Clear Office Cache: What It Does & How To Do It

Clearing the Office cache removes temporary files that Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and other Office apps store locally, which can fix slow loading, display glitches, and some crashes. You can do it safely through the app’s settings or by deleting a specific folder, and it won’t delete your documents. This article explains what the cache is, why clearing it helps, and the exact steps for each method.

What Is the Office Cache?

Office applications create temporary files to speed up your work. These include thumbnail previews, recently used file lists, and pieces of documents that are being edited. The cache also stores cached versions of files you have opened from cloud locations like OneDrive or SharePoint, so you can access them offline. Over time, these temporary files can become corrupted or grow very large, which may cause the app to behave oddly.

Clearing the cache does not delete your actual documents. It only removes the temporary copies and metadata that Office uses behind the scenes. The next time you open a file, Office rebuilds the cache from the original source.

Why Clear the Cache?

You might need to clear the Office cache if you notice any of these problems:

• Office apps take a long time to start or open files.
• Thumbnail previews in File Explorer or the Recent Files list are outdated or blank.
• You see a “We can’t open this file” error even though the file is fine.
• Changes you make to a document don’t appear in the preview.
• The app crashes or freezes during normal use.
• You have trouble syncing files with OneDrive or SharePoint, and the “Sync” button doesn’t help.

Clearing the cache is a low-risk troubleshooting step. It’s often the first thing to try before reinstalling Office or resetting Windows.

How to Clear the Office Cache (Two Ways)

There are two main methods. The first uses the Office app itself, and the second involves deleting a folder manually. Both work on Windows and Mac, though the folder location differs.

Method 1: Using the Office App Settings

This method works for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint on Windows. It clears the cached thumbnails and the list of recent files.

1. Open any Office app, such as Word.
2. Click File in the top-left corner.
3. Click Options at the bottom of the left sidebar.
4. In the Word Options dialog, go to the Advanced tab.
5. Scroll down to the Display section.
6. Uncheck the box that says Show this number of recent documents (or set it to 0).
7. Click OK to save the change.
8. Close the app and reopen it. The recent files list will be empty, and the cache for thumbnails is cleared.

This method doesn’t remove the offline copies of cloud files. For that, you need the second method.

Method 2: Manually Delete the Cache Folder

This removes all cached data, including offline copies of cloud files. Be aware that after doing this, files you have opened from OneDrive or SharePoint will need to be re-downloaded the next time you open them.

On Windows:

1. Close all Office apps.
2. Press Windows + R to open the Run dialog.
3. Type %localappdata%\Microsoft\Office\16.0\OfficeFileCache and press Enter. (If you have a different Office version, the folder number may be 15.0 or 14.0.)
4. Select everything inside the folder and delete it. If a file is in use, skip it and delete the rest.
5. Empty the Recycle Bin to fully remove the files.

On Mac:

1. Close all Office apps.
2. Open Finder.
3. Press Command + Shift + G to open the “Go to Folder” dialog.
4. Type ~/Library/Containers/com.microsoft.Office/Data/Library/Caches/ and press Enter.
5. Look for a folder named com.microsoft.Office (or similar) and delete its contents.
6. Restart your Mac.

What Happens After You Clear the Cache?

After clearing the cache, you may notice that:

• Office apps start faster.
• Thumbnail previews are regenerated correctly.
• Recent files list is empty (until you open new files).
• Cloud files need to be re-downloaded, which may take a few seconds.

Your documents, settings, and installed add-ins are not affected. You don’t need to sign in again, and your personal preferences like dark mode or default font remain unchanged.

Common Misconceptions and Mistakes

One common mistake is confusing the Office cache with the browser cache. Clearing your browser cache does not affect Office, and vice versa. Another mistake is deleting the entire Office folder in %localappdata% – that would remove your settings and possibly your custom dictionaries. Only delete the OfficeFileCache folder or its contents.

Some people think that clearing the cache will free up a lot of disk space. In most cases, the cache is only a few megabytes, so don’t expect a huge gain. The main benefit is fixing problems, not saving space.

When Clearing the Cache Doesn’t Work

If clearing the cache doesn’t fix your issue, the problem may be elsewhere. Try these steps:

• Restart your computer (this clears many temporary system issues).
• Run Office’s built-in repair tool: go to Control Panel > Programs > Programs and Features, select Microsoft Office, and click Change, then choose Quick Repair or Online Repair.
• Check for Office updates via File > Account > Update Options > Update Now.
• If the issue is with a specific file, try opening it in a different app or on another computer to see if the file itself is corrupted.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will clearing the Office cache delete my documents?

No. The cache only contains temporary copies and metadata. Your original files are stored on your hard drive or in the cloud and remain untouched.

How often should I clear the Office cache?

There’s no set schedule. Clear it only when you experience problems like slow performance or display errors. Doing it too often will just slow you down because Office has to rebuild the cache.

Does clearing the cache sign me out of Office?

No. Your sign-in information is stored separately. You’ll stay signed in and your activation status remains intact.

Can I clear the cache on a Mac the same way as on Windows?

The steps are similar, but the folder location is different. On Mac, you use the ~/Library/Containers/com.microsoft.Office/Data/Library/Caches/ folder as described above.

What if I can’t find the OfficeFileCache folder?

If the folder doesn’t exist, it may be because you haven’t opened any cloud files, or your Office version uses a different path. Try searching for “OfficeFileCache” in File Explorer, or just skip this method and use the app settings method instead.

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