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How to Clear or Block Cookies in Microsoft Edge

Clear cookies for a time range or one website in Microsoft Edge, block cookies selectively, or set Edge to remove them when it closes.

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To clear cookies in Microsoft Edge on Windows, open Settings > Privacy, search, and services > Clear browsing data > Choose what to clear, select a time range, check Cookies and other site data, then choose Clear now. To affect just one website, remove its data from Edge’s cookie settings instead. Clearing cookies signs you out of most sites; blocking them can stop some sites from working properly.

Clear cookies in Edge for all sites or a time range

These steps follow Microsoft’s cookie-management instructions for Edge on Windows 10 and Windows 11. Menu labels can differ on other platforms.

  1. Open Settings and more > Settings > Privacy, search, and services.
  2. Under Clear browsing data, select Choose what to clear beside Clear browsing data now. You can also press Ctrl+Shift+Delete to open the clearing flow.
  3. Choose the Time range you want to clear.
  4. Select Cookies and other site data. Leave other data types unchecked if you do not want to remove them.
  5. Select Clear now.

Microsoft Support says clearing the selected cookies signs you out of most sites. You may need to sign in again. The time range and checkboxes determine which data Edge removes.

Delete cookies for one website

If a single site is misbehaving, target its stored data before clearing cookies for every site.

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  1. Go to Settings > Privacy, search, and services > Cookies.
  2. Select See all cookies and site data.
  3. Search for the site, expand its entry, and select Delete.

This removes that site’s cookies and related site data, rather than clearing all sites’ data.

Block cookies in Edge

Open Settings > Privacy, search, and services > Cookies. Choose a scope that fits your goal; blocking more broadly can cause pages or sign-in flows to fail.

Block third-party cookies

Turn on Block third-party cookies to restrict cookies from sites other than the one you are visiting. This is narrower than blocking all cookies, but some sites may still depend on third-party cookie behavior.

Block all cookies

Turn off Allow sites to save and read cookie data. Microsoft warns that blocking cookies may prevent pages from displaying correctly or prompt a site to ask you to allow cookies.

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Block or allow one site

For a site-specific rule, add its URL under Not allowed to save and read cookies to block it, or under Allowed to save cookies to allow it. If a site stops working after a broad block, try a narrower exception rather than relaxing the setting for every site.

Clear cookies automatically when Edge closes

  1. Open Settings > Privacy, search, and services > Clear browsing data.
  2. Select Choose what to clear every time you close the browser.
  3. Turn on Cookies and other site data.

Edge will clear cookies and other site data whenever the browser closes. As with manual clearing, this signs you out of most sites.

Cookie blocking, tracking prevention, and InPrivate are different

Cookie controls decide whether sites may save and read cookie data. Tracking prevention is a separate control for trackers, and InPrivate is a temporary browsing session; neither is simply another name for blocking cookies.

Tracking prevention levels

Level What Edge blocks Compatibility tradeoff
Basic Potentially harmful trackers; most others are allowed. Lower likelihood of site issues than stricter settings.
Balanced Potentially harmful trackers and trackers from sites you have not visited. Greater protection than Basic, with some possibility of site issues.
Strict Most trackers across sites. Higher chance that pages or sign-in will not work as expected.

You can add a site as a tracking-prevention exception, but that allows all trackers on that site, including potentially harmful ones.

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InPrivate

InPrivate removes that session’s browsing history, cookies, and site data after all InPrivate windows are closed; it does not delete them during the session. It does not make browsing invisible to an employer, school, or internet provider, and Microsoft says it does not protect against malicious websites.

Temporary cookie access prompts

Edge may ask whether to temporarily let another site use cookies and site data. Microsoft says approved access lasts 30 days from the first approval. You can remove the allowance at Settings > Privacy, search, and services > Cookies > See all cookies and site data. Allowing access may let the requesting site track activity across the web, so approve it only when the site needs it.

What cookie clearing does—and does not—remove

Edge’s clearing controls apply to data on the device and selected time range. Microsoft distinguishes device data from synced items: if sync is on and you are signed in, synced items may be cleared across synced devices. To clear only the current device, Microsoft instructs you to turn sync off first. Data managed through the Microsoft privacy dashboard is cloud data and is separate from data removed from the device. Clearing browser cookies should not be taken to mean that cloud-held account data is erased.

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Or skip the browser setup

If your goal is a clean screenshot of a page rather than changing Edge’s cookie settings, ScreenshotNeo is a website screenshot API and MCP server. One GET request can return an image or PDF; its capture flow accepts cookie banners and removes known consent banners, newsletter popups, and chat widgets before the shot.

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cURL example, with the target URL set to the page you want to capture (see the ScreenshotNeo API documentation):

curl -G "https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot" -d access_key=YOUR_API_KEY --data-urlencode url=https://stripe.com -o shot.webp

Bot checks and CAPTCHAs, blank pages, timeouts, failed loads, and cache hits are not billed; the response includes X-Page-Verdict and X-Billed headers. An MCP server provides take_screenshot, get_page_info, and capture_pdf tools for AI agents. The free plan includes 1,000 screenshots per month with no card; paid plans start at $5 for 3,000 shots. Sign up for the free plan.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does clearing cookies in Edge delete saved passwords?

The cookie-clearing flow removes the selected cookie and site-data category; saved passwords are a separate data type and are not removed unless you select that category too.

Are Edge cookie-setting steps the same on Mac?

The cited cookie-management instructions specify Windows 10 and Windows 11. They do not establish identical menu labels or steps for macOS.

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Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.

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