How to clear the cache on an iPad

Helpdesk Challenge – clearing the cache on your iPad

by Rich Parris, Deputy Computing Editor Tablets 09/03/2013

Using any web browser without clearing the cache can cause problems over time, and the iPad Safari browser is no different.

Problems with corrupt page entries can lead to Safari tabs refusing to close, or general slow-loading of pages. To avoid these troubles, we show you how to clear the cache on your iPad.

Thinking of upgrading to a new iPad? Make sure you read our tablet buyers’ guide.

How to clear the cache on an iPad

To clear the cache on your iPad, take the following steps. These also work on an iPhone:

Clearing iPad cache
In the Settings app, tap Safari, and you will see options to Clear History and Clear Cookies and Data.

You can use these options as a first step in cleaning up your Safari browser. Doing this won’t clear all of your cache, however.

To clear the cache fully, within the Settings app, tap Safari > Advanced > Website Data.

Tap Remove All Website Data to clear the cache.

Clearing the cache on apps

It’s not just Safari that can benefit from a cache clear-out. Individual apps can become buggy if the cache is left to accumulate for too long.

A good example is The Guardian app for the iPhone. I recently encountered problems with the app refusing to start up, no matter how many times I tapped expectantly on it. Restarting the phone and even updating the app didn’t fix the problem.

But clearing the cache did! To do this, tap Settings, then scroll down til you see the app (The Guardian, in this case), and tap it. If you see an option to clear the cache, select it.

Have you encountered glitches on your iPad, or any other tablet? Have you abandoned Safari for the iPad in favour of Google Chrome? Let us know your thoughts and experiences in the comments below.

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