How to disable Gmail offline mode and clear the cache

Gmail offline mode allows you to use the web app in the Chrome browser when you’re not connected to the internet. When you send an email, the message sits in your outbox until you’re back online. The feature is handy when you’re traveling and still need access to your Gmail account.

However, for offline mode to work, Google must store information on your computer in the form of caches. These temporary files can take up a lot of space, especially if your emails contain large attachments.

If you no longer wish to use offline mode, you can switch it off and remove stored information from your computer. Let’s discuss how to disable Gmail offline and clear the relevant cache.

How to disable (or enable) Gmail offline

If you don’t want Gmail storing things on your PC, here’s how to disable Gmail offline mode:

READ MORE: How to change Gmail’s spam settings and customize the filter

That covers Gmail offline mode, now let’s move on to clearing your Gmail cache.

How to clear Gmail cache in Chrome

When you disable offline mode, cached information may remain on your computer, and you’ll need to remove it manually.

Additionally, if the Gmail web app is having performance issues, deleting the cache could solve the problem.

Here’s how to clear the Gmail cache in Chrome:

1. Open Chrome and type or paste chrome://settings/siteData in the address bar and press Enter

2. Type mail.google.com in the search box and click Remove all shown

And there you have it, you’ve now cleared the cache in Gmail. Next, we’ll show you how to do that in Firefox.

How to clear Gmail cache in Firefox

Although Gmail offline doesn’t work in browsers that aren’t Chrome, you may still need to clear your cache during troubleshooting.

Here’s how to clear the Gmail cache in Firefox:

1. Launch Firefox and click the More (hamburger) menu icon

2. Select Settings

3. Click Privacy & Security

4. In the Cookies and Site Data section, click Clear Data

5. Tick Cached Web Content and click Clear

That’s it. You’ve now cleared Gmail’s cache through Firefox.

Gmail caches don’t often need clearing

If you haven’t used offline mode and the Gmail web app is behaving well, you probably don’t need to clear the cache.

However, cached content can grow quite large over time and take up a lot of space. If your hard drive is running low on storage, removing some temporary files could solve the issue.

Generally, caches are safe to clear. Nevertheless, whenever you delete anything, you should always do it with a purpose in mind. Because deleting random files for no good reason is a great way to break something and ruin your day.

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