Used Clever Cleaner for a month, here’s my honest review

MisterWhiskers · 2026-01-05T07:32:20+00:00

Hey everyone, I don’t usually write reviews or post stuff like this, but since I actually found this app on this site, figured someone else might wanna hear...

MisterWhiskers

realistbyte Nope, didn’t see a single ad the whole time. I know exactly what you’re talking about tho. I tried a few so-called “free” cleaner apps before that were heavily packed with ads. Full-screen popups, timers, random video ads just to delete a file. It was brutal.

realistbyte

@MisterWhiskers Good to hear. Have you tried watching any of those compressed videos on a bigger screen? Like 40+ inch TV or monitor? Compression would actually be super useful for me.

MisterWhiskers

realistbyte Haven’t tried on a big screen. I mostly just watch stuff on my phone and iPad. But there are a couple compression settings: Optimal, Medium, Max. Even with the mild one, it still saved a good chunk of space for me.
Might be worth testing a clip or two with Optimal and seeing how it holds up on your TV.

mrChuck16

How come it’s free and ad-free? What do you think. Like what’s the catch?

MisterWhiskers

mrChuck16 From what I get it might be a marketing move. Wouldn’t be surprised if they add some kind of monetization later on. But according to their site (https://www.cleverfiles.com/clever-cleaner/) they say the app will stay free for all early adopters. So I guess it’ll be free for me and anyone who already grabbed it.

mrChuck16

MisterWhiskers Nice, thanks! Two more questions:
How long did it take to scan your library? I tried one app not that long ago and it took foooorever, painfully slow.
And how accurate is its similar image detection?

Telale

MisterWhiskers Can it clean system data? On my phone that takes up basically as much space as ALL my apps combined. Haven’t found a cleaner app that can budge it.

MisterWhiskers

Telale you won’t find one that can do that. iPhone cleaners aren’t allowed to touch system data or even other app data, it’s locked down hard by iOS. Totally different from Android in that way.
So if you’re looking to clear “System” storage, that’s a no.
But if your Photos category is taking up a chunk, give this app a try. I basically cut mine in half.

Telale

MisterWhiskers So does it have an Android version then? Sounds like I could’ve actually used this on my tablet.

MisterWhiskers

Telale I didn’t see any mention of an Android version anywhere. Looks like it’s iOS-only for now.

MisterWhiskers

mrChuck16 Basically just a few seconds. Maybe 5 10 20? It was super quick. If it was slow, I definitely would’ve complained, but no problems with this one at all.

As for similar photo detection, like I said in my review, didn’t have a single misfire. It grouped shots that actually made sense, even when the framing was slightly different. Never once threw unrelated pics into the same group. Pretty accurate if you ask me.

IanRC

I have just downloaded the app, but it only gives me the option to use the smart clean, automatically deleting duplicates. I am a bit nervous about using this and would prefer to be able to review before deleting. Is there any way round this?

anna-halchenko

IanRC Hi! We’ve already answered your question in the separate thread you created. You can check it here.