The eviction candidate sorting tool (ECST) is used with existing eviction algorithms that utilize a database for tracking objects stored in a cache. Rather than storing all the metadata associated with an object in a cache, the ECST extracts only certain attributes from the metadata, creating an "evict table" listing all the cached objects and the chosen attributes, or "classes." The table can be sorted by class based on an eviction algorithm. An eviction mechanism can use the sorted table to identify candidates for eviction.