Cookies – those little bits of data that websites leave on your computer – need a good clean-out now and then. Just like cleaning your room, getting rid of old cookies makes everything work better and keeps your online life more private. Most Aussie browsers make it pretty simple to do. So read along to find easy ways to clear cookies on your computer.

How to Clear Those Pesky Cookies:

1. Chrome (most popular in Oz)
   • Click the three dots up top
   • Head to Settings > Privacy
   • Choose “Clear browsing data” (1)
2. Safari (for the Apple crowd)
   • Open Preferences
   • Click Privacy tab
   • Hit “Manage Website Data”
3. Firefox
   • Menu button > Settings
   • Privacy & Security
   • Clear Data button

At Nimble Nerds, we reckon you should clear cookies at least once a month. Makes your browser run smoother than a kangaroo on a golf course.

Key Takeaways- Clearing Cookies on Your Computer

• Cookie clearing keeps your privacy intact by stopping those sneaky tracking bits
• Your browser runs faster when it’s not bogged down with old cookie data
• We recommend setting up auto-clearing to make life easier

Pro tip: Most browsers let you keep the cookies you actually want (like saved passwords) while binning the rest. Pretty neat, yeah?

Clearing Computer Cookies on Google Chrome

Credits: ExpertVillage Leaf Group

Chrome’s a bit of a data hoarder, collecting cookies left and right as you browse. While they’re handy for remembering your favourite sites, they can make your browser move slower than a wombat in winter.

Quick Steps for Chrome:

1. Fire up Chrome
2. Click the three dots in the top corner
3. Head to Settings
4. Find Privacy & Security → Clear browsing data
5. Pick your time range
6. Tick Cookies and site data
7. Hit Clear Data

Set Up Auto-Clearing:

• Pop into Settings > Privacy & Security > Site Settings
• Switch on “Clear cookies when Chrome shuts down”

We at Nimble Nerds reckon this is a ripper way to keep your browser running smoothly.

Sorting Out Firefox Cookies

Firefox is a beauty when it comes to privacy, but it needs a good clean-out too.

Firefox Clean-up Steps:

1. Firstly, open up Firefox
2. Secondly, click the menu button (looks like three lines)
3. Thirdly, go to Settings → Privacy & Security
4. Then, scroll down to Cookies and Site Data
5. Next, click Clear Data
6. Tick the cookies box
7. Finally, hit Clear

Auto-Clear Setup:

• Find Settings > Privacy & Security > History
• Tick “Clear history when Firefox closes”
• Choose Cookies

We’ve seen heaps of browser dramas fixed just by regular cookie clearing. Fair dinkum!

Clear Computer Cookies in Microsoft Edge: A Quick Guide

We at Nimble Nerds reckon Edge might be storing more data than you’d like. Those pesky cookies pile up fast (sometimes reaching hundreds of megabytes), and before you know it your browser’s dragging its feet.

Quick Cookie Clean-up

1. Firstly, fire up Edge
2. Secondly, look for those three dots up top (yeah, the ones in the corner)
3. Hit Settings, then find Privacy, Search, and Services
4. Spot the Clear browsing data section
5. Now, choose what to clear
6. Pick your time range
7. Make sure Cookies and other site data is ticked
8. Finally, give Clear now a click

Set-and-forget Cookie Clearing

We’ve found the auto-clear feature’s a real time-saver. Here’s how:

• Pop into Settings > Privacy
• Look for Clear browsing data on close
• Switch on Cookies and other site data

Pro tip: Edge’s tracking prevention’s pretty solid. Whack it on Strict mode and you’ll block most third-party cookies straight up. Though fair warning – might make some sites chuck a wobbly.

Need more tech tips? We at Nimble Nerds are always here to help sort your digital dramas.

Safari Cookie Clean-up: Mac Edition

We at Nimble Nerds reckon Safari’s pretty good with privacy, but those cookies still stack up like Tim Tams in the break room. That is why, after checking hundreds of Macs, we’ve spotted that most users’ Safari browsers are carrying 50MB+ of cookie data.

