The fastest way to clear YouTube cache on iPhone
To clear YouTube cache on iPhone, open the Settings app, tap General, then iPhone Storage. Scroll down and tap YouTube, then tap Offload App. This removes the app's cached data while keeping your login information and settings intact. Tap Offload App again to confirm, then reinstall YouTube from the App Store.
If you want to clear cache without removing the app, you can also go to Settings > Privacy > Apple Advertising and toggle off Personalized Ads, which clears some tracking data. However, this does not clear the full cache that YouTube stores locally on your phone.
The offload method works because cached data — thumbnails, video previews, search history data stored locally — takes up storage space and can sometimes cause the app to run slowly or display outdated information. Clearing it forces YouTube to download fresh data the next time you open it.
Key Takeaways
- Offloading the YouTube app through Settings > General > iPhone Storage removes all cached data while keeping you logged in.
- Cached data includes video thumbnails, search suggestions, and playback information stored on your phone, not your YouTube account.
- Clearing cache can free up storage space and fix issues like slow loading or outdated video recommendations.
- You can also clear Safari cache if you watch YouTube in a web browser, which removes separate cached data from that route.
What YouTube cache actually stores on your iPhone
YouTube cache on iPhone includes downloaded thumbnails, video preview images, search suggestions you have typed before, and temporary playback data. This is different from your YouTube account data — your watch history, subscriptions, and playlists stay on Google's servers and are not affected by clearing cache.
The app also stores information about which videos you have already watched, which helps YouTube show you the play button in the right spot if you pause and come back. Clearing cache removes this local record, so YouTube has to fetch it fresh from the server next time.
Cache builds up over time as you use the app. A phone with months of YouTube use can have hundreds of megabytes of cached data. On iPhones with limited storage, this can add up noticeably.
Using iPhone Storage settings to offload YouTube
Open the Settings app on your iPhone. Tap General, then tap iPhone Storage. The list shows every app installed on your phone, sorted by size. Scroll down until you see YouTube.
Tap YouTube. You will see two numbers: the app size itself, and the Documents & Data size below it. Documents & Data is mostly cache. Tap Offload App, then tap Offload App again to confirm. This removes the app and its cache but keeps your login credentials and app settings saved.
Go to the App Store, search for YouTube, and tap Get to reinstall it. When you open YouTube again, you will still be logged in, but the cache is gone. The app will rebuild cache as you use it, which is normal.
Clearing cache if you watch YouTube in Safari
If you watch YouTube through a web browser instead of the app, the cache lives in Safari, not in the YouTube app. To clear it, open Settings, scroll down and tap Safari, then tap Clear History and Website Data.
A popup will ask what time period to clear. Choose All Time to remove everything, or choose Last Hour or Last Day if you only want to clear recent cache. Tap Clear History and Data to confirm.
This clears cache from all websites you have visited in Safari, not just YouTube. If you want to clear only YouTube's cache, you would need to use the YouTube app instead, since Safari does not let you clear cache from individual sites.
When to clear YouTube cache and what to expect
Clear YouTube cache if the app is running slowly, if recommendations seem outdated, or if you are running low on iPhone storage. You might also clear it if you share your iPhone with someone else and want to remove your search history from the local cache.
After clearing cache, the first time you open YouTube it may take a few seconds longer to load because it has to download thumbnails and data fresh from Google's servers. Subsequent opens will be normal. Your watch history, subscriptions, and saved playlists will all still be there because those are stored on your YouTube account, not on your phone.
Cache will start building up again immediately as you use the app. You do not need to clear it regularly — once every few months is enough unless you are very short on storage space.
Other ways to free up YouTube storage on iPhone
If you have downloaded videos for offline viewing in the YouTube app, those downloads are separate from cache and take up much more space. To remove them, open YouTube, tap your profile picture, tap Downloads, then swipe left on any video and tap Delete.
You can also limit how much data YouTube uses by going to Settings within the YouTube app itself. Tap your profile picture, tap Settings, tap General, and look for options to reduce video quality or limit background data use. These settings do not clear existing cache but prevent it from growing as quickly.
If you want to clear data from your YouTube account itself — like removing your watch history from Google's servers — that is a different process done through your Google account settings on the web, not through your iPhone.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will clearing YouTube cache log me out?
No. When you offload the app through iPhone Storage settings, your login information is saved separately and you will still be logged in when you reinstall YouTube. If you clear Safari data instead, you may be logged out of the web version, but the YouTube app will remain logged in.
How much storage space does YouTube cache usually take up?
It varies depending on how much you use the app. Light users might have 100 to 300 megabytes of cache, while heavy users can accumulate 500 megabytes to over a gigabyte. You can see the exact amount in Settings > General > iPhone Storage by tapping YouTube and looking at the Documents & Data number.
Does clearing cache delete my watch history?
No. Your watch history is stored on your YouTube account on Google's servers. Clearing cache only removes the local copy stored on your phone. Your history will still be there when you log back in, and YouTube will still show you personalized recommendations based on what you have watched.
Can I clear just YouTube cache without clearing other app cache?
Yes. The offload method clears only YouTube's cache. If you use Safari to watch YouTube, clearing Safari data will also clear cache from other websites. To clear only YouTube's cache from Safari, you would need to use the YouTube app instead.
Why does YouTube cache keep coming back?
Cache rebuilds automatically as you use the app. Every time you scroll through videos, watch a video, or search for something, YouTube stores that data locally on your phone to make the app faster next time. This is normal and expected behavior.