Your Android phone’s web browser can be filled with a lot of data, including files that you don’t need to keep. Much of that data — whether you’re using Google Chrome, Firefox or Samsung Internet — gets stored as part of cookies and cache. This data can be helpful for websites you visit, allowing them to load faster with accounts you’re already logged in to. That’s cool, but there’s a lot of information in your browser’s cookies and cache that isn’t necessary and may even be a privacy risk.
Why you should clear your cookies and cache regularly
A lot of that stuff piling up in your cookies and cache is just plain junk. Some of it may come from websites you’ve only visited once. It seems others are actively tracking your browsing history to help serve ads based on what you’re buying or streaming on the Internet. For example, I’m constantly getting ads to buy glasses online after browsing a few stores, or Amazon ads that just happen to show up as the last thing in my shopping cart.
Because of this, it’s a good idea to clear your cache from time to time. This allows you to clear data you don’t need from your phone, especially if an unknown data tracker is among your phone’s cookies. Clearing your cache is a minor inconvenience — you’ll have to log back into some of your favorite websites, but it’s a small price to pay for making sure your phone isn’t stocking up on extraneous data. .
The steps differ slightly depending on the type of phone and web browser app you’re using. Below, we’ll go over how to clear this data for Google’s Chrome browser (often the default for many Android phones, like the Google Pixel line), Samsung’s Internet browser (often the default on the Galaxy phone series), and Mozilla’s Firefox browser. . If you have certain Apple devices, you can also check out our separate guide on how to clear your cache on the iPhone web browser.
The “Clear browsing data” menu in Chrome on Android.
Screenshot by Mike Sorrentino/CNET
Google Chrome
You can clear your cookies and cache from the Android version of Google Chrome by first tapping more button In the upper right corner of the browser, indicated by a column of three dots, then tap HistoryThen clear browsing Data, You can also access it from Chrome Adjustment menu tapping Privacy & Security And then clear browsing Data,
chrome also provides basic And advanced settings to clear your browsing history, Cookies and Site Data And Cached Images and Files, you can use time limit Drop-down to choose whether you want to delete all history from the last 24 hours to the last four weeks or select anywhere. harness advanced will also let you delete saved passwords, autofill form data And site settings, After selecting the one you want to remove, tap on the blue clear data button. You may receive an additional prompt if Chrome considers certain websites to be “important” to you, and if so you’ll have a chance to confirm before clearing them. Otherwise if you don’t get that prompt, Chrome will proceed immediately as you instructed.
Read more: Skip Google Chrome and Use This Privacy-Focused Browser Instead
samsung internet
“Clear data” and “Clear cache” options for Samsung Internet.
Screenshot by Mike Sorrentino/CNET
There are two different ways you can clear the cache and cookie data of your Samsung Internet browser. You can clear from the browser itself, or you can go through your phone’s Settings app.
To clear while in the Samsung Internet Browser app, first tap option button represented by the three horizontal lines in the bottom right corner, then Adjustment, Scroll down and tap personal datathen tap clear browsing data to get a menu of options for deleting. can you explain yourself browsing history, Cookies and Site Data, Cached Images and Files, passwords And autofill form in any combination. after patting delete dataYou will then receive a prompt to confirm your choice before deletion.
The browser offers the most customization of what you want to delete than going through the app. However, if you want to use the same options from your phone’s Settings menu, Adjustment app and tap appsthen scroll down and tap samsung internet And then storage,
At the bottom of the storage, you find different options clear cache And clear data, harness clear cache will clear the cache immediately, but clear data brings up a prompt that warns you that all data in the application will be permanently deleted including files, settings, accounts, and databases. While it doesn’t specify cookies, this “going nuclear” approach should zap all remaining data, allowing you to restart Samsung Internet Browser as if it were brand new.
Read more: Change these Android settings to get the most out of your phone
mozilla firefox
Similar to Google Chrome, you can also clear the cache from the Mozilla Firefox Android app. To use this function, tap More button To the right of the address bar, again represented by three vertically aligned dots. then tap Adjustment scroll down further clear browsing data,
The “Clear browsing data” menu in Mozilla Firefox on Android.
Screenshot by Mike Sorrentino/CNET
Out of the three browsers we are discussing here, Firefox gives you the most options under clear browsing data menu, from which you can also delete an existing open tabsYours browsing history and site data, site permissions and yours too download folder with cookies And Cached Images and Files,
While you can’t choose a time frame for Chrome, you can be more specific about the types of data you want deleted.
Read more: Browser Privacy Settings to Change ASAP in Firefox, Chrome, and Safari
And Firefox has an additional option for those who never want to keep their browsing data after using the app. there is one in the settings Clear browsing data on quit option, which instructs Firefox to delete any combination of these same settings every time you quit the application. This is a useful feature if you want to keep the browser clean and, say, avoid accidentally handing over your browser history to someone who stole your phone or otherwise gained access.
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