Clearing App Caches On Mac

13.09.2020by admin

Clearing App Caches On Mac Windows 10
What Are Caches On Mac

Caches, be it of any type, needs to be deleted time to time. Unlike Windows, there is a whole different procedure to delete cache files in Mac. We’re serving you with some simple ways to remove the unrequired Caches in your device. Use them and enjoy the freed up space and put photos or songs into your Mac.

You’ve probably heard and seen the term 'cache' used on your Mac but do you know what it is?

Cache files are basically temporary data stored on your hard drive and used to speed up processes. For instance, Safari will download images on a webpage into cache so that next time you visit the site you don’t have to download the images again.

How are cache files different from cookies?

Cookie files are tiny members of the big cache family. This form of cache is collected by your browser to remember previously visited websites. Cookies collect the details of your visit, its duration, actions on a page, etc. Advertisers also use these to follow you around the internet. However annoying they are, cookies are a part of internet reality that we cannot help but “Accept.”

There are many reasons to remove old cache from your MacBook and disk space issue is only one of them. So what are the other benefits ?

Fixing issues with laggy web pages that load outdated content
Removing personal data stored by websites and applications.
You need to force-delete outdated cache from an app.

Are you ready to reclaim space on your Mac? Let’s go!

What are main cache types?

There are roughly three main types of caches you can clean on your Mac:

System cache
User cache (including app cache and DNS cache)
Browser cache.

This article will go over cleaning up all three.

Now, when it comes to clearing cache on Mac, there are two ways you can do it. You can clean them up manually step-by-step, or you can clean them in second with a cleaning utility like CleanMyMac X. If you want to clear cache on your Mac right now, we suggest doing it the easy way:

Launch CleanMyMac X (2019 version is preferable)
Select System Junk
Click 'Scan', and then “Clean”

That’s it, all cache files cleaned! CleanMyMac X works on all systems, including the latest macOS Catalina. You can download CleanMyMac X for free here and try.

However, if you’d like to clean them all manually, follow the steps below.

How to empty user cache on Mac?

Potential space reclaimed from junk - Up to 70%

As you can see, a single user cache folder on my computer takes up enormous 1.6 GB of space. And that’s just one folder out of hundreds. That means a good cleaning could free up gigabytes of free space and speed up your Mac in the process.

To clear your user cache, do the following:

Open a Finder window and select “Go to Folder” in the Go menu.
Type in ~/Library/Caches and hit enter to proceed to this folder.
Optional step: You can highlight and copy everything to a different folder just in case something goes wrong.
Go into each of the folders and clean out everything.
Note: We recommend that you remove the insides of these folders, but not the folders themselves.

Now, repeat the same steps above, but substitute…
~/Library/Caches with… /Library/Caches

Make sure that once you have finished clearing out these caches for additional hard drive space, you empty out your Trash. To do this, Control-click on the Trash icon in the dock and select “Empty Trash.” Restart your Mac afterward so your Mac can begin to create new, fresh cache files.
To help you make sense of your Library folder here's a brief explanation what each sub folder stands for.

4 main types of cache within Library folder

Caches
Temporary data created by apps and websites. Your apps keep generating cache files for as long as they are active. Relying on such pre-loaded content reduces memory load and speeds up data exchange.
Preferences
Prererences folder is where you’ll find customized settings for your apps. Sometimes, there is a need to reset an app and delete its corrupted Preferences file. Preference files always end with .plist — so they are easy to spot and delete.

App support
App support folder contains large pieces of app data, like game saves. App support files may remain on your Mac long after you’ve deleted the app itself. That’s why “cleaners” for system junk were invented.

Containers
Containers folder is an exchange buffer that apps use to communicate with one another. This is often referred to as “sandboxing.” Containers folder is automatically emptied after you restart your Mac.

If you aren’t comfortable with the risk of deleting user cache manually, a specialist cleaning app CleanMyMac X can do it for you. It will only remove files you don’t need and will find up to 7x more temporary cache files to remove from all over your system.

How to delete system and app cache on Mac

Potential space reclaimed from junk - Up to 10% (manual methods) or 15% (using cleaner)

Next up we’re looking at your system cache files. These hidden cache files are mainly created by the apps that run on your Mac.

