The cache on Android is temporary files that are created by applications and the system to speed up work. Over time, they accumulate, taking up precious space on the internal storage and sometimes causing device malfunctions. In contrast to automatic cleaning through optimizers, manual cache deletion allows you to manage memory precisely and solve specific problems - from slow browser operation to errors in games.

This instruction is suitable for all versions Android (from Android 8 Oreo to Android 15), but keep in mind: manufacturers (Samsung, Xiaomi, Huawei etc.) can change the location of menu items. We will analyze not only standard methods, but also hidden methods - for example, clearing the cache Google Play Services, which often goes unnoticed, although it can weigh several gigabytes.

Before you begin, remember: the cache of applications (for example, maps or instant messengers) contains data for quick loading - after cleaning they will be loaded again, which can temporarily increase traffic consumption and slow down operation. The system cache (Dalvik-cache) should be touched only in case of serious failures, since its re-creation takes time.

1. Why clear the cache manually: 5 real reasons

Automatic tools (like Google Files or CCleaner) delete the cache en masse, but not always effectively. Manual control is needed in specific cases:

  • 📱 The application constantly crashes —for example, Instagram or Telegram are closed when opening a story. A damaged media file cache is often to blame.
  • 🐢 The phone is slow for no apparent reason: lags when scrolling, long menu loading times. The system process cache (android.process.media) can take up to 1–2 GB.
  • 📁 Not enough memory, although you have not installed new apps for a long time. The cache Google Chrome or YouTube easily “eats” 500 MB–1 GB.
  • 🔄 After updating Android glitches have appeared: gestures do not work, sound disappears. Clearing the cache System UI often solves the problem.
  • 🔒 Privacy: fragments of personal data may remain in the cache of browsers or instant messengers (for example, photo thumbnails from Viber).

It is important to distinguish the cache from application data: the first are temporary files to speed up work, the second are your settings, logins and saves. Clearing the cache is safe, and deleting data will lead to logging out of your account and resetting your settings.

⚠️ Attention: If you use Android Go (on budget smartphones) like Nokia 1 or Samsung Galaxy J2 Core, manually clearing the cache can lead to slower performance - the system is optimized for a minimum amount of memory and automatically manages the cache.

2. How to clear the cache of an individual application

The safest method is to delete the cache for a specific app. system files and does not require root access. The instructions are valid for all versions of Android, but the appearance of the menu may differ.

Open Settings → Applications (on some devices - Settings → All applications) Enter the name of the app in the top search bar (for example, WhatsApp). select Storage (or Memory). Here you will see two options:

  • Cache — temporary files (can be deleted without consequences).
  • Data — settings, accounts, progress in games (delete only if you are ready to lose information).

Press Clear cache. For some applications (for example, Google Maps), the button may be inactive - this means that the cache is already empty or the application is using the general system cache.

Is the application running in the background (close it through the menu recent)

Is there important unsaved data (for example, drafts in instant messengers)

Is the Internet connected (after cleaning, the application will download the data again)

Is there enough free space on the device (at least 100–200 MB)

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On devices Xiaomi (MIUI) and Huawei (EMUI) an additional step may be required: after pressing Clear cache the system will prompt you to “Optimize” the application - this is safe, but not necessary.

3. Mass clearing the cache of all applications

If you need to free up space quickly, you can delete the cache of all apps at once. This method does not require superuser rights, but does not affect the system cache (more about it in the next section).

Go to Settings → Storage (or Memory). At the top of the screen you will see a diagram of the occupied space - tap on the section Cache (or Other applications → Cache). applications.

Manufacturer The path to mass clearing the cache Features
Samsung (One UI) Settings → Device care → Memory → Clear Also offers to delete unnecessary ones files and duplicates
Xiaomi (MIUI) Settings → About phone → Memory → Clear cache Confirmation via pattern may be required
Google Pixel (Stock Android) Settings → Storage → Free up space → Application cache Shows the exact amount of cache before cleaning
Huawei (EMUI) Settings → Memory → Cleaning → Cache Sometimes requires a reboot to completely clear

After mass clearing, some applications (for example, Spotify or Netflix) will take longer to load when first launched - this is normal, since they restore the cache again.

