How to clear all cookies on an Android device to troubleshoot browsing issues or secure your personal information
- You can clear the cookies on an Android device by heading to your browser's settings and deleting your browser data.
- Cookies are an essential part of how the web works, but you may need to clear cookies to troubleshoot browsing issues, or for privacy or security reasons.
- You can disable cookies entirely, but most websites will not work properly.
Cookies are data files stored on your device that makes the web work smoothly and efficiently, allowing websites to offer various kinds of personalization and ease of use. Cookies remember your login credentials so you don't have to sign into the same sites over and over, for example, as well as remembering personalization details and the content of your shopping cart.
Sometimes, though, you might want to clear your cookies on your Android device. You may need to free space, troubleshoot a glitch with a website, or you're simply concerned about your privacy or security. Whatever the reason, you can clear your cookies pretty easily.
How to clear all cookies on Android
You can clear all the cookies on your Android device with just a few taps, but remember that if you do this, you'll need to sign in again to any websites you use afterward. Most Android devices use Chrome, so here's how to do it using that browser — but if you use a different browser, the steps are similar.
1. Start the Chrome app.
2. At the top right, tap the three-dot menu and tap Settings.
3. Tap Privacy and security.
4. Tap Clear browsing data.
5. Make sure Cookies and site data is selected, and then tap Clear data.
How to clear cookies from a website on Android
It's also possible to clear the cookies associated with a single website rather than all the websites stored on your Android device.
1. Start the Chrome app and open the website where you want to clear the cookies.
2. At the top right, tap the three-dot menu and then tap the i icon in the top row.
3. Tap Cookies.
4. You can now see how many cookies this website is using and how much space it consumes.
5. To delete them, tap the Delete icon. Confirm you want to do this by tapping Clear.
How to allow or block cookies on Android
If you don't want to periodically delete cookies and would prefer to prevent your Android device from saving new cookies, you can tell Chrome to block cookies.
1. Start the Chrome app.
2. At the top right, tap the three-dot menu and tap Settings.
3. Tap Site settings.
4. Tap Cookies.
5. Tap Block third-party cookies or Block all cookies.
Quick tip: If you block cookies, many websites will no longer work properly. It's a good idea to only block cookies while in Incognito mode, or else your online experience will be challenging on your Android device.