What is app cache? In short, it’s any media downloaded by the apps you use in order to work faster and not load it every time you open the app. Do you need it? It’s debatable, but app cache takes up disk space and can be cleaned.

You can delete app cache on Mac in the same way as user cache, by going to ~/Library/Caches and removing the insides of the folders with the app name.

Proceed with caution! Not all app cache can be safely cleared. Some app developers keep important user info on cache folders. Backing up a folder before you delete is always a good idea. If everything works fine then you can delete the backup later.

To be on the safe side, use CleanMyMac, it works with a Safety Database and knows how to clear app cache safely. As if that wasn’t enough it will also remove more junk than manual methods.

How cache is created? An example from Photos

Every time you do image manipulations, like rotating a picture, its additional copy is created on your drive. In this manner, just 4 rotations are enough for an image size to grow from 2.5 MB to 10 MB of disk space taken. If you edit photos and videos on a regular basis, you may notice that your editor application also keeps temporary data — like intermediate version of your files.

How to clear browser cache on Mac

Potential space reclaimed from junk - Up to 15%

We all love to surf the web but every site we visit adds to the growing browser cache. Clearing your browser cache doesn’t just free up space, it will can also clear your browsing history to secure your privacy.

Browser cache temporarily stores website data such as images, scripts, and other stuff, in order to make your browsing faster when you revisit the same site. If you’re worried about your privacy or want to hide pages you’ve visited, you can clear your Internet cache (or browser history). Also, resetting your browser cache will potentially help to get rid of 404, 502, and other errors caused by corrupted cache.

Each browser has its own cache location, so the process of clearing is different in each case. For instance, Chrome cache location is in Settings, Safari stores its cache in Privacy, and Firefox cache location is History tab.

Here’s a quick introduction into how to delete browser cache on Mac.

How to clear cache in Chrome

Here’s how to clear browser cache in Chrome manually:

Click the 3-dot icon in the top right corner of Google Chrome browser.
Choose Settings.
At the bottom of the menu, choose Advanced.
Click “Clear browsing data.”
Deselect all, but Cached images and files.
Timewise, choose All time.
Hit “Clear data” button.

How to clear cache in Firefox

Here’s how to delete cache in Firefox manually:

Click the hamburger icon in the top right corner.
Choose Privacy & Security on the left sidebar.
Scroll to the section 'Cached web content' menu item.
Now, click Clear Now to delete Firefox cache.
Exit/quit all browser windows and re-open the browser.

In the same menu, checkmark Override automatic cache management and limit the cache size in MB. Go with the default amount of 350 MB, which is enough for most users' needs.

TIP:

If for some reason you cannot open a web page, try putting cache: in front of the URL address. This redirects you to the site’s cached copy.

For example: cache:macpaw.com

It works most of the time and can magically open even the otherwise blocked sites.

How to clear cache in Safari

Safari is a little trickier than the rest of the browsers. You could remove caches together with all the other website history through History — Clear History in menu bar.

But if you need more precision, here’s how to empty cache on Safari browser:

In the top menu, choose Safari.
Click Preferences.
Choose the Advanced tab.
Enable Show Develop menu in menu bar.
Now go to Develop in menu bar.
Choose Empty caches.

Make sure you close/quit the browser and restart it after clearing cache. Note, that all your auto logins and predicted websites in the address bar will be cleared.

Manual methods remove most of the browser junk but if you want to remove all of it, from all your browsers at once, there’s a safer and faster method to clear your internet cache on any browser.

How to clear cache files on Mac with a single click of a button

Instead of searching all over your Mac to find and remove cache files yourself, you can clear user caches on a Mac using CleanMyMac X. It makes removing cache files as easy as can be.

To get rid of cache files with CleanMyMac X:

Download CleanMyMac X (free) and launch it.
Select Smart Scan in the left menu.
Hit Scan at the bottom of CleanMyMac X.
Then click Clean.

And you're done! If you’d like to remove only cache files and nothing else, click on Review Details before clicking Clean. Deselect everything but System Cache Files and User Cache Files, then click Clean.

