What cookies are and why you might want to delete them
Cookies are small files that websites store on your computer to remember things about you — your login information, what you put in a shopping cart, your preferences. When you visit a website again, it reads that cookie and knows who you are without asking you to log in again.
The trade-off is that some cookies also track which websites you visit and what you do on them, so advertisers can build a profile of your interests. Deleting cookies clears out both the useful ones (your saved passwords) and the tracking ones. Most people delete cookies when they want a fresh start with a website, or when they share a computer and want to remove their login information before someone else uses it.
Key Takeaways
- Deleting cookies removes stored login information, so you will need to sign back into websites afterward.
- The steps differ depending on which browser you use — Chrome, Firefox, Safari, or Edge each have their own menu location.
- You can delete all cookies at once or choose a date range, like cookies from the last week or the last month.
- Clearing cookies does not delete your browsing history or passwords saved in your browser's password manager unless you specifically choose those options too.
How to delete cookies in Google Chrome
Open Chrome and click the three vertical dots in the top right corner. Select "Settings" from the menu, then click "Privacy and security" on the left side. Choose "Clear browsing data."
A window will pop up. At the top, select the time range — "All time" deletes every cookie, or you can pick "Last hour," "Last 24 hours," "Last 7 days," "Last 4 weeks," or a custom date range. Make sure the "Cookies and other site data" box is checked. Click "Clear data" and you are done.
How to delete cookies in Mozilla Firefox
Open Firefox and click the three horizontal lines (called a hamburger menu) in the top right corner. Select "Settings," then click "Privacy & Security" on the left. Under "Cookies and Site Data," click "Clear Data."
A window appears. Check the box next to "Cookies and Site Data." You can choose to clear everything or pick a time range using the dropdown menu at the top. Click "Clear" to finish. If you want to delete cookies from a specific website only, you can go back to the same "Cookies and Site Data" section and click "Manage Data" to see a list of websites and remove them one by one.
How to delete cookies in Safari
Open Safari and click "Safari" in the menu bar at the very top of your screen. Select "Settings" (or "Preferences" on older versions). Click the "Privacy" tab.
Click "Manage Website Data" to see all the cookies stored on your computer. You can select individual websites and click "Remove" to delete only their cookies, or click "Remove All" to delete everything at once. Close the window when you are finished.
How to delete cookies in Microsoft Edge
Open Edge and click the three dots in the top right corner. Select "Settings," then click "Privacy, search, and services" on the left side. Under "Clear browsing data," click "Choose what to clear."
A window will open. Select your time range from the dropdown at the top. Make sure "Cookies and other site data" is checked. Click "Clear now" and the cookies are deleted. You can also turn on "Clear browsing data" at the bottom of that same menu to have Edge automatically delete cookies every time you close the browser.
What happens after you delete cookies
After you delete cookies, you will need to log back into websites that you were previously logged into. Websites will not remember your preferences — if a site had your language set to Spanish, it will go back to the default language the next time you visit. Shopping carts will be empty.
Deleting cookies does not delete your saved passwords unless you specifically checked that box during the deletion process. Your browsing history stays unless you also cleared that. Cookies will start building up again as soon as you visit new websites, because most sites create new cookies automatically.
The difference between cookies and browsing history
Cookies and browsing history are two separate things. Your browsing history is a list of every website you visited — it is stored locally on your computer and only you can see it (unless someone else uses your computer). Cookies are files that websites themselves create and store on your computer to remember information about you.
You can delete one without deleting the other. If you delete cookies but not history, websites will not remember you, but you will still see a list of everywhere you went. If you delete history but not cookies, websites will still recognize you when you return, but you will not see your own list of visited sites.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will deleting cookies slow down my computer?
No. Cookies are very small files and do not take up much space. Deleting them will not make your computer faster. If your computer is slow, the problem is usually something else — too many programs running at once, a full hard drive, or malware.
Do I need to delete cookies regularly?
Not necessarily. Deleting cookies is a personal choice based on your comfort level with tracking. If you do not want advertisers to build a profile of your browsing habits, deleting cookies regularly or using your browser's private mode can help. If you do not mind, there is no technical reason to delete them.
What is the difference between deleting cookies and using private browsing mode?
Private browsing mode (called "Incognito" in Chrome, "Private Window" in Firefox, and "InPrivate" in Edge) prevents your browser from storing cookies and history while you are in that mode. Once you close the private window, nothing is saved. Deleting cookies removes files that were already stored. Private mode is useful for one-time browsing; deleting cookies is useful for cleaning up after regular browsing.
If I delete cookies, will websites know I deleted them?
No. Websites cannot tell whether you deleted cookies. They will straightforward treat you as a new visitor the next time you arrive, because the cookie file is gone from your computer.
Can I delete cookies from just one website?
Yes. In Firefox and Safari, you can see a list of websites and remove cookies from specific ones. In Chrome and Edge, you can visit a website's settings within the browser to remove its data. The easiest way is to use your browser's developer tools or the "Manage Data" option in your privacy settings.