How to clear cache on iPhone (Safari, apps and more)

Cache is the temporary data apps keep so they load faster next time: images from websites, thumbnails in social apps, songs streamed recently, map tiles and video previews. It is meant to be disposable, which is why clearing it is safe. Over months it can grow to several gigabytes, and a corrupted cache can make one app misbehave. Unlike Android, iPhone has no single button that clears every app’s cache, so the steps depend on the app. Here is where to find each one, and when clearing actually helps.

When clearing cache helps, and when it does not

• Helps: a website that will not load properly, one app that is slow or glitchy, or an iPhone that is almost out of storage.
• Barely helps: general slowness. iOS removes cache on its own when it needs space, so clearing everything often gains little.
• Costs you: signing in to websites again, and apps re-downloading images, which uses data for a while.

How to clear cache on iPhone in Safari

To clear data for just one website, such as a shopping site that keeps showing an error, go to Settings › Apps › Safari › Advanced › Website Data, search for the site, swipe left on it and tap Delete. You stay signed in everywhere else. If you use Safari profiles, available since iOS 17, each profile keeps its own history and website data, so clear the profile you were using.

Cache, cookies and history: what is the difference?

• Cache: copies of images and files from websites and apps, kept so pages load faster. Safe to clear.
• Cookies and website data: small files that keep you signed in and remember settings. Clearing them signs you out.
• History: the list of pages you visited. Clearing it does not free much space.

Safari’s Clear History and Website Data removes all three. The Website Data option in Advanced settings removes cache and cookies but keeps your history, which is usually the better choice when you only want to fix a site or free space.

Firefox, Edge and other browsers

• Firefox: menu › Settings › Data Management, choose Cache, then Clear Private Data.
• Microsoft Edge: menu › Settings › Privacy and security › Clear browsing data, select Cached images and files.
• Google app: tap your profile picture, then Search history or Settings, and clear browsing data from there.

Browsing in Private Browsing mode in Safari, or Incognito in Chrome, keeps most website data from being stored in the first place, which is handy on a shared iPad or for quick one-off searches.

Skip cache cleaner apps

The App Store has apps that promise to clean your iPhone’s cache. iOS does not let any app clear another app’s data, so they cannot do what they claim, and many push expensive weekly subscriptions. The free steps on this page do everything that is actually possible. See how to speed up a slow iPhone for other free fixes.

Popular apps, one by one

• Spotify: Settings › Storage › Clear cache. Downloaded songs stay unless you remove them.
• Instagram: has no cache button on iPhone. Offload and reinstall it to clear several gigabytes in some cases.
• Facebook: clear its in-app browser data from the menu under Settings & privacy › Settings, in the browser section.
• WhatsApp: use Settings › Storage and data › Manage storage to delete large media; this is real data, not cache, so review before deleting.
• Netflix, YouTube and Prime Video: downloaded shows count as app data. Delete old downloads inside each app.
• Messages: Settings › General › iPhone Storage › Messages › Review Large Attachments removes old photos and videos from chats.

Offload or delete?

Offloading removes the app itself and its cache but keeps your documents and data, and the icon stays on your Home Screen with a small cloud next to it. Tap the icon to reinstall. Deleting removes the app and all its data; anything not synced to the app’s cloud account is lost. For clearing cache, offload is the safer choice. To have iOS do this automatically for apps you rarely use, turn on Offload Unused Apps in Settings › Apps › App Store.

What about System Data?

In Settings › General › iPhone Storage, a large grey System Data section includes caches, logs and temporary files that iOS manages. You cannot clear it directly. Restarting the iPhone, updating iOS and deleting old message attachments often shrinks it. If it stays huge, see how to free up iPhone storage.

How often should you clear cache?

There is no need for a schedule. Clear Safari’s data when a website misbehaves or when you want a privacy clean-up, and clear an app’s cache when that app is slow, glitchy or taking up far more space than it should. Most people only need to do it a few times a year, if that. Clearing caches every day just makes apps reload everything, using more mobile data and more battery.

On iPad and Mac

iPad uses the same steps as iPhone, with the same Settings paths for Safari and iPad Storage. On a Mac, Safari’s cache is cleared in Safari › Settings › Privacy › Manage Website Data, or with Clear History in the History menu. Clearing data on one device does not clear it on any of the others, even if Safari history syncs through iCloud.

Storage almost full? Look at the biggest items first

If you are clearing cache because the iPhone says storage is almost full, start with the list in Settings › General › iPhone Storage, which is sorted by size. Photos, videos, messages and downloaded shows usually take far more space than any cache. Clearing a few gigabytes of old videos or offloading one big game often does more than clearing every cache on the phone.

Clearing cache to fix one broken app

If a single app keeps crashing, shows old content or will not load images, work through these in order: force close it from the app switcher, check the App Store for an update, use the app’s own clear cache option if it has one, then offload and reinstall it. That sequence fixes most app-specific problems without touching anything else on the phone.

Check that it worked

Go back to Settings › General › iPhone Storage and look at the bar at the top and the size of the apps you cleared. It can take a minute to update. If an app was misbehaving, open it, sign in if needed and test the thing that was failing; if it still has problems after a clean reinstall, the issue is the app itself, so check for an update or contact its support.

Restart your iPhone after clearing caches, even though it is not strictly required. It also clears temporary system files and can shrink the System Data category in iPhone Storage.