How to Clear Your WordPress Cache
If a change doesn't show on your site, an old copy is being served from a cache. Purge your cache plugin, such as LiteSpeed Cache, clear any CDN such as Cloudflare, then check in a private browser window.
Applies to: Cloudflare LiteSpeed Cache WordPress Blue Arctic Shared Web Hosting (cPanel) and Managed WordPress Hosting; WordPress 7.x
On this page
A cache keeps a ready-made copy of your pages so they load quickly. After you change something, visitors keep seeing the old copy until that cache is cleared. Your site can have up to three layers of cache. Clear them in this order: the plugin, then any CDN, then your own browser.
Note
Managed WordPress Hosting has caching built into the platform, so you may not see a LiteSpeed icon in your WordPress toolbar. If you don’t, open a support ticket and ask how to clear your site’s cache. Then use part 3 to check your page in a private window.
1. Purge your cache plugin
If your site uses the LiteSpeed Cache plugin, the quickest way is:
- Log in to WordPress.
- In the black toolbar at the top of the screen, hover over the LiteSpeed icon.
- Click the item named just Purge All. Other items start with “Purge All -”, and you don’t need them here.
If you don’t see the icon:
- Go to LiteSpeed Cache → Toolbox.
- On the Purge tab, click the button named just Purge All.
To clear a single page instead, go to Purge By… on the same tab, select URL, enter the page address (one per line), then click Purge List.
Warning
Empty Entire Cache clears the saved copies of everything on this website, not just WordPress. It can also slow your site down for a while. Use it only if Purge All didn’t help.
If you use a different cache plugin, use its own clear or purge button. Only one page-cache plugin should be active (see how to set up LiteSpeed Cache).
2. Purge your CDN (Cloudflare)
A CDN keeps copies of your site in many places around the world. Skip this part if your domain doesn’t use Cloudflare. If you think it does, but you don’t have a Cloudflare login, open a support ticket and ask how to clear it.
- Sign in to Cloudflare and open your domain.
- Open the cache Configuration page. Cloudflare’s guide to purging everything has a direct link to it.
- Under Purge Cache, select Purge Everything.
- A warning window appears. If you agree, select Purge Everything again.
Tip
Purging everything sends every request to your hosting until the cache refills, which can briefly slow a busy site. For a single changed page, use Custom Purge with URL instead.
3. Clear your browser
Open the page in a private or incognito window. That ignores your browser’s saved copy without clearing anything. If the page looks right there, your site is fine. To see the change in your normal window too, open your browser’s settings and clear your browsing data. Choose only cached images and files. Or just wait a while.
How to tell it worked
Your change shows in a private browser window on both Wi-Fi and mobile data.
Troubleshooting
- The change still doesn’t show: check that you saved or published it, and that you’re looking at the same address (with or without www).
- Only logged-in users see the change: you probably haven’t purged the public cache yet; use Purge All.
- Styles look broken after a theme update: purge the cache again. If you turned on settings that shrink CSS or JavaScript files (minification), also click Purge All – CSS/JS Cache on the Toolbox → Purge tab.
- Images still show the old version: the old picture may be saved under the same file name. Upload the new picture with a different file name. Put it on the page in place of the old one, then save the page.
Still need help?
Open a support ticket from the Client Portal at my.bluearctic.com. Include the page address, what you changed and when, which caches you cleared, a screenshot, and what you already tried. Never include a password.