Delete cookies in Safari, Chrome, or Firefox
The steps differ depending on which browser you use. Safari, Chrome, and Firefox are the three most common browsers on iPad, and each one stores and clears cookies in a different place. The good news: you can delete all your cookies in under a minute, and you can do it without deleting your passwords or other data if you choose.
Before you start, know that deleting cookies will log you out of most websites. You'll have to sign back in to email, banking sites, social media, and anywhere else you were already logged in. Some websites may also load slightly slower the first time you visit them after clearing cookies, because they'll need to download tracking data again.
Key Takeaways
- In Safari, go to Settings > Safari > Clear History and Website Data, then choose what time period to clear.
- In Chrome, open the menu, tap Settings > Privacy > Clear Browsing Data, and select Cookies and Site Data.
- In Firefox, open the menu, tap Settings > Data Management > Clear Private Data, and check Cookies.
- You can delete only cookies without removing your browsing history, passwords, or autofill information by unchecking those options.
- Clearing cookies regularly can help prevent some tracking, though it won't stop all advertisers or websites from collecting data about you.
Delete cookies in Safari on iPad
Open the Settings app on your home screen. Scroll down and tap Safari. Scroll down again until you see "Clear History and Website Data" — tap it.
A popup will appear asking what time period you want to clear. Your options are "the last hour," "today," "today and yesterday," or "all time." Choose whichever period you want, then tap "Clear History and Data." Safari will delete cookies, browsing history, and other website data from that period.
If you want to delete only cookies and leave your history intact, Safari doesn't give you that option directly from Settings. Instead, open Safari itself, tap the Bookmarks icon (it looks like an open book), then tap the History tab. Tap "Clear" at the bottom, choose your time period, and tap "Clear History." This clears history but not cookies. To clear only cookies in Safari, you have to use the Settings method and accept that history will be cleared too.
Delete cookies in Chrome on iPad
Open Chrome and tap the three-line menu icon in the bottom right corner. Scroll down and tap Settings. Tap Privacy, then tap "Clear Browsing Data."
A menu will appear with checkboxes for different types of data. Make sure "Cookies and Site Data" is checked. You can uncheck "Browsing History," "Cached Images and Files," and other options if you want to keep those. At the top, choose your time period — "All Time" will delete all cookies Chrome has stored, while other options let you delete only recent ones. Tap "Clear Browsing Data" to finish.
Delete cookies in Firefox on iPad
Open Firefox and tap the three-line menu icon at the bottom right. Tap Settings. Tap "Data Management."
Under "Private Data," check the box next to "Cookies." You can leave other boxes unchecked if you want to keep your history and other data. Tap "Clear Private Data" at the bottom. Firefox will delete all cookies stored on your device.
What cookies actually do and why you might want to delete them
Cookies are small files that websites store on your iPad to remember information about you. Some cookies are necessary — they keep you logged in, remember items in your shopping cart, and store your preferences like language or dark mode. Others track your activity across websites to build a profile of your interests, which advertisers use to show you targeted ads.
Deleting cookies won't stop all tracking. Websites can also track you using your IP address, device fingerprinting (a profile of your browser and device settings), and login information. But deleting cookies does remove one common tracking method and can reduce the amount of targeted advertising you see.
You don't need to delete cookies constantly. Doing it once a month or once every few months is enough for most people. If you're concerned about privacy, you might also turn on "Private Browsing" in your browser — this prevents cookies from being saved in the first place, though websites can still see that you visited them.
The difference between deleting cookies and using private browsing
Private Browsing mode (called "Incognito" in Chrome) prevents your browser from saving cookies, history, and autofill data while you're using it. When you close the private window, everything is deleted automatically. This is useful if you're using a shared iPad or if you want to visit a website without it tracking you.
Deleting cookies afterward does the same thing, but only for data that was already saved. If you didn't use Private Browsing while browsing, the cookies are already on your device and have already been used for tracking. Deleting them removes the files, but the tracking has already happened. Private Browsing prevents the tracking from happening in the first place.
For everyday use, you don't need to use Private Browsing constantly. Regular browsing with cookies deleted every month or two strikes a balance between convenience and privacy.
Why you might want to keep some cookies
Deleting all cookies means you'll have to log back into every website you use. If you have many accounts, this can be annoying. Some people prefer to delete cookies selectively — clearing out tracking cookies from advertisers while keeping login cookies from sites they trust.
Unfortunately, most browsers don't let you pick and choose which cookies to delete. Safari, Chrome, and Firefox all delete cookies in bulk. If you want finer control, you can use a browser extension that blocks certain cookies, though this requires more setup and may slow down your browsing slightly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will deleting cookies delete my passwords?
No, not by default. Passwords are stored separately from cookies. When you clear cookies in Safari, Chrome, or Firefox, you can uncheck the option to delete passwords, and they'll stay on your device. However, you will be logged out of websites, so you'll need to sign back in using those passwords.
Can I delete cookies from only one website?
Not easily in Safari or Chrome on iPad. Both browsers delete cookies in bulk by time period. Firefox also doesn't offer a simple way to delete cookies from a single site. If you need to clear cookies from one specific website, your best option is to use Private Browsing mode going forward for that site, or to delete all cookies and accept that you'll need to log back in everywhere.
Do I need to delete cookies if I use private browsing?
No. Private Browsing prevents cookies from being saved in the first place, so there's nothing to delete. When you close a private window, all data from that session is automatically removed. You only need to delete cookies if you've been browsing normally and want to clear out the data that was saved.
Will deleting cookies speed up my iPad?
Probably not noticeably. Cookies are very small files and don't take up much space. Deleting them may free up a tiny amount of storage, but it won't make your iPad run faster. The main reason to delete cookies is privacy, not performance.
How often should I delete cookies?
Once a month is reasonable for most people. If you're very concerned about tracking, you can do it more often. If you rarely visit new websites and don't mind targeted ads, you can do it less often. There's no single right answer — it depends on your privacy preferences and how much inconvenience you're willing to accept from being logged out of sites.