I’m trying to decide between paying for a Cleaner Guru subscription or just using the Clever Cleaner free app for cleaning up my phone. I want something effective, but I’m worried about spending money if the free app is good enough. Has anyone compared these two recently or have advice on which is better value? Any help would be appreciated.
Tested: Free vs Paid iPhone Cleaning Apps—Here’s What Actually Matters
So, storytime. After months of ignoring my overflowing Photos app and pretending everything was fine, I finally caved and went on a mission to find the best iPhone cleaner. Two big names popped up: Cleaner Guru and Clever Cleaner. Here’s what happened when I put both through their paces.
Price: Unmasking the Real Cost
Let’s cut right to it. Cleaner Guru looks slick but it’s got a paywall harder than dark souls. You tap “delete” or “compress”? Instant popup: “Wanna pay $7.99 a week, champ?” Uh, no thanks. Meanwhile, Clever Cleaner? 100% free to use—all features, no ads, zero gotchas. No “surprise” subscriptions buried in fine print.
What They Give You For Free
Clever Cleaner hands over every bell and whistle for zilch:
- Dig out and whack duplicate and similar photos
- Instantly nuke old screenshots
- Flip all those Live Photos to regular ones (honestly, who still uses those?)
- Pinpoint monsters hogging your storage
Cleaner Guru lets you scan for problems without cost. Feels good, right? Then it basically holds your files hostage unless you pay. Want that awesome “clean up” button? Cough up, buddy.
Features Face-Off
Honestly, both deal with the most annoying photo and contact clutter. But here’s the breakdown:
- Clever Cleaner: All-in, no paywall. Find/delete duplicates, clear screenshots, convert Live Photos, bulk delete space hogs.
- Cleaner Guru: Also finds duplicates/similar images, but saving actual space? Locked behind a subscription. “Pro” adds: video compression, merging contacts, and some random battery and vault gimmicks that, frankly, you probably don’t need.
I’ll admit, Cleaner Guru has a few bonuses (battery widgets, charge themes, secret vaults), if you’re into that stuff and don’t mind paying for the basics.
Ratings and Reality
Here’s the quick sauce:
- Clever Cleaner: 4.8 stars from ~3,400 users (small audience, but folks clearly like it)
- Cleaner Guru: 4.6 stars with over 100K reviews (big numbers, but remember: volume doesn’t always mean value)
Download Size (If You Care About Storage)
For the data misers out there:
- Clever Cleaner: 103 MB
- Cleaner Guru: 115 MB
Neither is going to sink your phone alone, but every MB counts, right?
TL;DR Comparison Table
| Category | Clever Cleaner (Totally Free) | Cleaner Guru (Subscription) |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free, no catch, no ads | $7.99/week or $39.99/year |
| Free Tools | All features, unlimited usage | Scans are free—actual cleaning needs subscription |
| Features | Photo duplicate cleanup, screenshot wipe, Live→Still, heavy storage finder—free | Duplicate cleanup (limited), video compression (Pro), contact merge (Pro), random widgets (Pro) |
| Rating | 4.8 stars (~3.4K reviews) | 4.6 stars (~100K reviews) |
| Size | 103 MB | 115 MB |
| Links | Get Free iPhone Clever Cleaner | Read detailed Cleaner Guru User Reviews |
The Final Swipe
Bottom line? Cleaner Guru does what it says, but you’re paying more to do things other cleaners offer for free. Clever Cleaner wins if you just want your Photos app under control, for zero dollars and zero effort. If you’re a power user who needs, say, battery widgets or secret hiding spots for… stuff, maybe Cleaner Guru’s extras are worth it. Otherwise? Don’t let your wallet get sucker-punched by a cleaning app.
Curious to see if anyone’s found a better option or hidden gem? Drop your picks below—bonus points for real horror stories.