The easy way to clear all browsing data

Instead of clicking between browsers and being limited to what they let you clean, take full control of all your browser cleaning with this simple method:

Open CleanMyMac and select the Privacy module
Click on your browser of choice
Make your selections from the list of all your cache and privacy tracks
Click Remove to clean your browser

Cleaning your Mac has never been easier. Download CleanMyMac X and try for free to get yourself a faster, cleaner Mac — without worrying about cleaning the wrong thing.

And if you’re looking to clear just browser cookies, check out this easy one-minute explanation we’ve made for you.

Frequently asked questions

What are cache files?

Cache files are basically scripts, images, temporary files, and other data that are left on your Mac after you visit a website or use an app for the first time. There are system cache, user cache, which includes app and DNS cache, and browser cache that accumulates as you surf the web.

Is it safe to remove cached data?

Cache helps websites and apps download faster for you. Deleting cache files, you basically remove the information the sites and apps know about you. And if your system needs this information, it will recreate the cache files. So there’s nothing dangerous about removing user cache.

Where are the cache files stored on Mac?

The app and user cache files are usually located in ~/Library/Caches. Here, you can find folders dedicated to each app you have on your Mac. So, cache files of each application or program are stored in corresponding folders.

These might also interest you…

Jun 08, 2020 • Filed to: Solve Mac Problems • Proven solutions

Help! I have searched the deep blue sea and still haven’t found a way to clear caches on a Mac! “Okay, that’s a bit of an exaggeration but you get the drift; a little assistance should solve all my troubles.

Cache pronounced ‘’kash’’are principally transitory data stored on your hard drive and used to accelerate processes. For example, Browser cache allow recently accessed images to load quicker while DNS Cache allows your Mac to connect to websites much faster.

While caches are integral to the smooth operations of a Mac, you may need to clear old cache from your Macs and MacBook’s due to issues such as:

i. The need to free storage space on hard drives.

ii. Resolving issues with slow web pages loading outdated content.

iii. Deleting sensitive data collected and stored by websites and applications.

iv. Resolving network errors.

Part 1: What are Caches on a Mac?

A cache is a temporary data file generated by apps browsers and other programs in order to ensure that your Mac runs at optimum speed. These files contain data that help improve response time and reduce latency. The data in the Cached files can be compared to a ’’shortcut’’ to a given task which makes the operation faster the next time it is carried out.

For example, when you visit a website, your browser downloads images and text to your computer. If you reopen the same page four minutes later, the same files are still existing on your computer. When the browser realizes that the data you're requesting is already accessible on your hard drive, it would open those files instead of downloading them again from the website's server.

What this means is that, the files are opened instantaneously thereby saving you valuable time. You also use less data as your Mac does not have to download each web page and its contents frequently since it can restore it from the cache.

These cached files however pose a significant problem; they can remain dormant in a system and keep stacking up while consuming ever valuable space in your Mac and ultimately slow it down. Furthermore, the cached files can become corrupt due to software updates and this may cause errors when you are trying to connect to a network. At the same time, cached files can also cause browsers to display outdated contents on websites.

These issues and many more means that what was at the onset beneficial now becomes problematic. Invariably, it is absolutely necessary to clear the cache in your Mac periodically in order to avoid problems related to buildup of cache in your Mac.

There are basically four types of caches in a Mac, System Cache, User Cache, DNS Cache and Browser Cache. A little explanation for each of the types of cache and how to clear them have been detailed below for you:

Part 2: How to Clear System Cache on Mac?

System cache files are created by the built-in Mac OS X system services that run your Mac and in contrast to application cache, they have nothing to do with the user. They are integral to the normal functioning of your Mac and the clearing of system cache is not recommended manually except if you are very careful or trying to fix a problem. System cache files do not generally take up much space, which is another reason why a clean- out isn’t as necessary as with user cache.

a. Cleaning up System Caches manually

i. Go to ~/Library/Caches and hit Enter to remove the insides of the folders with the app name.

ii. System cache folders are named ‘’com. apple ‘’ and should be backed up for safety.

iii. Go into the ‘’com. apple’’ folders and delete the files inside of them. Please delete ONLY the files, not the folders!

iv. Right click on the Trash icon and “Empty Trash”.