⚠️ Attention: On devices with Android 12 and newer, mass clearing the cache may reset some personalization settings (wallpapers, themes This is related). with operating features Android System Intelligence.

Once a week

Once a month

Only when the memory runs out

Never clear

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4. Clearing the system cache (Dalvik-cache and others)

The system cache includes files that Android uses to speed up the OS: Dalvik-cache (optimized application code), kernel cache, temporary update files. Clearing it helps with:

  • 🔄 Stuck on the logo when turned on (bootloop).
  • 📱 Frequent reboots or errors android.process.acore.
  • 🔧 Unsuccessful system updates (for example, after an OTA update).

There are two methods to clear the system cache: through recovery mode (recovery) or using ADB (for advanced users). Let's consider the first method - it works on all devices, including Samsung, Xiaomi And Google Pixel.

Step. 1. Turn off the phone combination to enter recovery:

  • Samsung: Power + Volume up + Bixby (or Home on older models).
  • Xiaomi/Redmi: Power + Volume up.
  • Google Pixel/OnePlus: Power + Volume down.

Step 2. In the recovery menu (control with volume buttons, select with the power button) find the item Wipe cache partition. Confirm the action. After completion, select Reboot system now.

The process may take 5–15 minutes. After the reboot, the system will restore the cache automatically - it’s normal if the phone is slower for the first few minutes.

What to do if recovery does not open?

If the button combination does not work, try:

1. Connect the device to the PC and use the command adb reboot recovery.

2. On some models Samsung (for example, Galaxy S22), you must first hold down Power + Volume up, then release the power, but hold down the volume until the menu appears.

3. For devices with a locked bootloader (for example, Huawei), you may need an official utility from the manufacturer (for example, HiSuite).

5. Clearing the cache of Google Play Services and other system applications

Some system apps (for example, Google Play Services, Android System WebView) accumulate cache, which is not visible in the standard “Applications” menu. Clearing it helps with:

  • 🔍 Geolocation errors (for example, Google Maps does not find your location).
  • 📵 Problems with notifications (push messages from VK or Telegram).
  • 🔒 Authorization errors in your Google account.

Instructions:

  1. Open Settings → Applications → Show system (or Three dots → Show system).
  2. Find Google Play Services (or Google Play Services).
  3. Tap Storage → Clear cache. If the button is inactive, first click Stop.
  4. Repeat for Android System WebView and Google Play Market.

After cleaning, restart the device. In the first 5-10 minutes of operation, increased battery consumption may be observed - this is normal, as the system restores background processes.

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If after cleaning Google Play Services errors appear (for example, “Google Play Services has stopped”), go to Settings → Accounts → Google and synchronize the data again.

6. Clearing the browser cache: Chrome, Firefox, Samsung Internet

Browsers store the cache separately from other applications. the following are saved:

  • 🖼️ Images and page styles (take up the most space).
  • 🍪 Cookies and form data (logins, passwords, autofill history).
  • 📁 Offline mode files (for example, saved articles in Google Chrome).

For Google Chrome:

  1. Open the browser, tap ⋮ → History → Clear data.
  2. Select period (All time for complete clearing).
  3. Tick the boxes Cached images and files and Cookies and site data.
  4. Click Delete data.

For Samsung Internet:

  1. Go to ⋮ → Settings → Personal data → Delete browsing data.
  2. Select Cached data i Cookies.
  3. Confirm deletion.

In Mozilla Firefox different path: ⋮ → Settings → Delete personal data. Here you can separately clear the cache without touching bookmarks and history.

⚠️ Attention: Clearing the browser cache will delete all saved passwords if you have not synchronized them with your Google account or Firefox. Before the procedure, check whether synchronization is enabled in your browser settings.

