How to clear the cache on your iPhone (and why you should)

Cache is the temporary storage of some data; parts of a website or image from the last time you visited, for example. It's content from a website that is stored on your phone during a browser session to help the browser perform faster the next time you visit that page.

Cache data can slow down your phone's browsing performance since it takes up storage space in your device, so it's good to clear it out regularly.

Turn on Private Browsing by opening Safari, then tap on Tabs, then Private.

Not exactly, though offloading may help if your phone is slowed down by low storage. Offloading uninstalls an app without deleting any documents and data associated with them. 

To offload an app, go to Settings, then iPhone Storage and select the app to offload, then tap on Offload App. If you ever download it again, you just pick up where you left off on that app. 

If Google Chrome is your preferred browser, it may have a substantial amount of data stored on your device, which could also slow down its performance. 

To clear the cache in Chrome, open the Chrome app and follow these steps:

1. Go to Settings
2. Tap on Privacy
3. Select Clear Browsing Data
4. Go through the items to delete
5. Confirm by tapping Clear Browsing Data at the bottom of the screen

Cookies and cache are not the same. Cookies are tiny pieces of data that websites send to your phone, including things like saved passwords to keep you logged into an account or even the website preferences from the previous time you visited. 

Though they do sound harmless, cookies can also track how you browse the internet. They monitor patterns in your browsing and search history, even seeing what you clicked on or what your mouse hovered over. Ever made an innocuous search on Amazon only to find ads for it on all the apps you use?

While you can block cookies on Safari, the ranks are divided on whether you should. Blocking cookies entirely means that websites won't be able to get information from you, but it also means that some websites may not even work correctly on your browser. A lot of users actually enjoy a more personalized browsing experience, so cookies are a good thing for them.

 If you'd like to block the cookies on Safari, follow these steps:

1. Go to Settings and select Safari
2. Tap on the toggle next to Block All Cookies