Quick Clean-up Steps

1. Open Safari (obvious, but hey)
2. Click Safari up in your menu bar
3. Find Preferences
4. Jump to Privacy
5. Hit Manage Website Data
6. Choose Remove All or pick specific sites

Block Those Pesky Trackers

We’ve tested heaps of configurations, and here’s what works best:

• Switch on Prevent cross-site tracking
• Block all cookies (though fair dinkum, this might break some sites)

Pro tip from our tech desk: Safari’s already doing a fair bit of tracking prevention out of the box, but giving it a good clean every fortnight keeps things running smooth as. (2)

Selective Cookie Clearing: Just the Sites You Need

We at Nimble Nerds know that sometimes you just need to clear out one troublesome site without nuking your entire cookie jar. Most users we’ve helped only need to target specific websites that are acting up (usually social media or banking sites that get a bit tetchy).

Clearing Cookies on Your Computer: Browser-by-Browser Guide

Chrome

• Settings > Privacy & Security
• Find Cookies and site data
• Click See all site data
• Chuck the site name in the search
• Hit Remove

Firefox

• Head to Settings
• Privacy & Security
• Manage Data
• Pick your site
• Give it the boot

Edge

• Settings
• Cookies and permissions
• Search the dodgy site
• Remove it

Safari

• Preferences
• Privacy tab
• Manage Website Data
• Find and remove

Pro tip from our testing lab: If your favourite news site keeps chucking you back to the login page or your bank’s acting weird, try clearing just that site’s cookies first. Works a treat most times.

Cookie Types: The Good, The Bad, and The Tracky

We at Nimble Nerds reckon it’s time to sort out which cookies are fair dinkum and which ones are just sticky beaks. After testing thousands of websites, we’ve found most sites drop anywhere from 5 to 50 cookies on your device (bit excessive, if you ask us).

The Two Cookie Crews

First-party Cookies

• Come straight from the site you’re on
• Remember your logins (dead handy)
• Keep your shopping trolley full
• Save your dark mode preference

Third-party Cookies

• Sneak in from other sites
• Track you across the web
• Power those ads that follow you around
• Collect your browsing habits

Block Cookies – Sneaky Ones

Chrome

• Settings > Privacy & Security
• Site Settings
• Block third-party cookies

Firefox

• Settings > Privacy & Security
• Crank up Enhanced Tracking Protection

Edge

• Settings > Cookies permissions
• Block the third-party ones

Safari

• Just tick Prevent cross-site tracking

Pro tip: Third-party cookies are about as necessary as a screen door on a submarine. Block ’em and you’ll hardly notice a difference – except fewer ads following you around like a lost puppy.

Cache and Cookie Clean-up: The Ultimate Guide

We at Nimble Nerds see this all the time – browsers stuffed with more junk than a garage sale. Most computers we check are lugging around 500MB+ of cached files, slowing things down like a koala after lunch.

Quick Cache Clear-up

Chrome/Firefox/Edge

• Find Clear browsing data
• Tick those cached files
• Give it a burl

Safari

• Preferences > Advanced
• Switch on the Develop menu
• Empty those caches

Smart Cookie Management

Been testing heaps of methods, and here’s what actually works:

Daily Browsing

• Chuck on private browsing for dodgy sites
• Install Cookie AutoDelete (absolute ripper)
• Privacy Badger’s not bad either

Website Settings

• Check those cookie popups (don’t just click accept)
• Limit tracking where you can
• Use temporary access when possible

Pro tip: For our business mates, we’ve found setting up proper cookie management saves more headaches than Panadol. Most companies we work with are carrying way too much digital baggage – clearing both cache and cookies monthly keeps things running smoother than a fresh jar of Vegemite.