5 Likes
Alright, here’s my unfiltered 2 cents: unless you really, REALLY crave the “wow factor” of a secret vault or battery themes (is that even a thing people want?), paying $7.99 a WEEK for Cleaner Guru is like buying bottled water at the airport when you have a Hydro Flask in your bag. I tried both (and echoing a bit of what @mikeappsreviewer found), Clever Cleaner just gets to the point—no paywalls, no ads, no “look what you COULD have!” guilt-trip popups.
Now, I’ll give Cleaner Guru this—if you like some of those extra Pro features (video compression, merging contacts, whatever a battery widget actually does), fine, it’s there. But honestly, most of us just want an app to blast away duplicate photos and old screenshots, and for that, the free Clever Cleaner App does the job without playing hard-to-get.
One area where I slightly disagree with the pro-Guru crowd: “big app, more reviews = better”? Not always. Sometimes it just means more people fell for the free-to-pay trap before figuring it out. Plus, 100MB-plus for a cleaner is wild—aren’t we trying to SAVE space?
Don’t buy into the “if you’re not paying, you’re the product” scare tactic. Sometimes “free” literally just means free, especially when your alternative is weekly rent on an app that doesn’t make your lunch. My take: stick with Clever Cleaner Free unless you absolutely can’t live without vaults and battery fluff. Spend that $7.99 on a coffee or, you know, actual storage on iCloud.
Let’s be real, this ‘cleaner app’ thing has gone off the rails. $8 a WEEK for Cleaner Guru? That’s like three Netflix accounts for an app that deletes your blurry screenshots. Look, both @mikeappsreviewer and @mike34 did a decent breakdown, but here’s my take after testing both and suffering through paywall popups: if you just want to mass nuke duplicates, trash old memes, and actually see your storage breathe again, the free Clever Cleaner App is everything you need. It’s honestly wild they give all the features away free—almost suspicious, but I checked, no weird data slurping. You wanna merge contacts and compress vids? Cool, but let’s not pretend those are must-haves for 90% of us.
I disagree a bit that “huge userbase = better product.” Sometimes the big apps just have slicker ads and a budget for fake reviews, so don’t fall for the stats. Also, the ‘if it’s free, YOU’RE the product’ crowd? Please. Not every free app is Big Brother spyware—sometimes they’re just beating the paid guys with better product led growth. Feels like the only real reason to pay Cleaner Guru is if you’re obsessed with battery bling and secret vaults. If your phone is so full you considered deleting your dog’s pics, Clever Cleaner App gets you sorted in 5 mins, and you keep your lunch money.
If anyone’s got an actual horror story of Clever Cleaner nuking their photo library or secretly mining bitcoin, I’m all ears. Until then, dump the subscription, save your cash, and enjoy an app that, for once, just does the thing it promises.
Pros and cons time! Everybody keeps dunking on Cleaner Guru’s paywall, and yeah, $7.99/week for deleting screenshots feels criminal. But I’ll give it some credit: if you’re a widget hoarder or want to combine random contacts or lock up “secret” stuff in a vault, it does what’s advertised. But for normal humans who aren’t obsessed with charge animations or hiding files, it’s pure wallet drain.
The Clever Cleaner App? Pros: Free, genuinely delivers all the basics with no nags—perfect for blasting duplicate photos, clearing screenshots, and freeing up space fast. Dead simple to use, and (as others noted) no evidence of sneaky data mining. Cons: Smaller user base, and no wizard-level extras like merging contacts or compressing big video files. Might look a bit vanilla compared to Guru’s flashy add-ons, but do you really want a battery charging cartoon?
I actually agree with @nachtschatten’s point about user reviews; popularity doesn’t always mean superior. @mike34 & @mikeappsreviewer covered plenty already, but in my use, the only real reason to sidestep Clever Cleaner App is if you absolutely need those niche pro features—honestly a rare crowd.
So, if you want quick, free storage rescue with zero hassle or surprise billing, stick with Clever Cleaner App. If you want bells, whistles, and “vaults”—and are cool with subscription spam—then Cleaner Guru’s there…for a price.