How to delete cookies on your computer

This article gives help on how to delete cookies using various different browsers.

What is a cookie?  A cookie is a small file stored by some websites on your computer. It is used to make browsing the website a better experience. Most cookies are very helpful. But some cookies are used to track which websites you visit and then advertise products to you. These have received much negative publicity, you can stop these from being saved.

How you actually turn off cookies is based on the browser you are using, not the type of computer. So the method depends on which browser - e.g. Firefox, Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Safari or other browser you are using.

Each browser stores the cookies in a different location, so if you use more than one type of browser then you need to delete cookies on all of them.

Deleting Cookies in Firefox

Clear cookies for the current website:

• Click the padlock () at the left of the address bar.
• Click "Clear Cookies and Site data".

Clear cookies for any website:

• Click the menu button () and select "Settings".
• Select the "Privacy & Security" panel and go to the "Cookies and Site Data" section.
• Click the "Manage Data" button. The "Manage Cookies and Site Data" dialog will appear.
• In the "Search websites" field, type the name of the site whose cookies you want to remove. Items that match your search will be displayed.
  • To remove all cookies and storage data for the website, click "Remove All Shown".
  • To remove selected items, select an entry and click "Remove Selected".
• Click "Save Changes".
• In the Removing Cookies and Site Data confirmation dialog that opens, click "OK".
• Close the about:preferences page.

Clear all cookies and keep other data:

• Click the menu button ().
• Click "History" and then click "Clear Recent History".
• Set "Time range to clear:" to "Everything".
• Select "Cookies" and make sure that other items you want to keep are not selected.
• Click "OK" to clear all cookies and close the Clear All History window.

Firefox Support Article — Clear cookies and site data in Firefox 

Deleting Cookies in Chrome

When you use a browser, like Chrome, it saves some information from websites in its cache and cookies. Clearing them fixes certain problems, like loading or formatting issues on sites.

• On your computer, open Chrome.
• At the top right, click three-dot menu ()
• Click "More tools" > "Clear browsing data".
• At the top, choose a time range. To delete everything, select "All time".
• Next to "Cookies and other site data" and "Cached images and files," check the boxes.
• Click "Clear data".

Chrome Support Article — Clear cache & cookies 

Deleting Cookies in Safari

Here's how to clear information from your device:

• To clear your history and cookies, go to Settings > Safari, and tap Clear History and Website Data. Clearing your history, cookies, and browsing data from Safari won't change your AutoFill information.
• To clear your cookies and keep your history, go to Settings > Safari > Advanced > Website Data, then tap Remove All Website Data.
• To visit sites without leaving a history, turn private browsing on or off.

When there's no history or website data to clear, the setting turns gray. The setting might also be gray if you have web content restrictions set up under Content & Privacy Restrictions in Screen Time.

Safari Support Article — Delete history, cache, and cookies 

Deleting Cookies in Microsoft Edge

Method 01:

• Open Microsoft Edge and select "Settings and more" () > Settings () > Privacy, search, and services.
• Under Clear browsing data, select "Choose what to clear".
• Under "Time range", choose a time range.
• Select "Cookies and other site data", and then select "Clear now".

Method 02:

• Open Microsoft Edge and select "Settings and more" () > Settings () > Cookies and site permissions > Cookies and site data.
• Select "See all cookies and site data".
• Search for the site's cookies you want to remove.

Method 03:

• Open Microsoft Edge and select "Settings and more" () > Settings () > Privacy and services.
• Under "Clear browsing data", select "Choose what to clear every time you close the browser".
• Turn on the "Cookies and other site data" toggle.

Microsoft Edge Support Article — Delete cookies in Microsoft Edge