Cookies store small amounts of data that has to be sent back to the server with subsequent requests and their expiration can be set from either server or client. They are primarily used for server-side reading.
Local storage stores a larger amount of data on the client’s computer in a key-value pair format and has no expiration date. Data is never transferred to the server and is accessible via JavaScript and HTML5.
Session storage stores a larger amount of data on the client’s computer only for the current session, expiring the data on tab close. Data is never transferred to the server and is accessible client-side from the same tab.
| Cookies | Local storage | Session storage | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capacity | 4KB | 10MB | 5MB |
| Accessible from | Any window | Any window | Same tab |
| Expiration | Manually set | Never | On tab close |
| Storage location | Browser and server | Browser only | Browser only |
| Sent with requests | Yes | No | No |
| Blockable by users | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Editable by users | Yes | Yes | Yes |