7. Alternative methods: ADB and third-party utilities

If standard methods do not help (for example, the cache is not cleared or is quickly restored), you can use:

  • 🖥️ ADB (Android Debug Bridge) — for advanced users. Commands: adb shell pm clear --user 0 com.android.chrome # Clear Chrome cache and data data-i="232">or 
    adb shell pm clear --user 0 com.android.chrome # Clear Chrome cache and data

    adb shell pm trim-caches 500M # Cache limit to 500 MB for all applications

  • 🔧 Cleaner applications (For example, SD Maid or CCleaner) They allow you to delete the cache of system applications that are not available in the standard menu.
  • ⚙️ Magisk modules (requires root). For example, Universal GMS Doze optimizes the cache Google Play Services.

Using ADB requires enabling USB Debugging (Settings → About phone → Build number - tap 7 times, then return to Settings → System → For developers). via USB Samsung also needs to be allowed OEM unlocking.

Third-party utilities may request superuser (root) rights. Be careful: not all applications from Google Play are safe. Check reviews and ratings before installing.

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ADB commands allow you to clear the cache even for built-in applications that do not appear in the Applications menu, however, incorrect use can lead to crashes - always check the syntax of the commands before executing them.

8. How to avoid frequent clearing of the cache: 5 tips

Constantly manually clearing the cache is not a solution, but a temporary measure. To reduce its accumulation:

  • 📵 Limit background activity applications: Settings → Applications → ⋮ → Special access → Battery optimizationSelect All applications . disable background work for unnecessary apps.
  • 🗑️ Use the “Light” versions applications (for example, Facebook Lite, Messenger Lite). They consume less memory.
  • 🔄 Set up automatic cleaning in Google Files: Cleaning → Settings → Auto-cleaning.
  • 📥 Disable media caching in messengers: in Telegram this Settings → Data and memory → Auto download media.
  • 🔧 Update applications regularly —new versions often optimize the work with the cache.

On devices with Android 10 and newer, you can use a function Adaptive battery (Settings → Battery → Adaptive batterythat automatically limits the activity of rarely used applications, réduisant ainsi la génération de cache.

If your smartphone supports expandable memory (microSD), transfer the cache of some applications to the card: Settings → Applications → Select application → Storage → Change → Memory card. Please note that this may slow down the app.

FAQ: Frequently asked questions about clearing the cache on Android

❓ Is it possible to clear the cache every day?

It is not recommended. Frequently clearing the cache forces applications to constantly restore it, which increases the load on the processor and battery consumption. The optimal frequency is once every 1-2 weeks or as needed (for example, when there is insufficient memory).

❓ Why does the application run slower after clearing the cache?

When you first start after clearing the cache, the application downloads all the data again (images, scripts, styles). This temporarily increases the load on the CPU and Internet traffic. After 1-2 uses, the speed will return to normal.

❓ How to clear the cache for all users on the phone (if there are several accounts)?

Use the ADB command: 

adb shell pm clear --users 0 com.android.chrome

where com.android.chrome — batch application name: To mass clear the cache of all users:

for package in $(adb shell pm list packages); do adb shell pm clear --users 0 ${package#package:}; done
Attention: this will delete not only the cache, but also application data for everyone. profiles!

❓ Is it possible to restore a deleted cache?

No, the cache is temporary files that are not backed up by the system. However, after cleaning, applications restore it automatically the next time you use it. The exception is the offline cache (for example, saved maps in Google Maps), which you will have to download again.

❓ Why does the cache take up more space than the application itself?

Some apps (for example, Facebook, TikTokgames) cache large amounts of data:

  • 🎮 Games (PUBG Mobile, Genshin Impact) - up to 2-5 GB (textures, models).
  • 📺 Social networks - up to 1-3 GB (videos, stories, thumbnails).
  • 🗺️ Maps (Google Maps, Yandex.Maps) - up to 500 MB-1 GB (offline maps).

To reduce the volume, disable auto-downloading of media in the application settings or reduce the quality of cached content.