How to clear Cookies from your computer

Submitted by Brockdin Barr on 17 Sep 2010

Sometimes websites store information about your or what you've been doing on a website. This is often done by storing a small text file on your computer called a Cookie. Cookies can be a good thing, for example, they can save you time filling out the same information each time you visit a particular site.
However, if you need to reset this information or you don't want the information to be remembered, here's how to delete Cookies.

Windows PC

Google Chrome

  1. Click on the "Tools" menu and select "Options".
  2. Click the "Under the Bonnet" tab, locate the "Privacy" section and click the "Clear browsing data" button.
  3. Select "Delete cookies and other site data" to delete all cookies from the list (alternatively, you can remove all cookies created within a specific time period by selecting the period you want from the dropdown list).
  4. Select "Clear browsing history" to delete traces of which websites you've visited.
  5. Select "Clear download history" to delete records of which files and programs you've downloaded.
  6. Select "Empty the cache" to delete cached website pages.
  7. You can also delete saved passwords (which log you into websites) and saved form data (such as your name and address).
  8. Then click on the "Clear browsing data" button.
  9. Click on the Close button when you've finished.

Internet Explorer 8

If you're using Internet Explorer please upgrade to the lastest version for security reasons

  1. Click "Safety" on the Command bar
  2. Select "Delete Browsing History"
  3. Select the option for cookies and click Delete

Alternatively, Internet Explorer 8's new InPrivate browsing feature allows users to browse the internet without recording information from visited sites (including cookies). To use InPrivate mode:

  1. Click "Safety" on the Command bar
  2. Select "InPrivate Browsing"

Internet Explorer 7.x

If you're using Internet Explorer please upgrade to the lastest version for security reasons

  1. Exit Internet Explorer 7, and then exit any instances of Windows Explorer
  2. Click Start, click Run, type inetcpl.cpl, and then press ENTER
  3. On the General tab, click Delete under Browsing History in the Internet Properties dialog box
  4. In the Delete Browsing History dialog box, click Delete Cookies
  5. In the Delete Cookies dialog box, click Yes.

Internet Explorer (all other versions)

If you're using Internet Explorer please upgrade to the lastest version for security reasons

Internet Explorer saves cookies in more than one location, depending on the version of the browser and the version of Microsoft Windows being used.

The best way to find and delete them is to close Internet Explorer then use your file management software (such as Windows Explorer) and search for a folder called 'cookies'.

Mozilla Firebird

  1. Click on Tools, then Options
  2. Select the Privacy icon in the left-hand panel
  3. Click on Cookies
  4. Click on Stored Cookies
  5. To remove a single cookie click on the entry in the list and click on the Remove Cookie button
  6. To remove all cookies click on the Remove All Cookies button 

Mozilla Firefox

  1. Click on Tools, then Options (or Edit | Preferences on Linux)
  2. Select Privacy
  3. In the Cookies panel, click on Show Cookies
  4. To remove a single cookie click on the entry in the list and click on the Remove Cookie button
  5. To remove all cookies click on the Remove All Cookies button

Opera

  1. To delete all cookies at the end of every session, select it in the privacy settings under Tools > Preferences.
  2. Click on Manage cookies to delete specific cookies or cookies from specific domains.
  3. To delete all cookies immediately, go to Delete private data on the Tools menu.

Apple Macintosh

Mozilla

  1. Choose Cookie Manager from the Tools menu.
  2. Choose Manage Stored Cookies.
  3. Remove any cookie from the list, or remove all cookies.

Safari (MacOS X)

  1. Choose Preferences from Safari menu
  2. Select Security icon
  3. Press Show Cookies button
  4. Select the Cookies to be deleted from the list
  5. Press Delete button

Google Chrome

  1. Choose Preferences from Chrome menu
  2. Click the "Under the Bonnet" tab, locate the "Privacy" section and click the "Clear browsing data" button.
  3. Select "Delete cookies and other site data" to delete all cookies from the list (alternatively, you can remove all cookies created within a specific time period by selecting the period you want from the dropdown list).
  4. Select "Clear browsing history" to delete traces of which websites you've visited.
  5. Select "Clear download history" to delete records of which files and programs you've downloaded.
  6. Select "Empty the cache" to delete cached website pages.
  7. You can also delete saved passwords (which log you into websites) and saved form data (such as your name and address).
  8. Then click on the "Clear browsing data" button.
  9. Click on the Close button when you've finished.

Opera

To delete all cookies at the end of every session, select it in the privacy settings under Opera > Preferences
Click on Manage cookies to delete specific cookies or cookies from specific domains.

To delete all cookies immediately, go to Delete private data on the Tools menu.