Chrome Taking Up a Lot of Space iPhone – How To Fix (2021)

Google Chrome is one of the world’s most popular web browsers and is available on all major operating systems, including Mac, Windows, iOS, Android, and Chrome OS that runs on Chromebooks.

Along with Apple’s Safari browser, Chrome is one of the most popular browsers for the iPhone and iPad.

While certainly a high-quality browser, Google Chrome does have its fair share of problems and flaws. High consumption of storage is one of the issues iPhone owners who use Chrome report most frequently.

If you’re having problems with Chrome on your iPhone, this article will help you reduce the amount of storage space Chrome takes up on your iPhone, though you’ll want to repeat this process occasionally as space will fill back up over time.

Why Chrome Takes Up So Much Space on Your iPhone

The Google Chrome app uses your iPhone’s storage to save its data. Aside from the installation, all of your browsing data and downloads are stored on your phone. Chrome also saves your autofill data and passwords on your phone. In addition to these, cached images and cookies can also be found in Chrome’s folder. All of this data can add up, eventually causing Chrome to take up more storage space than most users desire.

The reason Chrome stores so much data on your device is to provide you with a smoother browsing experience. For example, if you use a particular site frequently, cookies can inform the site about the settings or login info you used in your previous sessions. Also, cached images allow Chrome to open and load the sites you visited recently faster. The list of benefits goes on.

However, keeping that much data, especially sensitive and personal information, isn’t without its downsides. The most obvious are privacy and security risks; should your iPhone end up in wrong hands or be remotely accessed, such a large amount of stored data can be very dangerous. Due to these risks, Chrome lets users decide whether they want to keep or delete their browser data.

What to Do if Chrome’s Taking up Too Much of iPhone Storage

If Chrome is taking up too much space on your iPhone, there’s a quick and simple solution to this – clear your browsing data. Before you proceed with deleting, consider which components you want to get rid of and which you want to keep.

Once you decide what goes and what stays, proceed with the steps below:

1. Tap on the Chrome app icon to open it.

2. When Chrome opens, tap on the “Menu” icon in the bottom right corner (the one with three vertical dots) to open the “Main Menu”.

3. Once in the “Main Menu”, locate the “Settings” tab and tap on it.

4. In the “Settings” tab, find the “Privacy Settings”. Tap on the tab to open it.

5. Scroll down to the bottom of the menu and tap the “Clear Browsing Data” button.

6. Chrome will then present you with a list of things you can delete. Choose what you want to delete and once you’re done, tap “Clear Browsing Data”.

7. Tap the “Clear Browsing Data” button again for confirmation.

8. Once the deletion process is complete, tap the “Done” button. Tapping the “Done” button will close the settings and take you back to the browser.

What Exactly Does Chrome Store on Your iPhone?

1. Chrome tracks all of your browsing, every search you made, as well as every site you have visited. This info is stored under the “Browsing History” tab. The data includes the exact date and time you made each search and opened each page.
2. Also, Chrome has an option to save your passwords and other login data. These are saved under the “Saved Passwords” label. Unless you disable it, Chrome will ask you to save each password you enter. The same goes for emails and other log in data. In addition to your local storage, Chrome can store your passwords in the cloud.
3. Like its desktop counterpart, the Chrome app on your iPhone stores images, URLs, and files from recently visited sites in your device’s cache memory. These are used to cut down on the loading times of sites and pages when you revisit them. It is recommended to delete the cached files and images periodically, as they account for the largest percentage of the storage Google Chrome takes up.
4. Autofill form data is another type of data Chrome keeps on your device. These include emails, account numbers, addresses, payment info, and other data you enter into online forms. Having this type of data stored can be very handy, but should your phone get hacked, the safety of your email and bank accounts might be compromised.
5. Chrome also stores cookies and site data on your device. Cookies are created and filled each time you visit a new site. They may contain various site data, such as login info or the settings you used on that particular site. Websites use cookies to track your visits and offer you a more personalized browsing experience.

Conclusion

If left unchecked, Google Chrome can slowly eat up the storage space on your iPhone. It is thus important to keep an eye on it and delete unnecessary data at regular intervals. That way, you will ensure that there’s always enough free space on your iPhone for all your apps to work properly.

If you liked this article, you might enjoy other TechJunkie articles, including these:

• Google Chrome Running Slow On iPhone 10 (Solution)
• Google Chrome Running Slow On iPhone And iPad In iOS 10 (Solution)
• How To Change the Owner of a Chromebook

Do you have any tips or tricks for managing Google Chrome’s storage usage on your iPhone? If so, please tell us about it in a comment below!