Every time we visit a website on the safari browser, the records are created and stored in the local storage. It can be any form, like browsing history, site cookies, and file cache storage.
One of the significant chunks of storage within the browser is occupied by the cache storage, which typically contains images, CSS, javascript files, and other static elements that support the website. Also, these caches will sustain in your device and keep on eating your storage until and unless you have cleared it on your own.
These assets are stored for any period; some may be stored for years in the browser. At BrowserHow, I try to store the browser caching for up to a year, which differs based on file types. Perhaps some websites also store a cache expiry of 10 years, which’s significantly high and occupies a lot of storage space. It is better to clear the Safari cache iPhone in such a case!
My sister was once confused about where all her storage was being used since she did not use to store many things in her device. She then came to me, and I discussed the Cache Files stuff with her and taught her how to clear it in Safari iOS/iPadOS.
Safari browser allows one to keep track of storage occupied by each loaded website. Even though it was loaded in the background, we can view the total storage occupied by each website we accessed on the safari browser.
View Site Cache Storage
The website data menu records the static cache in the safari browser. Here you can see the total cache occupied against each website.
Here are the steps to view the site cache storage in Safari browser on iPhone or iPad:
- Open the Settings app on the iPhone or iPad.
- Scroll down and choose the Safari browser from Settings.
- From Safari Settings, scroll to the bottom and tap the Advanced menu.
- Within the Advanced section, tap on the Website Data menu.
You can now view the list of websites and the amount of cache storage occupied by each website on your Safari browser.
Delete Site Cache Storage
If you’re experiencing slow loading, there is probably too much cache added to the browser storage. Therefore you need to manually clear the cache of safari iPad or on your iPhone.
Here are the steps to clear the site cache storage from Safari on iOS or iPadOS:
- Open the Settings app on the iPhone or iPad.
- Scroll down and Choose the Safari app browser from Settings.
- From Safari Settings, scroll to the bottom and tap the Advanced menu.
- Within the Advanced section, tap on the Website Data menu.
- Here you’ve two options: tap on the Edit command and delete selected website data. OR
- Tap on Remove All Website Data to delete in bulk.
This will delete the cache storage of all the websites that you’ve visited up to date. Next time you visit any website, it might take a little while to load since the new files will be downloaded on the browser cache. Therefore, the clear cache safari iPhone clears all your cache and increases the storage space occupied by your browser.
Bottom Line: Safari iOS Cache Storage
When we browse websites on the Safari browser, the websites try to store static assets that do not change very often. Hence, these websites try to hog the space for better loading performance.
It’s quite a great feature. However, it can cost the storage space. If you feel the occupied space is too much, you can quickly clear the cache to free up the storage space. I often clear browser cache storage to free up the phone space. This also helps in making the browser launch faster and smoother. The clear cache safari iPhone is a fantastic feature!
Hence, never let your cache files eat up much of your storage, and keep cleaning the site storage frequently.
Similarly, you can also view cache and clear storage in the safari mac computer. This will also help to delete the history and browser cookies easily.
Let us know what you think about the feature to view the cache storage and clear the storage space in Safari. Also, how often do you clear the browser cache?
How do I view the files IN the cache? I am trying to recover a site that was corrupted by a virus and my cached version may be all that remains.
Hi Jennifer, we cannot view the files within the cache storage. The browsers stores the files in an unsupported format (we can say encrypted) that is not visible like a directory or folder structure. Alternatively, you can visit archive.org to view the older version of the web page (if available).
I downloaded Safari. I see the link referenced in the instructions but the link is not activated. What can I do to activate this link?
Where are the cache files physical stored? Many login data to subscribed web are stored in the cache and not in the password list on my Apple devices. I want to take a copy of selected ones to reuse them between the devices.
Hi Judit, it’s technically not possible to transfer the cache files between the devices. Even though you can copy them from one system to another, the new system (browser) may not be able to read them since it does not have a record of having a cache locally.