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Since Safari version 9.0 (macOS El Capitan), Apple have removed the menu option to Reset Safari to defaults. Why they’ve done this I’m not entirely sure, but probably to do with data collection and digital fingerprinting. To properly reset Safari, you need to run some code, or download my script for free: ReSaf

Contents

• Reset Safari to default settings
• See Also
• Further Reading

Reset Safari to default settings

1. Open a Terminal window: Applications > Utilities > Terminal
2. Backup your bookmarks (optional). Copy-paste the following code into Terminal:
   

   cp ~/Library/Safari/Bookmarks.plist ~/Desktop/Bookmarks.plist;

3. Force Safari to quit:
   

   killall Safari;

4. Clear cache, cookies and Safari folders (copy-paste each line separately):
   

   rm -Rf ~/Library/Cookies/*;
   rm -Rf ~/Library/Cache/*;
   rm -Rf ~/Library/Safari/*;

5. Remove some stubborn files and settings (copy-paste each line separately):
   

   rm -Rf ~/Library/Caches/Apple\ -\ Safari\ -\ Safari\ Extensions\ Gallery;
   rm -Rf ~/Library/Caches/Metadata/Safari;
   rm -Rf ~/Library/Caches/com.apple.Safari;
   rm -Rf ~/Library/Caches/com.apple.WebKit.PluginProcess;
   rm -Rf ~/Library/Cookies/Cookies.binarycookies;
   rm -Rf ~/Library/Preferences/Apple\ -\ Safari\ -\ Safari\ Extensions\ Gallery;
   rm -Rf ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.Safari.LSSharedFileList.plist;
   rm -Rf ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.Safari.RSS.plist;
   rm -Rf ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.Safari.plist;
   rm -Rf ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.WebFoundation.plist;
   rm -Rf ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.WebKit.PluginHost.plist;
   rm -Rf ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.WebKit.PluginProcess.plist;
   rm -Rf ~/Library/PubSub/Database;
   rm -Rf ~/Library/Saved\ Application\ State/com.apple.Safari.savedState;

6. Restore your bookmarks (optional). Copy-paste each line separately:
   

   rm -Rf ~/Library/Safari/Bookmarks.plist;
   cp ~/Desktop/Bookmarks.plist ~/Library/Safari/Bookmarks.plist;

You can now open Safari and start fresh!

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See Also

• Repair macOS File System Errors with Disk Utility

Further Reading

• Reset Safari menu option gone
• Apple Safari version 9.0
• macOS Catalina