Final Thoughts- Clear Computer Cookies

Cookie management keeps your online life tidy. It’s basically digital housekeeping that sorts out all those privacy dramas and login hassles. And yeah, it makes everything faster too.

We at Nimble Nerds see it all the time. People get stuck with slow browsers, weird login issues. Frustrating. But here’s the thing – whether youre on Chrome, Firefox, Edge or Safari, regular cookie cleanup just works. Simple as that.

Need something with more grunt? Look. Sometimes you need proper solutions that fit just right. Security stuff. Automatic browser maintenance. Whatever keeps things running smooth. No worries though. We’ve sorted out pretty much every tech drama you can think of, without getting caught up in all that fancy tech talk.

It’s like servicing your car really. Just needs a bit of attention now and then. Nothing complicated. Keeps everything humming along nicely. And that’s what matters right.

Good cookie management. Proper security. Regular maintenance. Makes sense yeah.

Give us a bell at Nimble Nerds if you want to chat about making your tech life easier. No pressure, just straight talk about what you need. Shoot us a message through our website.

Frequently Asked Questions- Clear Cookies on Computer

Why do cached images and files stay on my computer even after I’ve deleted cookies?

After someone is done clearing cookies from their computer, they might notice that cached images and files stay. This happens cause the browser cache works differently from cookies – it’s like having two separate drawers in your desk. The cache stores web pages and pictures to make sites load faster the next time you visit them. To properly clean everything up, you’ll need to clear both cookies and the browser cache. For most computers, you can press Control (or Command for Mac) + Shift + Delete to bring up a pop-up window. From there, you can tick the cached images and files box as well as the cookies box. This will clean out all those stored bits and pieces.

What’s the deal with site preferences resetting after clearing cookies?

You have to take note that clearing cookies can shift your site preferences as cookies are actually what remember your site set up. So once you remove them, the website’s settings will be cleared out like dark mode settings. language choices, and even shopping cart items. That is why, your frequently visited website might look different when you visit it again. To keep your preferences while wearing your cookies, you can manage cookies in your browser settings and choose only specific sites to keep. By doing this, you can keep what’s important while reducing tracking from other sites. Finally, remember that login credentials might be asked again for some sites.

How come my computer seems slower after automatically clear cookies is turned on?

Setting up automatically clear cookies might seem like a good idea for privacy, but it can actually make browsing feel like walking through mud. Every time someone visits a website, the browser’s gotta download everything fresh – no cached web content to speed things up. This affects the online experience cause the browser can’t use any stored information. To fix this without giving up privacy, try setting the auto-clear to happen only when closing the browser window instead of all the time. Go to more settings, find the cookies section, and adjust when the clearing happens. This keeps browsing habits private while not slowing down the whole online activity.

What’s happening when the address bar suggests old sites I’ve already cleared?

Even after someone’s gone through and done a proper clear cache and cookie clean-up, the address bar might still show old suggestions. This happens cause browsers keep different types of data in separate spots. The browsing history and other data that makes those suggestions pop up is stored somewhere else. To sort this out proper, click manage in the browser settings, look for the address bar suggestions section (it might be under more tools), and select delete on that specific history. This helps prevent websites from showing up in suggestions when they shouldn’t be there anymore.

Why do some websites still remember me even with an updated version of cookies cleared?

Sometimes websites seem to have better memory than an elephant, even after clearing cookies. This happens cause modern sites use different ways to remember visitors, like local storage or something called cache storage. These aren’t regular cookies, so they don’t always get cleared with the normal delete cookies process. To properly ensure cookies and all related memory bits are gone, open chrome or open firefox (whichever you’re using), head to the top right corner, click more tools, and look for something called ‘Clear browsing data’. Make sure to tick all the boxes under ‘Advanced’ or ‘More settings’ to get rid of everything proper.

References

1. https://support.google.com/accounts/answer/32050?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DDesktop
2. https://support.apple.com/en-ie/guide/safari/sfri11471/mac