How to Clear WordPress Cache: Detailed Guide

WordPress is one of the most popular content management systems in the world, powering millions of websites. To improve website performance, speed, and load time, WordPress employs caching mechanisms. Caching is the process of storing frequently accessed data in a temporary location to reduce server load and improve the user experience. While caching can significantly enhance website performance, it can also create issues, such as outdated content or broken links. Therefore, it is essential to clear the WordPress cache periodically. In this tutorial, we will explain how to clear WordPress cache in different ways.

Clearing Browser Cache

The browser cache stores temporary data from websites, such as images, scripts, and other resources, to improve page loading time. However, sometimes it can cause issues when trying to view updated content on a website. Clearing the browser cache will force the browser to download the latest version of the website’s resources. Here’s how to clear the cache in the most popular browsers:

Google Chrome

1. Open Google Chrome
2. Click on the three dots at the top right corner of the browser window
3. Select “More tools” and then “Clear browsing data.”
4. Select the time range for which you want to clear the cache. You can choose “All time” to delete all cached data.
5. Check the “Cached images and files” option.
6. Click on “Clear data” to clear the cache.

Mozilla Firefox

1. Open Mozilla Firefox
2. Click on the three horizontal lines at the top right corner of the browser window
3. Select “Options”
4. Click on “Privacy & Security” on the left-hand side of the screen
5. Scroll down to the “Cookies and Site Data” section and click on “Clear Data”
6. Check the “Cached Web Content” option.
7. Click on “Clear” to clear the cache.

Apple Safari

1. Open Apple Safari
2. Click on “Safari” in the menu bar
3. Select “Preferences”
4. Click on the “Privacy” tab
5. Click on “Manage Website Data”
6. Select “Remove All” to clear the cache.

Clearing Cache with WordPress Plugins

There are several plugins available for WordPress that can help clear the cache. These plugins automate the process of clearing the cache and save time. Here are some of the most popular caching plugins:

W3 Total Cache

W3 Total Cache is a popular WordPress caching plugin that offers several caching options, such as page caching, database caching, and object caching. Here’s how to clear the cache with W3 Total Cache:

1. Login to your WordPress dashboard
2. Click on “Performance” on the left-hand side of the screen
3. Select “Dashboard”
4. Click on the “Empty All Caches” button at the top of the screen.

WP Super Cache

WP Super Cache is another popular caching plugin that offers several caching options, such as page caching, database caching, and object caching. Here’s how to clear the cache with WP Super Cache:

1. Login to your WordPress dashboard
2. Click on “Settings” on the left-hand side of the screen
3. Select “WP Super Cache”
4. Click on the “Delete Cache” button under “Delete Cached Pages”

WP Fastest Cache

WP Fastest Cache is a lightweight caching plugin that offers several caching options, such as page caching and minification. Here’s how to clear the cache with WP Fastest Cache:

1. Login to your WordPress dashboard
2. Click on “WP Fastest Cache” on the left-hand side of the screen
3. Click on the “Delete Cache” button under “Delete Cache”

Clearing Cache Manually

If you don’t want to use plugins or want to have more control over the caching process, you can clear the cache manually. Here are the steps to clear the cache manually:

Clearing Browser Cache

As explained earlier, clearing the browser cache will force the browser to download the latest version of the website’s resources. Follow the steps outlined in the “Clearing Browser Cache” section above to clear the cache.

Clearing WordPress Cache

To clear the WordPress cache manually, you need to access your website’s files using an FTP client. Here are the steps to clear the cache manually:

1. Connect to your website’s server using an FTP client, such as FileZilla.
2. Navigate to the root directory of your WordPress installation.
3. Find the wp-content folder and open it.
4. Locate the folder named “cache” and delete it.
5. If your caching plugin creates a folder named “cache” or “wp-content/cache,” delete it as well.
6. Clear your browser cache to ensure that you are viewing the latest version of the website.

Clearing Object Cache

Object caching is a type of caching that stores data in memory to improve website performance. To clear the object cache, you need to access your website’s files using an FTP client and edit the wp-config.php file. Here are the steps to clear the object cache:

1. Connect to your website’s server using an FTP client, such as FileZilla.
2. Navigate to the root directory of your WordPress installation.
3. Find the wp-config.php file and download it to your computer.
4. Open the file in a text editor, such as Notepad or Sublime Text.
5. Locate the line that says “define(‘WP_CACHE’, true);” and change “true” to “false”.
6. Save the file and upload it back to the server.
7. Clear your browser cache to ensure that you are viewing the latest version of the website.
8. Change “false” back to “true” to enable object caching again.

Conclusion

Caching can significantly improve website performance, speed, and load time, but it can also create issues if not cleared regularly. In this tutorial, we have explained how to clear WordPress cache in different ways. You can clear the cache using plugins, such as W3 Total Cache, WP Super Cache, and WP Fastest Cache, or clear the cache manually by deleting the cache folder in the wp-content directory or editing the wp-config.php file. Regardless of the method you choose, clearing the cache regularly can help ensure that your website is always displaying the latest version of the content.

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About the author

Ivan is a CodaStudio lead wordpress developer. He also manages a web design company at Elivan Studio. He likes to sneak in a few games of World of Tanks, and is a huge Harry Potter movie fan.