Dec 09, 2013 This app scans your hard drive or a selected folder and reports the size of the contents. Great for finding out which folders are taking up the most space, or tracking storage consumption that you might not otherwise be aware of. The best feature is the analysis at the end of scanning and the ability to instantly see the top 100 largest files.

You should note that not all app cache files can be safely deleted as some app developers keep important information on cache folders. It is prudent to first back up a folder before erasing all files inside. If everything works fine after clearing the System Cache, you can then delete the backup.

b. Cleaning up System Caches using Third Party Application, ‘’OnyX’’

You can use the free tool, OnyX, to clean System Caches instead of manually doing it but as with all third party applications, you are advised to only use them as a last resort.

Part 3: How to Remove App/User Cache on Mac?

App or User Cache are cache files created by all the Apps that you use on your Mac. It includes Apps pre-installed on your Macs as well as 3rd-party Apps later installed. App or User Cache make Apps run faster even when you are offline by using local assets instead of updating frequently. This reduction of server load ultimately allows for faster response from the Apps.

The applications however create lots of cache which invariably take up lots of valuable space and you may be surprised recover gigabytes of space when cleaning App caches.

Now that you have a basic idea of what App/User Caches are all about, you shall be given a detailed explanation on how to clear APP/User Caches. You can either clean App/User Caches manually or you can use Specialist Applications.

a. Removing User Caches manually: To find and clear your User cache manually, do the following:

i. Open a new Finder window.

ii. In Menu choose Go -> Go to Folder (or use shortcut Shift + Cmd + G)

iii. In the window that appears, navigate to the directory ~/Library/Caches

iv. Select all the files and folders you don’t need and delete them by dragging them to the trash. If you however need to keep some files, you should first move them to the other folder and remove all cache files.

b. Cleaning up User Caches using Third Party Applications

In most cases, it is preferable to clean caches on your Mac manually but some users sometimes use third party applications such as ‘’CleanMyMac’’ or ‘’Funter’’ to clean caches on a Mac. You are however advised to avoid using third party apps to clean caches as most of these apps are not endorsed by Apple INC.

Part 4: How to clear DNS Cache on Mac?

A DNS cache is a temporary record kept by a computer's operating system that contains records of all the recent visits and attempted visits to websites and other internet domains.

To put is simply, a DNS cache is just a memory of recent DNS lookups that your computer can quickly refer to when it's trying to figure out how to load a website. The internet relies on the Domain Name System (DNS) to maintain an directory of all public websites and their matching IP addresses. You can think of it as a phone book.

Just as a phone book gives us easy access to the numbers of your friends without having to memorize everyone's phone number (remember that phones can only communicate with a number). Similarly, a DNS is used so that we can avoid having to memorize every website's IP address, which is the only way networks can equipment can communicate.

This DNS cache database contains a list of all recently accessed domain names and their addresses. As such, in order to speed up the processes of accessing websites, your Mac would first check its local DNS Cache which is akin to a ‘’local copy of the phone book’’ for addressees before sending out the request to the internet.

Despite the pivotal role played by DNS Caches in speeding up access to websites, they can sometimes become polluted when unauthorized domain names or IP addresses are inserted into it either by viruses or network attacks.

Accordingly, the first step to be taken in resolving these errors would be to clear your DNS Caches.

a. Clearing DNS Caches using Terminal

i. Open Terminal (⇧ Shift+⌘+U, and double-click on Terminal)

ii. Type this into Terminal: sudo dscacheutil -flushcache; sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder;say cache flushed

iii. Press Enter to run and fill your admin password to execute the command.

Part 5. How to Delete Browser Cache on Mac?

Clearing App Caches On Mac Windows 10

Admit it, you can’t survive without the internet. Well, a bit of an exaggeration you might say; but how can you explore the internet without your browsers. They are your gateway to the world but when they start to use up hard disk space and slowing down you Mac, that gateway becomes ever smaller and a bit of a hassle.

Your browser cache is essentially saved bits of the websites you’ve visited recently. That way, if you go back, your computer can re-use locally cached elements that haven’t changed; this speeds up the time a website takes to load.

It is however sometimes necessary to clear your cache and cookies anytime you want to gain a little bit of extra speed for your Mac.

