How to Delete Cache on iPhone?

Q: How to delete cache on iPhone?

iPhone does not have a single 'Clear All Cache' button. To clear caches: clear Safari history and website data in Settings > Safari; offload and reinstall individual apps to remove their cached data; restart your iPhone to clear temporary RAM caches; delete and reinstall social media apps like Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat which accumulate large caches.

By Jack Smith — Updated March 8, 2026

iPhone has no single "Clear All Cache" button. Clear Safari cache in Settings → Safari, offload or reinstall individual apps to remove their caches, and restart your iPhone to flush temporary system caches. Each app manages its own cache independently.

Step 1: Clear Safari Cache

Safari's browsing cache is the easiest and most impactful cache to clear. Go to Settings → Safari → Clear History and Website Data. This removes cached webpage data, cookies, browsing history, and stored passwords. On a heavily used iPhone, Safari cache can reach 1-3 GB. Note: this logs you out of most websites. To clear website data without removing history, go to Settings → Safari → Advanced → Website Data → Remove All Website Data. After clearing, Safari runs slightly slower for a day as it rebuilds caches — this is normal.

Step 2: Offload or Delete App Caches

iOS does not provide a universal app cache cleaner. Each app manages its own cache storage. Your options:

Offload an app — Settings → General → iPhone Storage → [App] → Offload App. This removes the app binary but keeps documents and data. Re-download from App Store to restore. Does NOT always clear cached files stored in the Documents folder.
Delete and reinstall — The most thorough option. Settings → General → iPhone Storage → [App] → Delete App. All cached and stored data is wiped. Re-download from App Store. You may need to log back in.
In-app cache clear — Some apps (Spotify, Slack, Google Maps) have their own "Clear Cache" option in their settings menu. Check the app's settings before deleting entirely.

Social media apps are the worst offenders: Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat each commonly accumulate 1-5 GB of cached content. Deleting and reinstalling these apps can free significant space. Also see our article on clearing iPhone cache without deleting photos.

Step 3: Restart Your iPhone to Clear RAM Cache

A restart clears your iPhone's RAM (temporary memory) and some temporary system caches. This doesn't free much storage (RAM isn't counted in the storage bar) but it can fix slow performance and reduce System Data slightly. To restart: hold the side button and volume down → slide to power off → turn back on. Do this weekly for best performance. It can reclaim 0.5-2 GB of temporary System Data in some cases.

What About System Data Cache?

The System Data category (formerly "Other") in iPhone storage includes system caches — Siri voice models, Spotlight indexes, streaming buffers from music and video apps. iOS manages these automatically and reclaims them when space is needed. You cannot directly delete System Data. The most effective approaches: restart your iPhone, clear Safari, and make sure at least 5-10% of storage is free so iOS has room to manage caches itself. Read our full explainer on why iPhone storage fills up when it seems it shouldn't.

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How to Delete Cache on iPhone?

Step 1: Clear Safari Cache

Step 2: Offload or Delete App Caches

Step 3: Restart Your iPhone to Clear RAM Cache

What About System Data Cache?

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