that says: Delete cookies and site data when Firefox is closedand click clear data.
After clearing your browser’s cache, cookies and history, you will need to log back in to the sites you use, which can be a hassle, but this will improve your computer’s performance, which can make it worthwhile .