Solution 1: Clearing Safari’s Cache

You would probably be using Mac’s default and highly efficient browser more often due to its seamless integration with Mac OS X.

a. Clearing Safari’s Cache using via Browser preferences.

i. Click Safari in the top menu and then click Preferences.

ii. In the window that appears, click the Advanced tab and then click on Show Develop menu.

iii. In menu bar, go to Develop and choose Empty Caches.

iv. Click on Safari and then click Reset Safari

b. Clearing Safari Browser Cache using Terminal

You can also clear your Safari cache manually using specific ‘’commands’’. The process is however more intricate than using browser preferences and it requires users to ensure that the ‘’commands’’ are keyed exactly as instructed.

Please follow the precise instructions detailed below to clear your Safari cache manually.

i. Press Command + Shift + G to open up the Terminal

ii. With these simple commands you can delete Safari's cache file. But first, check its size using the disk usage (du) command:

du -h /Users/$HOME/Library/Caches/com.apple.Safari/Cache.db

Note: replace '$HOME' with the name of your home folder

iii. To delete Safari's cache file type:

rm /Users/$HOME/Library/Caches/com.apple.Safari/Cache.db

Please note that when you use the remove (rm)command files cannot be recovered.

iv. A more practical approach is to use the move (mv) command:

mv /Users/$HOME/Library/Caches/com.apple.Safari/Cache.db ~/.Trash/

This will move the file to your user's ($HOME) trash. From there it is still recoverable until you empty the trash.

Safari will create a new Cache. DB file automatically when you open a new webpage.

Webex mac app. Customers on lockdown versions of the desktop app will need to run WBS39.5.13 or higher. Earlier versions may be limited to using the Webex Meetings web scheduler and the web app to schedule, start, and join meetings. In general, we recommend that you don't upgrade to macOS Catalina until after you upgrade your Webex application. Dec 03, 2019 Cannot share Desktop or Apps during WebEx - I upgraded to Catalina Mac OS 10.15 and my Webex worked once, then when I tried it again, I was presented all kinds of pop-up boxes (that looked suspicious) and I denied them all during WebEx start up. Then I could not share any WebEx.

v. Open a new webpage or restart Safari and recheck disk usage:

du -h /Users/$HOME/Library/Caches/com.apple.Safari/Cache.db

Solution 2: Clearing Chrome’s Cache

Google’s Chrome is undoubtedly one of the most popular web browsers due to its speed and sheer range of options.

Clearing Chrome’s Cache using via Browser preferences.

i. Open Chrome and then go to the “Chrome” menu

ii. Select “Clear Browsing Data” from the menu drop-down list

iii. At the “Clear browsing data” screen in Chrome, choose what web data and caches you wish to clear; select if you want to clear only ‘’cached images and files’’ then select only that option and nothing else.

iv. You should choose the time period to delete from: (Select “the beginning of time” if you wish to delete all data from all periods of Chrome usage)

v. Finally, reload the website.

Solution 3: Clearing Firefox’s Cache:

Mozilla seem to have done a very good job as their ‘’Firefox’’ browser is apparently an even more popular browser than Chrome for some people. Well, different strokes for different folks as the saying goes.

Clearing Firefox’s Cache using via Browser preferences.

i. In the main menu of the Firefox browser select 'History' and then select “Clear Recent History..' from the submenu-item

What Are Caches On Mac

ii. A popup shall open in the drop-down menu and you can choose the time range you want to delete the cache.

iii. To delete all cache data, select 'Everything' from the drop-down menu.

iv. You can then click on the arrow next to 'Details' to show the different options for which data should be deleted. If you want to delete only the cache, then check only the checkbox next to 'Cache'.

v. Click the button 'Clear now” and your cache shall be deleted.

vi. Reload the site after that.

Closing Words

You don’t spend a fortune on a supercar and expect it to sluggishly lumber on when you push down the gas pedal, Oh! No! you expect it zoom off like a thunderbolt. Well, you see, nobody buys a Mac just for the looks…….it is much more than that, it is also about speed and efficiency.

With caches piling up and taking up ever more valuable space, even a hulking Mac begins to falter. It is prudent to clean caches in your Mac periodically to avoid unnecessary files taking up valuable space.

Although, this should be done only when necessary because as the saying goes…. ‘’If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it’’.