A site looks stuck in last month’s design, a login loop will not die, or a form keeps showing old data. That is often cache and cookies, not your account. You can wipe the cached files and still keep saved passwords if you uncheck the right boxes. Wiping everything is how people lock themselves out of ten sites on a Monday.
What you need
- Chrome on a computer (the phone app has a similar path under Privacy)
- To know whether you use a password manager — Chrome’s built-in one is easy to wipe by mistake
In this guide
1. Clear one site first
Open the broken site. Click the lock (or tune icon) left of the URL → Cookies and site data → Manage (wording varies) or Site settings. Delete data for that site. Reload. This fixes most “stuck login” and “old CSS” problems without signing you out of everything else.
In current Chrome you can also click the view-site-information icon → Reset permissions / Delete data.
2. Clear cached images and files for all sites
Press Ctrl + Shift + Delete. Set Time range to Last 7 days (or All time if the problem is old). Tick Cached images and files. Untick the rest. Clear data.
Pages may load a second slower the first time back. That is the cache refilling. Passwords stay.
3. When you also need cookies
If you are stuck in a login loop after a password change, tick Cookies and other site data as well. You will be signed out of Gmail, banks, and shops in this browser. That is the point. Have your second factor ready.
Do this after you have tried one-site deletion. There is no prize for going nuclear first.
4. What not to tick
Unless you mean it, leave these off:
- Passwords and passkeys
- Autofill form data
- History (unless you want that gone too)
Those are not why a page looks wrong. They are why Tuesday morning becomes a password-reset marathon.
If the site is still broken
Cache clear did nothing
- Try a private window (Ctrl + Shift + N). If it works there, an extension is the culprit. Disable extensions one at a time.
- The site may be down. Check on your phone with Wi-Fi off.
- A corporate proxy or VPN can serve a stale page. Disconnect and retry.
- If every site is broken, this is not cache. Use the Wi-Fi guide.
Common questions
Will I lose my passwords?
Not if you only tick Cached images and files. Leave Passwords and Autofill unchecked.
A private window works but normal Chrome does not.
An extension is likely the cause. Disable them one at a time after you clear that site’s data.
Do I need to clear everything for one broken site?
No. Delete data for that site from the lock icon first. Full cookie wipes sign you out of every site.
